Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea

North Korea: Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education was 14.6% in 2025. ▬ Flat

Latest (2025)
14.6%
Change on year
up 6.9%
World rank
64th
of 194 countries
All-time high
15.1%
in 2023
All-time low
12.8%
in 2021
Years of data
16
2010–2025

Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea, 2010–2025

0510152010201720252010: 13.1 %2011: 13.3 %2012: 14 %2013: 14.6 %2014: 14.3 %2015: 14.1 %2016: 13.8 %2017: 14.3 %2018: 15 %2019: 15 %2020: 14.2 %2021: 12.8 %2022: 13.9 %2023: 15.1 %2024: 13.7 %2025: 14.6 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

North Korea recorded 14.6% for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in 2025.

That represents a change of up 6.9% on the previous year and up 3.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea peaked at 15.1% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 12.8%, in 2021.

North Korea ranks 64th of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea, year by year

Annual values for Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea, 2010 to 2025.
Year % Change
2010 13.1%
2011 13.3% +1.9%
2012 14.0% +4.9%
2013 14.6% +4.2%
2014 14.3% -2.1%
2015 14.1% -1.1%
2016 13.8% -2.3%
2017 14.3% +4.1%
2018 15.0% +4.5%
2019 15.0% +0.4%
2020 14.2% -5.7%
2021 12.8% -10.0%
2022 13.9% +8.6%
2023 15.1% +8.8%
2024 13.7% -9.3%
2025 14.6% +6.9%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 14.1% 13.1% 15.0% 10
2020s 14.0% 12.8% 15.1% 6

Countries ranked near North Korea

  1. 61 Sweden 15.3% compare
  2. 62 Philippines 15.2% compare
  3. 63 Congo 14.7% compare
  4. 65 Zambia 14.5% compare
  5. 66 Djibouti 14.5% compare
  6. 67 Norway 14.5% compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More economy & growth data for North Korea

All data for North Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea?
Share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea was 14.6% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in North Korea?
The highest recorded value was 15.1% in 2023.
What is the lowest share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education recorded in North Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 12.8% in 2021.
How does North Korea rank for share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education?
North Korea ranks 64th out of 194 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of gdp spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education rising or falling in North Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this North Korea data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education in North Korea. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 30 August 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/share-edu-spending-gdp-vs-share-edu-total-spending/korea-dem-people-s-rep/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of GDP spent on education vs. share of government spending assigned to education
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 4,043 data points, 1980–2025
Last refreshed

Percentage of total general government spending (across all sectors) that is allocated to education.