Mapped: Which Countries Spend the Most on Education?
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Key Takeaways:
- Kiribati allocates 16.4% of GDP to education, the highest share in the world, while several countries spend less than 2%.
- Among the world’s 40 largest economies, Sweden (7.3%) devotes the largest share of GDP to education, while Indonesia (1.3%) spends the least.
- Most countries invest between 4% and 6% of GDP in education, despite wide differences in income levels.
Government spending on education offers a window into national priorities, but comparing raw budgets can be misleading.
This visualization, created by Iswardi Ishak, maps education spending as a share of GDP across 181 countries using data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, with additional data from Our World in Data.
Expressing spending as a share of GDP makes it easier to compare countries with vastly different economic sizes. While national wealth influences education budgets, policy choices, demographics, and fiscal capacity also shape how much governments invest in their education systems.
Education Spending as a Share of GDP, by Country
The table below shows education spending as a share of GDP across 181 countries.
| Rank | Country/Territory | Education Spending as % of GDP |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kiribati | 16.39 |
| 2 | Tuvalu | 12.85 |
| 3 | Micronesia | 11.56 |
| 4 | Namibia | 9.08 |
| 5 | Algeria | 8.98 |
| 6 | Cuba | 8.44 |
| 7 | Solomon Islands | 8.29 |
| 8 | Botswana | 8.06 |
| 9 | Marshall Islands | 7.70 |
| 10 | Vanuatu | 7.64 |
| 11 | Mauritania | 7.61 |
| 12 | Bolivia | 7.54 |
| 13 | Sweden | 7.32 |
| 14 | Iceland | 7.31 |
| 15 | Kyrgyzstan | 6.83 |
| 16 | Tunisia | 6.73 |
| 17 | Lesotho | 6.62 |
| 18 | Moldova | 6.56 |
| 19 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 6.46 |
| 20 | Kuwait | 6.44 |
| 21 | Finland | 6.38 |
| 22 | Denmark | 6.36 |
| 23 | Belgium | 6.28 |
| 24 | Senegal | 6.16 |
| 25 | Eswatini | 6.03 |
| 26 | South Africa | 6.02 |
| 27 | Morocco | 6.02 |
| 28 | Mozambique | 5.98 |
| 29 | Israel | 5.93 |
| 30 | United Kingdom | 5.91 |
| 31 | Bhutan | 5.85 |
| 32 | Nauru | 5.78 |
| 33 | Brazil | 5.62 |
| 34 | Jamaica | 5.51 |
| 35 | Uzbekistan | 5.47 |
| 36 | Samoa | 5.46 |
| 37 | Tajikistan | 5.44 |
| 38 | Palestine | 5.43 |
| 39 | Norway | 5.43 |
| 40 | United States | 5.42 |
| 41 | South Korea | 5.41 |
| 42 | Dominica | 5.39 |
| 43 | Burkina Faso | 5.33 |
| 44 | France | 5.32 |
| 45 | Costa Rica | 5.31 |
| 46 | Tonga | 5.31 |
| 47 | Slovenia | 5.28 |
| 48 | Austria | 5.28 |
| 49 | Colombia | 5.26 |
| 50 | East Timor | 5.24 |
| 51 | Germany | 5.24 |
| 52 | New Zealand | 5.21 |
| 53 | Mongolia | 5.21 |
| 54 | Estonia | 5.21 |
| 55 | Netherlands | 5.18 |
| 56 | Maldives | 5.17 |
| 57 | Ukraine | 5.14 |
| 58 | Grenada | 5.13 |
| 59 | Australia | 5.06 |
| 60 | Belarus | 5.05 |
| 61 | Sao Tome and Principe | 5.03 |
| 62 | Argentina | 5.00 |
| 63 | Chile | 4.91 |
| 64 | Kazakhstan | 4.86 |
| 65 | Switzerland | 4.86 |
| 66 | Canada | 4.84 |
| 67 | Uruguay | 4.76 |
| 68 | Cyprus | 4.74 |
| 69 | Malta | 4.71 |
| 70 | Slovakia | 4.66 |
| 71 | Belize | 4.62 |
| 72 | Rwanda | 4.61 |
| 73 | Spain | 4.59 |
| 74 | Portugal | 4.55 |
| 75 | Honduras | 4.55 |
| 76 | Burundi | 4.50 |
| 77 | Bulgaria | 4.50 |
| 78 | Saudi Arabia | 4.48 |
| 79 | Seychelles | 4.45 |
| 80 | Guyana | 4.45 |
| 81 | Brunei | 4.43 |
| 82 | Oman | 4.38 |
| 83 | Peru | 4.36 |
| 84 | Cape Verde | 4.35 |
| 85 | Afghanistan | 4.34 |
| 86 | Latvia | 4.32 |
| 87 | Poland | 4.31 |
| 88 | Czechia | 4.30 |
| 89 | Turkmenistan | 4.29 |
| 90 | Puerto Rico | 4.27 |
| 91 | Lithuania | 4.25 |
| 92 | Mauritius | 4.25 |
| 93 | Fiji | 4.25 |
| 94 | Mali | 4.18 |
| 95 | Russia | 4.16 |
| 96 | Togo | 4.14 |
| 97 | India | 4.10 |
| 98 | Croatia | 4.09 |
| 99 | Niger | 4.07 |
| 100 | Zambia | 4.07 |
| 101 | Italy | 4.07 |
| 102 | Mexico | 4.06 |
| 103 | Kenya | 4.02 |
| 104 | Georgia | 3.98 |
| 105 | Philippines | 3.97 |
| 106 | China | 3.90 |
| 107 | United Arab Emirates | 3.89 |
| 108 | Saint Lucia | 3.85 |
| 109 | Hungary | 3.80 |
| 110 | Dominican Republic | 3.76 |
| 111 | Djibouti | 3.75 |
| 112 | Luxembourg | 3.74 |
| 113 | Ecuador | 3.69 |
| 114 | Nepal | 3.69 |
| 115 | Azerbaijan | 3.66 |
