Primary education, pupils in European Union

European Union: Primary education, pupils was 23.26 million in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
23.26 million
Change on year
unchanged
All-time high
32.14 million
in 1971
All-time low
23.03 million
in 2022
Years of data
55
1970–2024

Primary education, pupils in European Union, 1970–2024

010.0M20.0M30.0M197019972024

Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Analysis

European Union recorded 23.26 million for primary education, pupils in 2024.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, primary education, pupils in European Union peaked at 32.14 million in 1971 and was at its lowest, 23.03 million, in 2022.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 30.80 million 26.06 million 32.14 million 10
1980s 29.63 million 28.10 million 30.56 million 10
1990s 26.92 million 26.54 million 27.84 million 10
2000s 24.50 million 23.57 million 26.06 million 10
2010s 23.94 million 23.35 million 24.51 million 10
2020s 23.21 million 23.03 million 23.30 million 5

More education data for European Union

All data for European Union →

Frequently asked questions

What is primary education, pupils in European Union?
Primary education, pupils in European Union was 23.26 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
What is the highest primary education, pupils recorded in European Union?
The highest recorded value was 32.14 million in 1971.
What is the lowest primary education, pupils recorded in European Union?
The lowest recorded value was 23.03 million in 2022.
Is primary education, pupils rising or falling in European Union?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this European Union data come from?
The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Primary education, pupils. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator
Primary education, pupils
Source
Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
251 places, 11,297 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.