Top 10 Literacy Rate Countries
Literacy is defined as the ability to read and write adequately. Many factors, including as accessibility and educational quality, may have an impact on these statistics.
Global literacy rates have increased considerably during the previous few decades. The major drivers of this expanding trend are the expansion of many developing countries’ educational institutions and a growing acknowledgment of the importance of education to these societies as a whole. Many countries are still struggling to provide educational resources to better their people, build the necessary infrastructure, and ensure regular enrollment of students in their institutions. Even countries that trail far behind global norms realize the significance of offering a high-quality education to their citizens in order to compete and thrive in the global economy.
Several countries throughout the world have literacy rates of more than 95 percent, according to the latest recent data on reading and learning. We chose the countries with the highest literacy rates from across the world to help readers understand more about the world leaders in this field.

Making 100% Literacy Rates Happen
Although high educational levels may be found in many countries across the world, the literacy rates of Andorra, Luxembourg, Norway, Liechtenstein, and a few others should not be disregarded. Literacy rates in these nations are nearly 100%.
Andorra is one such country, with virtually all of its residents having a high level of literacy. Its government mandates compulsory attendance in its educational systems for all children between the ages of 6 and 16. It may be found in Southwestern Europe. The Andorran government has succeeded in making secondary education free. Andorra has relatively high literacy rates as a result of this, as well as a percentage of its GDP spent to education.Similar practices are observed in other countries, such as Finland, where around 7% of GDP is spent on education.
Other Nations with Near-Complete Literacy
Literacy rates around 100% have been documented in a number of other countries across the world, including Azerbaijan and Cuba. Georgia, Tajikistan, Russia, Poland, and Slovenia have all achieved 100% literacy rates or above. It is estimated that 53% of the Russian population has some form of tertiary education. The government supports free educational delivery systems, with a particular focus on “STEM” (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) topics.
They are near to 100% in countries such as Slovakia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Slovakia has 20 public universities and 10 private colleges. Residents of numerous former Soviet Union and “Eastern Bloc” countries enjoy some of the finest access to higher education in the world.
Should Other Countries Follow the Leaders?
The decrements shown as we move from the top of the list to the bottom for nations with the highest literacy rates may be explained mostly by the percentage of these countries’ respective GDPs dedicated to education. Literacy rates are greatly impacted by a country’s educational infrastructure as well as public perception of the importance of education. We can learn from the most literate countries that robust public education programs and an emphasis on educational expenditure within government budgets may go a long way toward increasing a population’s knowledge base.