| 116 | Cote d'Ivoire | 3.61 |
| 117 | Barbados | 3.56 |
| 118 | Paraguay | 3.53 |
| 119 | Malaysia | 3.51 |
| 120 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 3.50 |
| 121 | Palau | 3.44 |
| 122 | Serbia | 3.40 |
| 123 | Greece | 3.38 |
| 124 | Congo | 3.34 |
| 125 | Japan | 3.34 |
| 126 | El Salvador | 3.32 |
| 127 | Romania | 3.28 |
| 128 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 3.25 |
| 129 | Qatar | 3.23 |
| 130 | Trinidad and Tobago | 3.23 |
| 131 | Jordan | 3.23 |
| 132 | Benin | 3.23 |
| 133 | Chad | 3.20 |
| 134 | Tanzania | 3.16 |
| 135 | Antigua and Barbuda | 3.11 |
| 136 | Turkey | 3.10 |
| 137 | Albania | 3.09 |
| 138 | Guatemala | 3.08 |
| 139 | Madagascar | 3.05 |
| 140 | Ghana | 2.91 |
| 141 | Ireland | 2.90 |
| 142 | San Marino | 2.90 |
| 143 | Vietnam | 2.89 |
| 144 | Nicaragua | 2.87 |
| 145 | Suriname | 2.87 |
| 146 | Democratic Republic of Congo | 2.84 |
| 147 | Cameroon | 2.84 |
| 148 | Iran | 2.82 |
| 149 | Gambia | 2.81 |
| 150 | Malawi | 2.75 |
| 151 | Bahamas | 2.74 |
| 152 | Sierra Leone | 2.62 |
| 153 | Uganda | 2.56 |
| 154 | Thailand | 2.52 |
| 155 | Angola | 2.51 |
| 156 | Panama | 2.47 |
| 157 | Armenia | 2.44 |
| 158 | Comoros | 2.34 |
| 159 | Gabon | 2.32 |
| 160 | Ethiopia | 2.30 |
| 161 | Liberia | 2.27 |
| 162 | Singapore | 2.19 |
| 163 | Cambodia | 2.18 |
| 164 | Bangladesh | 2.03 |
| 165 | Myanmar | 2.00 |
| 166 | Pakistan | 1.95 |
| 167 | Andorra | 1.90 |
| 168 | Bahrain | 1.89 |
| 169 | Central African Republic | 1.83 |
| 170 | Sri Lanka | 1.83 |
| 171 | Monaco | 1.73 |
| 172 | Guinea | 1.72 |
| 173 | South Sudan | 1.57 |
| 174 | Indonesia | 1.28 |
| 175 | Laos | 1.23 |
| 176 | Lebanon | 1.22 |
| 177 | Haiti | 0.96 |
| 178 | Papua New Guinea | 0.78 |
| 179 | Zimbabwe | 0.38 |
| 180 | Nigeria | 0.32 |
| 181 | Somalia | 0.0000081 |
Small island nations dominate the top of the global rankings. Kiribati leads at 16.4% of GDP, followed by Tuvalu (12.9%) and Micronesia (11.6%). Namibia (9.1%) and Algeria (9.0%) also rank highly, showing that large education budgets relative to GDP are not limited to wealthy economies.
Among the world’s 40 largest economies, Sweden leads with 7.3% of GDP dedicated to education, followed by Denmark (6.4%) and Belgium (6.3%). The U.K. (5.9%), Brazil (5.6%), the U.S. (5.4%), and South Korea (5.4%) also rank among the highest-spending major economies.
Why Do Some Countries Spend More Than Others?
Education spending reflects a combination of political priorities, demographics, and fiscal capacity. According to the OECD, countries with younger populations often require larger investments to accommodate growing numbers of students, while aging societies may face less enrollment pressure. Governments must also balance education spending against competing demands such as healthcare, pensions, and infrastructure.
Spending alone, however, does not determine educational outcomes. The World Bank argues that how funds are allocated can be just as important as the size of the budget. Teacher quality, governance, and accountability can all influence whether additional spending improves learning outcomes.
Patterns Across Major Economies
Economic development alone does not explain education spending. High-income countries appear near both the top and bottom of the rankings among major economies. Sweden and Denmark devote more than 6% of GDP to education, while Singapore (2.2%), Ireland (2.9%), and Japan (3.3%) spend considerably smaller shares.
Several emerging economies also allocate larger shares than many wealthier countries. Brazil spends 5.6% of GDP on education, while South Africa spends 6.0%. This suggests that education budgets depend on national policy choices as much as economic output, much like broader differences in tax revenue as a share of GDP.
A higher share of GDP does not automatically translate into stronger educational outcomes. Results also depend on how effectively funding is used, including the quality of teaching, curriculum design, governance, and access to education. Countries with similar spending levels can therefore achieve very different outcomes.
Learn More on the Voronoi App
For another look at how economic conditions vary around the world, see India is Projected to Have the Highest GDP Growth of Key Economies on the Voronoi app.