Finland vs United States of America: Share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age
Finland
78.3%
in 2022
United States of America
79.0%
in 2022
Finland rank
8th
United States of America rank
7th
Share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age over time
- Finland
- United States of America
How they compare
United States of America currently reports 79.0% against 78.3% in Finland, a difference of 0.7%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 7 shared years of data; in 2000 it was Finland ahead.
Finland ranks 8th and United States of America ranks 7th of 53 countries.
Across the 3 decades both report, Finland averaged higher in 2 and United States of America in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Finland | United States of America | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 92.7% | 79.4% | 13.3% | Finland |
| 2010s | 87.6% | 80.6% | 7.0% | Finland |
| 2020s | 78.3% | 79.0% | 0.7% | United States of America |
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, Finland or United States of America?
- United States of America, at 79.0% against 78.3% in Finland as of 2022.
- What is the difference in share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age between Finland and United States of America?
- 0.7%, with United States of America ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Finland and United States of America?
- 7 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2022.
- How do Finland and United States of America rank globally for share of children achieving minimum reading proficiency by the end of lower-secondary age?
- Finland ranks 8th and United States of America ranks 7th 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.