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Which Country Has the Highest Literacy Rate?
Andorra, Finland, Vatican City, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, and Norway are among the countries with a 100% literacy rate.
Literacy Rate by Country
| Rank | Country | Literacy Rate (Rounded) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andorra | 100.0 % |
| 2 | Finland | 100.0 % |
| 3 | Holy See | 100.0 % |
| 4 | Liechtenstein | 100.0 % |
| 5 | Luxembourg | 100.0 % |
| 6 | Norway | 100.0 % |
| 7 | Democratic People’s Republic of Korea | 100.0 % |
| 8 | Latvia | 100.0 % |
| 9 | Estonia | 100.0 % |
| 10 | Lithuania | 100.0 % |
| 11 | Azerbaijan | 100.0 % |
| 12 | Poland | 100.0 % |
| 13 | Cuba | 100.0 % |
| 14 | Tajikistan | 100.0 % |
| 15 | Georgia | 100.0 % |
| 16 | Armenia | 100.0 % |
| 17 | Ukraine | 100.0 % |
| 18 | Kazakhstan | 100.0 % |
| 19 | Slovenia | 100.0 % |
| 20 | Barbados | 100.0 % |
| 21 | Russian Federation | 100.0 % |
| 22 | Turkmenistan | 100.0 % |
| 23 | Belarus | 100.0 % |
| 24 | Slovakia | 100.0 % |
| 25 | Palau | 100.0 % |
| 26 | Uzbekistan | 100.0 % |
| 27 | Tonga | 99.0 % |
| 28 | Kyrgyzstan | 99.0 % |
| 29 | Republic of Moldova | 99.0 % |
| 30 | Croatia | 99.0 % |
| 31 | Italy | 99.0 % |
| 32 | Hungary | 99.0 % |
| 33 | Australia | 99.0 % |
| 34 | Belgium | 99.0 % |
| 35 | Canada | 99.0 % |
| 36 | Czech Republic | 99.0 % |
| 37 | Denmark | 99.0 % |
| 38 | France | 99.0 % |
| 39 | Germany | 99.0 % |
| 40 | Iceland | 99.0 % |
| 41 | Ireland | 99.0 % |
| 42 | Japan | 99.0 % |
| 43 | Monaco | 99.0 % |
| 44 | Netherlands | 99.0 % |
| 45 | New Zealand | 99.0 % |
| 46 | Sweden | 99.0 % |
| 47 | Switzerland | 99.0 % |
| 48 | Tuvalu | 99.0 % |
| 49 | United Kingdom | 99.0 % |
| 50 | Samoa | 99.0 % |
| 51 | Antigua and Barbuda | 99.0 % |
| 52 | Trinidad and Tobago | 99.0 % |
| 53 | Micronesia (Federated States of) | 99.0 % |
| 54 | Cyprus | 99.0 % |
| 55 | Romania | 99.0 % |
| 56 | Montenegro | 98.0 % |
| 57 | Maldives | 98.0 % |
| 58 | Bulgaria | 98.0 % |
| 59 | Marshall Islands | 98.0 % |
| 60 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 98.0 % |
| 61 | Mongolia | 98.0 % |
| 62 | Uruguay | 98.0 % |
| 63 | Austria | 98.0 % |
| 64 | Argentina | 98.0 % |
| 65 | Serbia | 98.0 % |
| 66 | Republic of Korea | 98.0 % |
| 67 | Grenada | 98.0 % |
| 68 | Israel | 98.0 % |
| 69 | Spain | 98.0 % |
| 70 | The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia | 98.0 % |
| 71 | Greece | 97.0 % |
| 72 | Costa Rica | 97.0 % |
| 73 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 97.0 % |
| 74 | Albania | 97.0 % |
| 75 | Chile | 97.0 % |
| 76 | Thailand | 96.0 % |
| 77 | Qatar | 96.0 % |
| 78 | Brunei Darussalam | 96.0 % |
| 79 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 96.0 % |
| 80 | San Marino | 96.0 % |
| 81 | Singapore | 96.0 % |
| 82 | Kuwait | 96.0 % |
| 83 | Bahamas | 96.0 % |
| 84 | Philippines | 95.0 % |
| 85 | Nauru | 95.0 % |
| 86 | China | 95.0 % |
| 87 | Cook Islands | 95.0 % |
| 88 | State of Palestine | 95.0 % |
