Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran
Iran: Government spending on education overall vs. primary education was 2.8% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran is 2.8%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 5.8% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran peaked at 7.1% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 2.6%, in 2014.
That places Iran 159th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 2.8% | — |
| 1972 | 2.8% | -0.1% |
| 1973 | 2.9% | +4.0% |
| 1974 | 2.7% | -6.5% |
| 1975 | 3.0% | +10.2% |
| 1977 | 5.4% | +82.6% |
| 1981 | 7.1% | +31.7% |
| 1982 | 5.8% | -18.6% |
| 1983 | 4.2% | -27.9% |
| 1984 | 3.8% | -9.1% |
| 1985 | 3.5% | -9.0% |
| 1986 | 3.6% | +3.2% |
| 1987 | 4.1% | +16.0% |
| 1988 | 3.7% | -11.1% |
| 1989 | 4.0% | +8.6% |
| 1990 | 3.8% | -5.6% |
| 1991 | 3.7% | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 3.6% | -2.8% |
| 1993 | 4.3% | +18.5% |
| 1995 | 4.1% | -5.4% |
| 1996 | 3.5% | -13.3% |
| 1999 | 4.2% | +19.3% |
| 2000 | 4.0% | -4.5% |
| 2001 | 4.1% | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 4.5% | +10.1% |
| 2003 | 4.4% | -2.7% |
| 2004 | 4.3% | -1.5% |
| 2005 | 4.1% | -5.6% |
| 2006 | 4.3% | +5.8% |
| 2007 | 4.6% | +7.2% |
| 2008 | 3.9% | -14.9% |
| 2009 | 3.8% | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 3.7% | -3.5% |
| 2011 | 3.5% | -6.0% |
| 2012 | 2.9% | -15.7% |
| 2013 | 2.9% | -2.9% |
| 2014 | 2.6% | -8.3% |
| 2015 | 2.6% | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 3.2% | +20.7% |
| 2017 | 3.5% | +9.0% |
| 2018 | 3.6% | +4.6% |
| 2019 | 3.2% | -10.5% |
| 2020 | 3.2% | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 2.7% | -16.7% |
| 2023 | 2.8% | +5.8% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 2.8% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.2%, 67% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Iran's 2.8% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 4.4%, 64% of the median. (19 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | +82.6% | 3.0% | 5.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3.2% | 2.7% | 5.4% | 6 |
| 1980s | 4.4% | 3.5% | 7.1% | 9 |
| 1990s | 3.9% | 3.5% | 4.3% | 7 |
| 2000s | 4.2% | 3.8% | 4.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.2% | 2.6% | 3.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.9% | 2.7% | 3.2% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More reference data data for Iran
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.01 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.47 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 26.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 26.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Direct emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 8.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Enteric Fermentation 35,629 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Crop Residues 1,936 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Direct emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 34.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Burning - Crop residues 281.19 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran?
- Government spending on education overall vs. primary education in Iran was 2.8% 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 Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 7.1% in 1981.
- What is the lowest government spending on education overall vs. primary education recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.6% in 2014.
- How does Iran rank for government spending on education overall vs. primary education?
- Iran ranks 159th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education overall vs. primary education rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iran 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
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.