Share of children out of school — all countries

Share of children out of school — United States

Share of children out of school in the United States in 2022 — 3.98%. Ranked 85 in the world out of 145. Since 2005, the indicator has risen by 3.42 pp.

2022 3.98% −0.11 pp vs 2021
World rank 85of 145
Period maximum 4.1%2021
Period minimum 0.36%2016

Trend over time

2005–2022 · % of primary school-age children

Share of children out of school — United States, 2005–2022024620052007200920112013201520172019202120222005: 0.57%2013: 2.9%2015: 1.81%2016: 0.36%2017: 0.42%2018: 0.57%2019: 0.92%2020: 2.01%2021: 4.1%2022: 3.98%
Change over the period: +3.42 pp Annual average: 0.2 pp

Comparison, 2022

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: United States

United States 3.98%
World computed 7.01%
High-income countries computed 2.38%
Share of children out of school — United States, by year United States All countries CSV XLSX
Year % Change, pp
2022 3.98 −0.11 pp
2021 4.1 +2.09 pp
2020 2.01 +1.09 pp
2019 0.92 +0.34 pp
2018 0.57 +0.15 pp
2017 0.42 +0.06 pp
2016 0.36 −1.45 pp
2015 1.81
2013 2.9
2005 0.57

Northern America, 2022

The same indicator for neighboring countries — with links to their pages

US United States 3.98 CA Canada 5.27

About the indicator

The share of children of primary school age not attending school. Unlike the absolute count, the indicator speaks to the state of the education system in a country, and it shows that the task does not reduce to poverty: at comparable income the shares differ severalfold, and the highest values come from countries where schooling is obstructed by conflict or by a nomadic way of life.

Important: The aggregate is weighted by the number of children aged 0–14: total population is the wrong weight here — the share of children differs fourfold across countries.

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), license CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO.