Country rankings

Development Indicators by Country (World Bank)

Georgia has the highest Adult Literacy Rate (%) in 2024 (99.7%), followed by Uruguay (98.9%) and United Arab Emirates (98.8%). Mali has the lowest (35.6%).

EnvironmentInfrastructure & Energy215 countries · 5 metricsOriginal page
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29 of 235 countries
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Adult Literacy Rate (%), 2024

Darker green is better (higher is better). Click a place to highlight it.

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All 29 ranked

Best first.

Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →

Each dot is one country; the lines mark the median and the middle half.

Median
94.0%
Middle half 88.5% – 96.7%
Average
89.5%
29 countries
Highest
99.7%
Georgia
Lowest
35.6%
Mali

Over time · 2000–2024

The top 5 in 2024, against the median.

  • Median of all countries
  • Georgia
  • Uruguay
  • United Arab Emirates
  • Mongolia
  • Palestine

Data

Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.

215 countries · # = rank by Adult Literacy Rate (%)
#
1Georgia99.7%83.8%100.0%61.1%3.53
2Uruguay98.9%92.0%100.0%95.6%2.57
3United Arab Emirates98.8%100.0%100.0%85.8%18.26
4Mongolia98.6%85.1%99.1%71.0%7.85
5Palestine97.9%—100.0%87.1%—
6Saudi Arabia97.9%100.0%100.0%84.5%18.48
7Bahrain97.8%100.0%100.0%100.0%23.9
8Bolivia96.7%79.7%96.6%71.2%2.29
9Panama96.2%72.8%96.0%66.0%2.74
10Mexico95.6%83.1%99.8%79.8%3.64
11Colombia95.3%79.3%98.9%78.5%1.8
12Paraguay94.9%81.6%99.8%69.9%1.16
13Brazil94.7%84.5%99.8%87.9%2.32
14Jordan94.4%95.6%100.0%93.0%2.09
15Dominican Republic94.0%91.0%99.5%72.4%2.99
16Peru93.7%82.0%96.5%85.2%2.02
17Ecuador93.5%77.2%98.5%63.2%2.64
18Sri Lanka92.7%54.6%100.0%20.3%1.06
19South Africa91.2%78.4%90.2%63.7%6.88
20Lesotho90.4%51.8%60.6%43.7%0.43
21El Salvador89.8%66.5%98.7%75.1%1.51
22Cape Verde88.5%74.7%98.4%76.8%1.29
23Honduras88.3%58.6%95.5%58.8%1.14
24Guatemala82.1%60.2%90.9%56.0%1.11
25India78.2%64.9%99.9%35.4%2.17
26Uganda77.0%8.95%55.3%31.3%0.17
27Zambia71.8%17.1%53.6%45.5%0.54
28Nigeria70.4%41.2%62.5%63.0%0.57
29Mali35.6%36.8%49.5%31.6%0.3
—China—92.0%100.0%65.9%9.32
—United States—94.7%100.0%80.1%13.62
—Indonesia—72.8%99.9%58.8%2.87
—Pakistan—57.3%95.7%39.2%0.81
—Bangladesh—53.4%99.5%32.7%0.72
—Russia—94.4%100.0%75.1%13.98
—Ethiopia—21.9%56.6%23.6%0.15
—Japan—85.5%100.0%92.2%7.84
—Egypt—74.6%100.0%42.8%2.5
—Philippines—67.3%94.8%55.5%1.5
—DR Congo—19.7%22.5%44.7%0.06
—Vietnam—84.2%100.0%38.5%4.27
—Iran—85.3%100.0%77.0%9.05
—Turkey—87.3%100.0%89.3%5.38
—Germany—93.5%100.0%82.0%6.94
