Australia vs Finland: Share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age
Australia
77.7%
in 2022
Finland
78.3%
in 2022
Australia rank
10th
Finland rank
8th
Share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age over time
- Australia
- Finland
How they compare
Finland currently reports 78.3% against 77.7% in Australia, a difference of 0.6%.
Across all 8 years both countries report, Finland has been ahead every year.
Australia ranks 10th and Finland ranks 8th of 53 countries.
Finland has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | Finland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 84.4% | 93.2% | 8.8% | Finland |
| 2010s | 81.1% | 87.6% | 6.5% | Finland |
| 2020s | 77.7% | 78.3% | 0.6% | Finland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age, Australia or Finland?
- Finland, at 78.3% against 77.7% in Australia as of 2022.
- What is the difference in share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age between Australia and Finland?
- 0.6%, with Finland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and Finland?
- 8 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2022.
- How do Australia and Finland rank globally for share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age?
- Australia ranks 10th and Finland ranks 8th of 53 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Share of children who achieve minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower secondary education. This data accounts for school completion rates to estimate skills for all children, not just those in school.