Iran, Islamic Rep.: Literacy rate, adult male (% of males ages 15 and above)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Iran, Islamic Rep.'s literacy rate, adult male (% of males ages 15 and above) rose 0.25 percentage points on 2022 (from 92.5% to 92.75%).

Across the 15 yearly changes before that (2006 to 2022), the average change was +0.24 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.46 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.82 percentage points in 2012 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.78 percentage points in 2011. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.37 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 98% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 94% for 2026. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2021 to 2023 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.14%, against 0.53% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Iran, Islamic Rep. in the 2023 ranking

• Azerbaijan — 1st of 8: 99.84%
• Armenia — 2nd of 8: 99.77%
• Mauritius — 3rd of 8: 96.1%
• Tunisia — 5th of 8: 92.69%
• Cambodia — 6th of 8: 90.29%
• Senegal — 7th of 8: 61.47%

What this measures

Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.

Limitations: In practice, literacy is difficult to measure. Estimating literacy rates requires census or survey measurements under controlled conditions. Many countries report the number of literate people from self-reported data. Some use educational attainment data as a proxy but apply different lengths of school attendance or levels of completion. And there is a trend among recent national and international surveys toward using a direct reading test of literacy skills. Because definitions and methods of data collection differ across countries, data should be used cautiously.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 23 values

Literacy rate, adult male (% of males ages 15 and above) in nearby economies

• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 85.29% (2022)
• Jordan — 96.6% (2024)
• Kuwait — 97.05% (2020)
• Pakistan — 69.14% (2021)
• Tunisia — 92.69% (2023)
• West Bank and Gaza — 99.44% (2024)

More education data for Iran, Islamic Rep.

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 12 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 9.09 million (2023)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 101.96% (2023)
• School enrollment, preprimary (% gross) — 72.48% (2020)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 102.05% (2023)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 101.88% (2023)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Iran, Islamic Rep.'s literacy rate, adult male (% of males ages 15 and above)?

92.75% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1976?

It is up 44.57 percentage points from 48.18% in 1976. The highest value was 92.75% in 2023 and the lowest 48.18% in 1976.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.ADT.LITR.MA.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through the UIS API. Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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