Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Cook Islands

Cook Islands: Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education was 9.2% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
9.2%
Change on year
down 21.5%
World rank
160th
of 194 countries
All-time high
12.0%
in 2018
All-time low
5.2%
in 1999
Years of data
17
1999–2025

Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Cook Islands, 1999–2025

02.557.51012.51999201220251999: 5.2 %2000: 6.7 %2011: 9.6 %2012: 8.3 %2013: 8.8 %2014: 11.6 %2015: 10.2 %2016: 11.2 %2017: 9.2 %2018: 12 %2019: 11 %2020: 7.9 %2021: 7.5 %2022: 8.9 %2023: 8.9 %2024: 11.7 %2025: 9.2 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Cook Islands is 9.2%, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 21.5% on the previous year and down 9.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Cook Islands peaked at 12.0% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 5.2%, in 1999.

That places Cook Islands 160th out of 194 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 17 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 5.2% 5.2% 5.2% 1
2000s 6.7% 6.7% 6.7% 1
2010s 10.2% 8.3% 12.0% 9
2020s 9.0% 7.5% 11.7% 6

Countries ranked near Cook Islands

  1. 157 Maldives 9.6% compare
  2. 158 Tonga 9.3% compare
  3. 159 Qatar 9.3% compare
  4. 161 Guinea 9.2% compare
  5. 162 Palau 9.1% compare
  6. 163 France 9.1% compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Cook Islands?
Share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in Cook Islands was 9.2% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in Cook Islands?
The highest recorded value was 12.0% in 2018.
What is the lowest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in Cook Islands?
The lowest recorded value was 5.2% in 1999.
How does Cook Islands rank for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education?
Cook Islands ranks 160th out of 194 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education rising or falling in Cook Islands?
Over the last ten years it is down 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Cook Islands data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

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About this data

Indicator
Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 4,043 data points, 1980–2025
Last refreshed

Percentage of total general government spending (across all sectors) that is allocated to education.