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

France: Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education was 9.1% in 2022. ▼ Falling

Latest (2022)
9.1%
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
163rd
of 194 countries
All-time high
11.5%
in 1981
All-time low
9.1%
in 2021
Years of data
23
1981–2022

Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in France, 1981–2022

02.557.51012.51981200120221981: 11.5 %1982: 11.4 %1983: 10.7 %1984: 10.2 %1985: 9.8 %1986: 9.4 %1987: 9.2 %1988: 9.4 %1989: 9.3 %1990: 9.5 %1991: 9.8 %1992: 9.4 %1993: 10.2 %1994: 10.3 %1995: 10.8 %1996: 10.6 %1998: 10.6 %2017: 9.5 %2018: 9.6 %2019: 9.7 %2020: 9.2 %2021: 9.1 %2022: 9.1 %

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

Analysis

France recorded 9.1% for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and down 3.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in France peaked at 11.5% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 9.1%, in 2021.

That places France 163rd out of 194 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 10.1% 9.2% 11.5% 9
1990s 10.1% 9.4% 10.8% 8
2010s 9.6% 9.5% 9.7% 3
2020s 9.1% 9.1% 9.2% 3

Countries ranked near France

  1. 160 Cook Islands 9.2% compare
  2. 161 Guinea 9.2% compare
  3. 162 Palau 9.1% compare
  4. 164 Romania 8.8% compare
  5. 165 Armenia 8.7% compare
  6. 166 Lebanon 8.6% compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More economy & growth data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in France?
Share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in France was 9.1% in 2022, 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 France?
The highest recorded value was 11.5% in 1981.
What is the lowest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 9.1% in 2021.
How does France rank for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education?
France ranks 163rd out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is down 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
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 Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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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.