—Tanzania—31.2%52.4%36.2%0.31
—Thailand—90.9%100.0%61.9%3.96
—United Kingdom—95.5%100.0%83.2%4.22
—France—88.7%100.0%78.8%4
—Italy—89.2%100.0%69.6%5.08
—Kenya—35.0%77.0%31.9%0.38
—Myanmar——80.4%30.4%0.58
—Sudan——66.0%34.9%0.43
—South Korea—97.9%100.0%81.2%11.36
—Algeria—77.4%100.0%75.3%3.98
—Iraq—81.5%100.0%69.9%5.18
—Spain—95.8%100.0%80.3%4.51
—Argentina—89.7%98.4%92.3%4.01
—Afghanistan—16.1%87.8%25.7%0.28
—Yemen——86.3%36.8%0.26
—Canada—94.4%100.0%82.7%14.01
—Angola—40.7%55.5%70.7%0.74
—Ukraine—82.5%100.0%69.5%3.13
—Morocco—91.2%100.0%62.8%1.84
—Poland—88.6%100.0%60.0%7.55
—Uzbekistan—89.5%100.0%51.0%4.09
—Mozambique—20.5%36.9%36.4%0.29
—Malaysia—98.0%100.0%76.9%8.32
—Ghana—72.2%91.9%58.4%0.7
—Madagascar—18.7%42.5%32.4%0.15
—Ivory Coast—41.4%72.9%54.0%0.59
—Cameroon—46.3%72.0%55.4%0.35
—Nepal—46.3%97.9%66.8%0.54
—Niger—15.6%21.3%18.0%0.12
—Venezuela—76.7%100.0%89.3%3.39
—Australia—96.1%100.0%87.6%14.1
—North Korea——61.4%63.9%2.5
—Syria——89.3%72.1%1.27
—Burkina Faso—28.3%34.0%28.3%0.27
—Malawi—19.0%15.6%17.3%0.22
—Chad—12.6%13.4%26.9%0.14
—Kazakhstan—93.4%100.0%62.1%12.57
—Somalia—27.9%54.4%54.6%0.05
—Chile—95.6%99.0%89.0%3.94
—Senegal—60.1%82.9%55.2%0.77
—Romania—91.3%100.0%52.2%3.72
—Netherlands—97.0%100.0%95.6%6.6
—Cambodia—68.5%99.2%40.9%1.1
—Zimbabwe—41.6%62.0%39.9%0.77
—Guinea—33.3%53.8%38.1%0.35
—Benin—34.0%59.0%52.5%0.49
—Rwanda—31.7%72.0%29.9%0.16
—Burundi—8.6%20.1%24.8%0.07
—South Sudan——5.4%21.4%—
—Tunisia—76.5%100.0%70.4%2.62
—Haiti—47.9%53.9%55.0%0.3
—Belgium—95.8%100.0%87.6%7.31
—Tajikistan—55.8%99.9%26.2%0.92
—Papua New Guinea—18.8%43.3%15.4%0.52
—Cuba—70.5%100.0%77.2%1.91
—Sweden—95.5%100.0%88.9%3.57
—Czechia—87.7%100.0%72.8%7.13
—Azerbaijan—90.4%100.0%58.6%3.81
—Portugal—88.5%100.0%61.3%3.32
—Togo—39.5%61.1%43.8%0.31
—Greece—86.3%100.0%79.0%5.05
—Israel—88.2%100.0%91.5%5.77
—Hungary—93.8%100.0%70.5%4.46
—Austria—94.9%100.0%69.5%6.32
—Switzerland—97.3%100.0%85.5%3.75
—Sierra Leone—25.1%39.2%45.4%0.17
—Belarus—94.3%100.0%79.2%5.94
—Laos—65.6%96.5%39.6%3.35
—Turkmenistan——100.0%47.1%10.86
—Libya—82.0%77.4%87.9%8.66
—Kyrgyzstan—92.0%100.0%34.7%1.49
—Hong Kong—95.8%100.0%100.0%4.6
—Nicaragua—61.4%88.7%59.3%0.83
—Bulgaria—82.4%100.0%73.9%5.31
—Serbia—87.7%100.0%62.4%—
—Republic of the Congo—47.3%53.0%63.9%1.34
—Denmark—99.8%100.0%88.7%4.28
—Singapore—94.4%100.0%100.0%9.75
—Lebanon—80.6%100.0%90.7%1.9
—Liberia—32.2%34.9%55.5%0.15
—Central African Republic—13.8%18.2%44.1%0.06
—Oman—95.3%100.0%79.4%18.65
—Norway—99.0%100.0%83.3%7.18
—Finland—93.7%100.0%74.3%5.54
—Mauritania—45.8%52.2%60.6%0.97
—Slovakia—89.8%100.0%53.2%5.51
—Ireland—97.2%100.0%64.3%6.04
