Primary education, pupils in United States

United States: Primary education, pupils was 23.83 million in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
23.83 million
Change on year
up 1.3%
World rank
6th
of 206 countries
All-time high
25.12 million
in 2017
All-time low
23.52 million
in 2022
Years of data
10
2014–2023

Primary education, pupils in United States, 2014–2023

010.0M20.0M30.0M2014201820232014: 24.5M2015: 24.8M2016: 25.0M2017: 25.1M2018: 25.0M2019: 24.8M2020: 24.5M2021: 23.9M2022: 23.5M2023: 23.8M

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for primary education, pupils in United States is 23.83 million, measured in 2023.

That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and down 2.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, primary education, pupils in United States peaked at 25.12 million in 2017 and was at its lowest, 23.52 million, in 2022.

That places United States 6th out of 206 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 24.87 million 24.54 million 25.12 million 6
2020s 23.93 million 23.52 million 24.47 million 4

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 3 Nigeria 33.42 million compare
  2. 4 Indonesia 28.68 million compare
  3. 5 Pakistan 25.38 million compare
  4. 7 Democratic Republic of Congo 21.15 million compare
  5. 8 Bangladesh 16.69 million compare
  6. 9 Ethiopia 15.93 million compare

See the full ranking of 251 places →

More education data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is primary education, pupils in United States?
Primary education, pupils in United States was 23.83 million in 2023, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
What is the highest primary education, pupils recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 25.12 million in 2017.
What is the lowest primary education, pupils recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 23.52 million in 2022.
How does United States rank for primary education, pupils?
United States ranks 6th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
Is primary education, pupils rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States 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 — 10 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.