| 89 | Equatorial Guinea | 95.0 % |
| 90 | Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) | 95.0 % |
| 91 | Suriname | 95.0 % |
| 92 | Bahrain | 95.0 % |
| 93 | Portugal | 94.0 % |
| 94 | Saudi Arabia | 94.0 % |
| 95 | Panama | 94.0 % |
| 96 | Seychelles | 94.0 % |
| 97 | Paraguay | 94.0 % |
| 98 | Peru | 94.0 % |
| 99 | Fiji | 94.0 % |
| 100 | Viet Nam | 94.0 % |
| 101 | Colombia | 93.0 % |
| 102 | Malta | 93.0 % |
| 103 | Malaysia | 93.0 % |
| 104 | Mexico | 93.0 % |
| 105 | South Africa | 93.0 % |
| 106 | Indonesia | 93.0 % |
| 107 | Myanmar | 93.0 % |
| 108 | Turkey | 93.0 % |
| 109 | Jordan | 93.0 % |
| 110 | Bolivia (Plurinational State of) | 92.0 % |
| 111 | Ecuador | 92.0 % |
| 112 | Dominica | 92.0 % |
| 113 | Sri Lanka | 91.0 % |
| 114 | Brazil | 90.0 % |
| 115 | Libya | 90.0 % |
| 116 | United Arab Emirates | 90.0 % |
| 117 | Lebanon | 90.0 % |
| 118 | Dominican Republic | 90.0 % |
| 119 | Saint Lucia | 90.0 % |
| 120 | Mauritius | 89.0 % |
| 121 | Jamaica | 88.0 % |
| 122 | Botswana | 87.0 % |
| 123 | Burundi | 87.0 % |
| 124 | Oman | 87.0 % |
| 125 | United States | 86.0 % |
| 126 | Syrian Arab Republic | 86.0 % |
| 127 | Cabo Verde | 85.0 % |
| 128 | Guyana | 85.0 % |
| 129 | Honduras | 85.0 % |
| 130 | El Salvador | 84.0 % |
| 131 | Vanuatu | 84.0 % |
| 132 | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | 84.0 % |
| 133 | Zimbabwe | 84.0 % |
| 134 | Swaziland | 83.0 % |
| 135 | Belize | 83.0 % |
| 136 | Gabon | 82.0 % |
| 137 | Congo | 79.0 % |
| 138 | Iraq | 79.0 % |
| 139 | Tunisia | 79.0 % |
| 140 | Guatemala | 78.0 % |
| 141 | Nicaragua | 78.0 % |
| 142 | Solomon Islands | 77.0 % |
| 143 | Comoros | 77.0 % |
| 144 | Namibia | 76.0 % |
| 145 | Lesotho | 76.0 % |
| 146 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 75.0 % |
| 147 | Sudan | 74.0 % |
| 148 | Cambodia | 74.0 % |
| 149 | Uganda | 73.0 % |
| 150 | Lao People’s Democratic Republic | 73.0 % |
| 151 | Algeria | 73.0 % |
| 152 | Kenya | 72.0 % |
| 153 | Egypt | 72.0 % |
| 154 | Eritrea | 72.0 % |
| 155 | Ghana | 71.0 % |
| 156 | Cameroon | 71.0 % |
| 157 | Angola | 71.0 % |
| 158 | Sao Tome and Principe | 70.0 % |
| 159 | India | 69.0 % |
| 160 | United Republic of Tanzania | 68.0 % |
| 161 | Yemen | 68.0 % |
| 162 | Morocco | 67.0 % |
| 163 | Rwanda | 66.0 % |
| 164 | Madagascar | 64.0 % |
| 165 | Papua New Guinea | 63.0 % |
| 166 | Zambia | 61.0 % |
| 167 | Malawi | 61.0 % |
| 168 | Togo | 60.0 % |
| 169 | Bangladesh | 60.0 % |
| 170 | Nepal | 60.0 % |
| 171 | Timor-Leste | 58.0 % |
| 172 | Guinea-Bissau | 58.0 % |
| 173 | Pakistan | 55.0 % |
| 174 | Gambia | 53.0 % |
| 175 | Bhutan | 53.0 % |
| 176 | Senegal | 52.0 % |
| 177 | Nigeria | 51.0 % |
| 178 | Mozambique | 51.0 % |
| 179 | Haiti | 49.0 % |
| 180 | Sierra Leone | 46.0 % |
| 181 | Mauritania | 46.0 % |
| 182 | Liberia | 43.0 % |
| 183 | Côte d’Ivoire | 41.0 % |
| 184 | Somalia | 39.0 % |
| 185 | Ethiopia | 39.0 % |
| 186 | Chad | 38.0 % |
| 187 | Central African Republic | 37.0 % |
| 188 | Afghanistan | 32.0 % |
| 189 | Mali | 31.0 % |
| 190 | Burkina Faso | 29.0 % |
| 191 | Benin | 29.0 % |
| 192 | South Sudan | 27.0 % |
| 193 | Guinea | 25.0 % |
| 194 | Niger | 15.0 % |
| 195 | Djibouti | NA |
| 196 | Kiribati | NA |
| 197 | Niue | NA |