—New Zealand—93.5%100.0%83.9%6.01
—Costa Rica—87.2%99.8%79.3%1.63
—Kuwait—99.7%100.0%100.0%23.67
—Croatia—83.6%100.0%57.5%4.83
—Eritrea——55.3%34.5%0.22
—Puerto Rico——100.0%94.3%4.82
—Qatar—98.1%100.0%99.3%47.33
—Namibia—64.9%59.3%50.4%1.2
—Bosnia and Herzegovina—86.1%100.0%52.1%6.45
—Moldova—77.4%100.0%43.5%3.42
—Armenia—81.3%100.0%65.8%2.47
—Gambia—49.5%69.0%64.3%0.18
—Jamaica—90.1%97.7%58.9%2.84
—Lithuania—89.2%100.0%68.8%4.49
—Albania—85.9%100.0%58.5%1.79
—Gabon—68.7%95.1%91.9%2.05
—Botswana—57.5%80.2%67.5%2.74
—Guinea-Bissau—29.8%43.7%46.1%0.16
—Slovenia—90.8%100.0%55.8%6.27
—Equatorial Guinea—63.3%65.1%71.4%2.55
—Latvia—92.7%100.0%68.5%3.65
—North Macedonia—93.6%100.0%62.6%4
—Trinidad and Tobago—82.2%100.0%54.0%19.58
—Timor-Leste——94.3%28.7%0.5
—Cyprus—89.6%100.0%66.7%5.4
—Estonia—92.2%100.0%70.7%7.76
—Eswatini—63.4%89.3%26.2%0.88
—Mauritius—73.3%100.0%39.0%3.54
—Djibouti—65.3%69.2%72.9%0.77
—Fiji—74.7%95.9%59.1%1.62
—Comoros—32.5%91.7%33.5%0.51
—Solomon Islands—29.0%81.5%30.7%0.38
—Guyana—83.0%93.0%26.5%4.56
—Bhutan—91.3%100.0%42.6%2.01
—Macau—89.8%100.0%100.0%2.53
—Luxembourg—98.8%100.0%94.8%10.56
—Suriname——99.0%65.8%4.06
—Montenegro—88.9%100.0%65.5%—
—Malta—93.9%100.0%95.7%3.18
—Maldives—85.2%100.0%42.0%3.57
—Brunei—96.3%100.0%74.9%20.24
—Belize—80.0%99.6%41.8%0.93
—Bahamas—92.5%100.0%81.3%3.64
—Iceland—98.2%100.0%94.2%8.52
—Vanuatu——65.5%22.3%0.87
—New Caledonia——100.0%68.0%17.08
—French Polynesia——100.0%61.7%3.46
—Barbados—70.4%100.0%59.5%2.52
—Sao Tome and Principe—59.1%77.7%68.9%0.63
—Samoa——100.0%17.5%1.6
—Curacao——100.0%91.4%—
—Saint Lucia—68.2%100.0%29.1%1.71
—Guam——100.0%94.2%0
—Kiribati—89.4%97.7%62.5%0.59
—Seychelles—87.8%100.0%45.3%7.24
—Grenada—70.2%95.6%36.6%1.5
—Micronesia—39.5%88.9%22.5%0
—Aruba——100.0%61.8%5.15
—Tonga—67.4%100.0%21.2%1.63
—Saint Vincent and the Grenadines—76.2%100.0%47.8%1.31
—Antigua and Barbuda—72.7%100.0%24.4%3.8
—Isle of Man——100.0%52.2%—
—Andorra—94.4%100.0%88.9%—
—United States Virgin Islands——100.0%95.3%0
—Cayman Islands——100.0%100.0%5
—Dominica—82.0%100.0%73.5%1.27
—Bermuda——100.0%100.0%4.14
—Faroe Islands——100.0%39.4%0.04
—Greenland——100.0%88.3%10.45
—Turks and Caicos Islands——100.0%94.2%4.92
—Saint Kitts and Nevis—76.9%100.0%31.8%2.88
—American Samoa———80.9%0
—Sint Maarten——100.0%100.0%—
—Northern Mariana Islands——100.0%92.1%0
—Gibraltar——100.0%100.0%16.15
—Liechtenstein—98.3%100.0%14.7%—
—British Virgin Islands——100.0%56.5%2.33
—Monaco—99.0%100.0%100.0%—
—Marshall Islands—65.9%97.2%78.7%0
—San Marino—97.4%100.0%97.2%—
—Saint Martin——100.0%100.0%—
—Palau—83.9%100.0%79.2%82.84
—Nauru—83.0%100.0%100.0%0
—Tuvalu——100.0%64.7%0

