Kiribati records the highest government education spending as a share of GDP in our latest-available country comparison, allocating 16.39% of GDP to education in 2023, according to World Bank data sourced from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Tuvalu follows at 12.85%, while Namibia (9.08%), Algeria (8.98%) and Cuba (8.44%) complete the top five.
The rankings reveal a striking mix of small Pacific island nations, African economies and established education systems. However, spending a larger share of GDP does not necessarily mean spending more money overall—or achieving better educational outcomes.
This analysis compares the latest available government education expenditure figures from 2022–2024, using a consistent measure: education spending as a percentage of GDP.
Countries with the highest government education spending as a share of GDP. Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (UNESCO Institute for Statistics). Reporting years vary. Visualization: The Data Visual.
Education Spending by Country: Top 50 Rankings
Kiribati leads the ranking with education expenditure equivalent to 16.39% of GDP, followed by Tuvalu at 12.85%.
Namibia and Algeria rank third and fourth, while Cuba completes the top five. The Solomon Islands (8.29%), Marshall Islands (7.70%), Vanuatu (7.64%), Mauritania (7.61%) and Bolivia (7.54%) make up the remaining top ten.
The searchable table below ranks 50 countries by government education spending as a percentage of GDP, using their latest available observations within the selected 2022–2024 reporting window.
Each entry includes the country's reported spending share and the year of the observation.
Note: Figures represent government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP, rounded to two decimal places. The countries in this table have observations from 2022–2024. Rankings are based on the original values before rounding.
Key Findings From the Rankings
Small Pacific Island Nations Lead the Ranking
Kiribati and Tuvalu occupy the first two positions, with reported education expenditure of 16.39% and 12.85% of GDP, respectively.
The Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands and Vanuatu also feature in the top ten.
Together, these five Pacific island nations account for half of the leading ten countries.
Their positions highlight the importance of interpreting education spending relative to the size of an economy. A high percentage of GDP does not necessarily translate into a larger education budget in absolute monetary terms.
Several African Countries Allocate Large Shares of GDP to Education
Namibia ranks third with government education expenditure of 9.08% of GDP in 2024, followed closely by Algeria at 8.98%.
Mauritania also appears in the top ten at 7.61%.
Further down the ranking, Lesotho records 6.62%, while South Africa allocates 6.02%.
These figures highlight the substantial share of national economic output devoted to public education in several African countries, although differences in government finances, education systems and reporting years remain important.
Nordic Countries Feature Prominently
Sweden and Iceland rank just outside the top ten, reporting education expenditure of 7.32% and 7.31% of GDP, respectively.
Finland follows at 6.38%, while Denmark records 6.36%.
Norway, at 5.43%, also appears in the top 50.
These figures show that several Nordic countries devote notable shares of their economic output to public education. However, the percentages alone do not reveal differences in spending per student or educational performance.
Education Spending Exceeds the International Benchmark in Many Leading Countries
The Education 2030 Framework for Action identifies government education expenditure of 4–6% of GDP as an international financing benchmark.
Every country in this top 50 ranking reports a figure above 5% of GDP, with the highest-ranked countries well above the benchmark range.
Nevertheless, spending levels should be assessed alongside funding efficiency, access to education, learning outcomes and differences in the cost of providing services.
What Does Education Spending as a Percentage of GDP Mean?
Education spending as a percentage of GDP measures how much a government spends on education relative to the total economic output of a country.
For example, if a government spends an amount equivalent to 5% of GDP on education, its public education expenditure represents one-twentieth of the country's annual economic output.
The indicator generally covers government spending on education at different levels, including primary, secondary and tertiary education.
It can include operating expenses, capital investment and government transfers related to education.
Unlike the share of total government expenditure devoted to education, this measure uses the country's GDP as the denominator.
That distinction matters because two countries can allocate similar percentages of GDP to education while spending very different amounts in absolute terms.
Does Higher Education Spending Mean Better Education?
Not necessarily.
Government spending provides important resources for schools, universities, teachers, infrastructure and educational services.
However, educational outcomes depend on more than funding alone.
How effectively resources are distributed, teacher availability and training, student participation, school infrastructure and educational policies can all influence results.
A higher spending ratio may reflect a strong financial commitment to education, but it does not automatically demonstrate better teaching quality, higher literacy or stronger student performance.
For a more complete comparison, education expenditure should be examined alongside learning outcomes, school completion rates and educational access.
Why Reporting Years Matter
Education expenditure statistics are not reported simultaneously by every country.
For example, Namibia and Algeria have observations from 2024, Kiribati and Tuvalu from 2023, and Cuba from 2022.
As a result, the rankings combine figures from different reporting periods rather than describing government education spending in one common year.
GDP can also change significantly between reporting periods, affecting expenditure ratios even when education budgets move differently.
Readers should therefore use the Data Year column when making comparisons.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country spends the highest percentage of GDP on education?
Kiribati ranks first in this comparison, with government education expenditure equivalent to 16.39% of GDP in 2023, according to the World Bank dataset.
How much does Namibia spend on education?
Namibia reports government education spending of 9.08% of GDP in 2024, placing it third in this ranking.
What is the recommended percentage of GDP for education spending?
The Education 2030 Framework for Action identifies 4–6% of GDP as an international government education financing benchmark.
Does education spending include private school fees?
This indicator measures government expenditure on education. It does not represent all private household spending on school fees, tutoring or other educational costs.
About the Data and Methodology
This analysis uses the World Bank's Government Expenditure on Education, Total (% of GDP) indicator (SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS), published through the World Development Indicators database.
The underlying education finance data are supplied by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), which collects statistics from national governments and other official reporting systems.
The indicator measures general government expenditure on education, including current spending, capital expenditure and transfers, as a percentage of gross domestic product.
For this ranking, The Data Visual selected each eligible country's latest available observation within the 2022–2024 reporting window.
Regional and income-group aggregates, dependent territories and countries without sufficiently recent observations were excluded.
The resulting table presents the 50 highest-ranked eligible countries. The reporting years represented in the final top 50 are 2022, 2023 and 2024.
Countries are ranked from highest to lowest using their original reported values. Percentages are displayed to two decimal places.
These figures represent reported government spending, not 2026 spending estimates. Differences in national reporting coverage, accounting practices and observation years may affect international comparability.
The indicator measures education expenditure relative to GDP, not absolute government spending, spending per student or educational quality.
Data Sources
- World Bank — Government Expenditure on Education (% of GDP)
- World Bank — Indicator Definition and Methodology
- UNESCO Institute for Statistics — Education Expenditure (% of GDP)
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