Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ in New Zealand

New Zealand: Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ was 2,819 millions in 2017. ▲ Rising

Latest (2017)
2,819 millions
Change on year
up 1.7%
World rank
39th
of 153 countries
All-time high
2,839 millions
in 2015
All-time low
829.77 millions
in 1978
Years of data
25
1973–2017

Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ in New Zealand, 1973–2017

1.0k1.5k2.0k2.5k3.0k1973199520171973: 844.4 millions1974: 882.3 millions1975: 972.3 millions1976: 1.2k millions1977: 839.4 millions1978: 829.8 millions1979: 851.5 millions1980: 1.0k millions1981: 1.0k millions1982: 1.1k millions1984: 992.7 millions1985: 899.8 millions1986: 946.5 millions1987: 1.1k millions1988: 1.3k millions1989: 1.5k millions1994: 1.7k millions1995: 1.8k millions1996: 2.0k millions1997: 2.0k millions2013: 2.8k millions2014: 2.7k millions2015: 2.8k millions2016: 2.8k millions2017: 2.8k millions

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in millions.

Analysis

In 2017, government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$ in New Zealand stood at 2,819 millions.

That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and up 1.1% over five years.

Over the whole period, government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$ in New Zealand peaked at 2,839 millions in 2015 and was at its lowest, 829.77 millions, in 1978.

That places New Zealand 39th out of 153 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.

Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ in New Zealand, year by year

Annual values for Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ (millions) in New Zealand, 1973 to 2017.
Year millions Change
1973 844.38 millions
1974 882.25 millions +4.5%
1975 972.31 millions +10.2%
1976 1,162 millions +19.5%
1977 839.39 millions -27.8%
1978 829.77 millions -1.1%
1979 851.48 millions +2.6%
1980 1,021 millions +19.9%
1981 1,045 millions +2.3%
1982 1,056 millions +1.0%
1984 992.66 millions -6.0%
1985 899.82 millions -9.4%
1986 946.49 millions +5.2%
1987 1,081 millions +14.2%
1988 1,297 millions +20.0%
1989 1,499 millions +15.6%
1994 1,684 millions +12.4%
1995 1,790 millions +6.3%
1996 2,005 millions +12.0%
1997 1,973 millions -1.6%
2013 2,788 millions +41.3%
2014 2,676 millions -4.0%
2015 2,839 millions +6.1%
2016 2,772 millions -2.3%
2017 2,819 millions +1.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 911.67 millions 829.77 millions 1,162 millions 7
1980s 1,093 millions 899.82 millions 1,499 millions 9
1990s 1,863 millions 1,684 millions 2,005 millions 4
2010s 2,779 millions 2,676 millions 2,839 millions 5

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 36 Ireland 3,266 millions compare
  2. 37 Israel 3,191 millions compare
  3. 38 Singapore 2,903 millions compare
  4. 40 Thailand 2,611 millions compare
  5. 41 Egypt 2,442 millions compare
  6. 42 Puerto Rico 2,414 millions compare

See the full ranking of 153 places →

More reference data data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$ in New Zealand?
Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$ in New Zealand was 2,819 millions in 2017, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$ recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 2,839 millions in 2015.
What is the lowest government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$ recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 829.77 millions in 1978.
How does New Zealand rank for government expenditure on tertiary education, constant us$?
New Zealand ranks 39th out of 153 countries with data for 2017.
Where does this New Zealand data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ (millions). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ in New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 24 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-expenditure-on-tertiary-education-constant-us-millions/new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant US$ (millions)
Unit
millions
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
153 places, 3,093 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Total general (local, regional and central) government expenditure on tertiary education (current, capital, and transfers) in millions US$ in constant value (taking into account inflation). It includes expenditure funded by transfers from international sources to government. Total government expenditure for a given level of education (e.g. primary, secondary, or all levels combined) in national currency is converted to US$, and where it is expressed in constant value, uses a GDP deflator to account for inflation. The constant prices base year is normally three years before the year of the data release. For example, in the July 2017 data release, constant US$ values are expressed in 2014 prices. Limitations: In some instances data on total government expenditure on education refers only to the Ministry of Education, excluding other ministries which may also spend a part of their budget on educational activities. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/