Of the economies in the World Bank's latest release, Azerbaijan has the highest literacy rate, adult male (% of males ages 15 and above) (99.84% in 2023) and Burkina Faso the lowest (48.68% in 2023). The world figure is 90.91% (2024).
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.
Each country's latest available year is shown; countries report on different schedules, so compare years before comparing values.
Ranking
| # | Economy | Latest value | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Azerbaijan | 99.84% | 2023 |
| 2 | Spain | 99.81% | 2021 |
| 3 | Armenia | 99.77% | 2023 |
| 4 | Georgia | 99.75% | 2024 |
| 5 | West Bank and Gaza | 99.44% | 2024 |
| 6 | Türkiye | 99.26% | 2021 |
| 7 | Singapore | 98.94% | 2021 |
| 8 | Bolivia | 98.76% | 2024 |
| 9 | Uruguay | 98.63% | 2024 |
| 10 | Philippines | 98.41% | 2020 |
| 11 | Maldives | 98.16% | 2019 |
| 12 | Indonesia | 97.45% | 2020 |
| 13 | Venezuela, RB | 97.19% | 2017 |
| 14 | Kuwait | 97.05% | 2020 |
| 15 | Peru | 97% | 2024 |
| 16 | Jordan | 96.6% | 2024 |
| 17 | Mexico | 96.32% | 2024 |
| 18 | Mauritius | 96.1% | 2023 |
| 19 | Paraguay | 95.42% | 2024 |
| 20 | Colombia | 94.97% | 2024 |
| 21 | Ecuador | 94.49% | 2024 |
| 22 | Brazil | 94.45% | 2024 |
| 23 | Dominican Republic | 93.6% | 2024 |
| 24 | Sri Lanka | 93.53% | 2024 |
| 25 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 92.75% | 2023 |
| 26 | Tunisia | 92.69% | 2023 |
| 27 | El Salvador | 91.62% | 2024 |
| 28 | South Africa | 91.5% | 2024 |
| 29 | Thailand | 90.67% | 2022 |
| 30 | Cambodia | 90.29% | 2023 |
| 31 | Honduras | 87.61% | 2024 |
| 32 | Guatemala | 86.87% | 2024 |
| 33 | India | 85.69% | 2024 |
| 34 | Egypt, Arab Rep. | 85.29% | 2022 |
| 35 | Bangladesh | 81.39% | 2022 |
| 36 | Uganda | 81.26% | 2024 |
| 37 | Zambia | 80.6% | 2024 |
| 38 | Pakistan | 69.14% | 2021 |
| 39 | Senegal | 61.47% | 2023 |
| 40 | Burkina Faso | 48.68% | 2023 |
Regions and income groups
More education indicators
- Literacy rate, youth female (% of females ages 15-24)
- Literacy rate, youth (ages 15-24), gender parity index (GPI)
- Literacy rate, youth male (% of males ages 15-24)
- Literacy rate, youth total (% of people ages 15-24)
- Literacy rate, adult female (% of females ages 15 and above)
- Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above)
- Compulsory education, duration (years)
- School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)
- School enrollment, primary and secondary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)
- School enrollment, secondary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)
- School enrollment, tertiary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)
- Preprimary education, duration (years)
Reading data like this
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, SE.ADT.LITR.MA.ZS, 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. View on data.worldbank.org; the full definition is in the World Bank's metadata glossary.
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