Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in OECD members
OECD members: Pupil-teacher ratio, primary was 15.32 in 2018. ▼ Falling
Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in OECD members, 1970–2018
Source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
OECD members recorded 15.32 for pupil-teacher ratio, primary in 2018. That is the lowest value across all 49 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and down 5.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, pupil-teacher ratio, primary in OECD members peaked at 20.75 in 1971 and was at its lowest, 15.32, in 2018.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 49 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 20.54 | 20.43 | 20.75 | 10 |
| 1980s | 19.63 | 19.04 | 20.15 | 10 |
| 1990s | 18.29 | 17.85 | 18.91 | 10 |
| 2000s | 16.81 | 16.1 | 17.52 | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.71 | 15.32 | 16 | 9 |
More education data for OECD members
- Population ages 15-64 64.5% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 16.4% (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 100.7% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 6.28 million (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 100.4% (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, male 100.9% (2024)
- Labor force, female 44.8% (2025)
- Labor force, total 709.91 million (2025)
- School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index 0.9973 GPI (2020)
- School enrollment, secondary 105.4% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pupil-teacher ratio, primary in OECD members?
- Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in OECD members was 15.32 in 2018, according to Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest pupil-teacher ratio, primary recorded in OECD members?
- The highest recorded value was 20.75 in 1971.
- What is the lowest pupil-teacher ratio, primary recorded in OECD members?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.32 in 2018.
- Is pupil-teacher ratio, primary rising or falling in OECD members?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this OECD members data come from?
- The figures come from Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Pupil-teacher ratio, primary. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Primary school pupil-teacher ratio is the average number of pupils per teacher in primary school.