What correlates with Adult Literacy Rate (%) (2024)?

Pearson r against 1,621 other country metrics sharing at least 18 countries. Correlation is not causation.

Higher together

Places that have a higher Adult Literacy Rate (%) tend to score higher on these

  1. Total Population Literacy RateLiteracy Rate by Country
    r = +0.99 · very strong · n = 29
    Plot
  2. Literacy Rate - FemaleLiteracy Rate by Country
    r = +0.98 · very strong · n = 29
    Plot
  3. Literacy Rate - MaleLiteracy Rate by Country
    r = +0.96 · very strong · n = 29
    Plot
  4. GGGI Education ScoreGlobal Gender Gap by Country
    r = +0.90 · very strong · n = 28
    Plot
  5. GDI Female Average SchoolGender Development Index by Country
    r = +0.85 · very strong · n = 29
    Plot
  6. Women's EducationMost Dangerous Countries for Women
    r = +0.85 · very strong · n = 29
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher Adult Literacy Rate (%) tend to score lower on these

  1. Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) ScorePoverty Rate by Country
    r = −0.91 · very strong · n = 23
    Plot
  2. % of Population at Risk and Poor ($1.9/Day)Flooding by Country
    r = −0.89 · very strong · n = 23
    Plot
  3. % of Pop. in Multidimensional PovertyPoverty Rate by Country
    r = −0.89 · very strong · n = 23
    Plot
  4. Fertility Rate - Age 45-49Total Fertility Rate
    r = −0.86 · very strong · n = 29
    Plot
  5. % of Population at Risk and Poor ($3.2/Day)Flooding by Country
    r = −0.86 · very strong · n = 24
    Plot
  6. Fertility Rate - Age 50-54Total Fertility Rate
    r = −0.85 · very strong · n = 21
    Plot

Quick answers

Which country has the highest Adult Literacy Rate (%)?
Georgia has the highest Adult Literacy Rate (%) in 2024, at 99.7%, followed by Uruguay (98.9%) and United Arab Emirates (98.8%).
Which country has the lowest Adult Literacy Rate (%)?
Mali has the lowest Adult Literacy Rate (%) in 2024, at 35.6%.
What is the median Adult Literacy Rate (%) across countries?
The median is 94.0% across the 29 countries with data in 2024.
Where does this development indicators by country (world bank) data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: World Development Indicators - The World Bank.