Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina
Argentina: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 5.0% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina, 1970–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Argentina recorded 5.0% for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.4% on the previous year and down 8.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina peaked at 5.8% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 1989.
That places Argentina 66th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.5% | — |
| 1972 | 1.9% | +32.8% |
| 1973 | 1.8% | -8.0% |
| 1974 | 1.9% | +8.0% |
| 1975 | 1.8% | -4.2% |
| 1976 | 1.2% | -36.8% |
| 1977 | 1.7% | +47.5% |
| 1978 | 1.9% | +12.5% |
| 1979 | 2.4% | +24.0% |
| 1980 | 2.6% | +8.6% |
| 1982 | 1.6% | -38.7% |
| 1983 | 1.6% | +1.2% |
| 1984 | 2.6% | +58.9% |
| 1985 | 1.4% | -47.0% |
| 1986 | 1.3% | -7.4% |
| 1987 | 1.3% | +1.6% |
| 1989 | 1.0% | -18.4% |
| 1990 | 1.1% | +2.0% |
| 1996 | 3.7% | +249.6% |
| 1998 | 4.0% | +8.3% |
| 1999 | 4.5% | +11.9% |
| 2000 | 4.6% | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 4.8% | +5.5% |
| 2002 | 4.0% | -16.9% |
| 2003 | 3.5% | -12.0% |
| 2004 | 3.5% | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 3.9% | +10.7% |
| 2006 | 4.1% | +6.9% |
| 2007 | 4.5% | +8.1% |
| 2008 | 4.8% | +8.6% |
| 2009 | 5.5% | +14.2% |
| 2010 | 5.0% | -9.2% |
| 2011 | 5.3% | +5.4% |
| 2012 | 5.3% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 5.4% | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 5.4% | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 5.8% | +7.7% |
| 2016 | 5.5% | -4.0% |
| 2017 | 5.5% | -1.6% |
| 2018 | 4.9% | -10.6% |
| 2019 | 4.8% | -2.2% |
| 2020 | 5.3% | +10.6% |
| 2021 | 4.7% | -11.8% |
| 2022 | 4.8% | +3.0% |
| 2023 | 5.0% | +4.4% |
Argentina compared with similar countries
- Argentina's 5.0% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.2%, 1.2× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Argentina's 5.0% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 4.1%, 1.2× the median. (39 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | +249.6% | 1.1% | 3.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.8% | 1.2% | 2.4% | 9 |
| 1980s | 1.7% | 1.0% | 2.6% | 8 |
| 1990s | 3.3% | 1.1% | 4.5% | 4 |
| 2000s | 4.3% | 3.5% | 5.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.3% | 4.8% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.9% | 4.7% | 5.3% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Argentina
- 63 Australia 5.1% compare
- 64 Belarus 5.0% compare
- 65 Sao Tome and Principe 5.0% compare
- 67 Chile 4.9% compare
- 68 Kazakhstan 4.9% compare
- 69 Switzerland 4.9% compare
More reference data data for Argentina
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 20.99 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 37.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 5.76 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 37.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.24 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.69 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 111.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 187.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 31.35 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Argentina was 5.0% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Argentina?
- The highest recorded value was 5.8% in 2015.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Argentina?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 1989.
- How does Argentina rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Argentina ranks 66th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Argentina?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Argentina data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending on education overall vs. primary education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.