Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in France
France: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 5.3% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in France, 1970–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
France recorded 5.3% for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in 2022.
The figure is down 1.7% on the previous year and down 2.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in France peaked at 5.8% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 3.2%, in 1971.
That places France 47th out of 199 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.0% | 3.2% | 4.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.7% | 4.3% | 4.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.3% | 4.6% | 5.8% | 8 |
| 2010s | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5.5% | 3 |
| 2020s | 5.5% | 5.3% | 5.7% | 3 |
Countries ranked near France
- 44 South Korea 5.4% compare
- 45 Dominica 5.4% compare
- 46 Burkina Faso 5.3% compare
- 48 Costa Rica 5.3% compare
- 49 Tonga 5.3% compare
- 50 Slovenia 5.3% compare
More reference data data for France
- Number of child deaths per woman 0.0085 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.64 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.64 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 1.64 live births per woman (2023)
- Human Development Index 0.92 (2023)
- Rule of Law - Governance estimate 0.9787 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Rule of Law - Governance score 73.81 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance score 76.95 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate 1.15 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance score 61.77 0-100 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in France?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in France was 5.3% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in France?
- The highest recorded value was 5.8% in 1995.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.2% in 1971.
- How does France rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- France ranks 47th out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this France data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending on education overall vs. primary education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.