Government spending on education, share of GDP in United Kingdom
Government spending on education, share of GDP in the United Kingdom was 5.9% of GDP in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics. That is up 0.5 pts from 2020.
Government spending on education, share of GDP in United Kingdom, 1971 to 2021
All 46 values
| Period | % of GDP |
|---|---|
| 2021 | 5.9 |
| 2020 | 5.4 |
| 2019 | 5.3 |
| 2018 | 5.2 |
| 2017 | 5.5 |
| 2016 | 5.4 |
| 2015 | 5.6 |
| 2014 | 5.6 |
| 2013 | 5.5 |
| 2011 | 5.6 |
| 2010 | 5.7 |
| 2009 | 5.1 |
| 2008 | 4.9 |
| 2007 | 4.9 |
| 2006 | 5 |
| 2005 | 4.9 |
| 2004 | 4.7 |
| 2003 | 4.8 |
| 2002 | 4.6 |
| 2001 | 4.1 |
| 2000 | 4 |
| 1999 | 4 |
| 1998 | 4.2 |
| 1996 | 4.4 |
| 1995 | 4.8 |
| 1994 | 4.9 |
| 1992 | 4.3 |
| 1991 | 4.1 |
| 1990 | 4.1 |
| 1989 | 4.1 |
| 1988 | 4.3 |
| 1987 | 4.4 |
| 1986 | 4.4 |
| 1985 | 4.6 |
| 1984 | 4.9 |
| 1983 | 5.1 |
| 1982 | 5.2 |
| 1981 | 5.3 |
| 1980 | 5.1 |
| 1977 | 6.1 |
| 1976 | 6.4 |
| 1975 | 6.3 |
| 1974 | 5.4 |
| 1973 | 5.4 |
| 1972 | 5.2 |
| 1971 | 5 |
Rankings
- Countries by government spending on education, share of GDP
- EU countries by government spending on education, share of GDP
Definition
General government expenditure on education at all levels (current, capital and transfers), as a percentage of GDP. Includes spending funded by international transfers to government. UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Government spending only: fees and other money paid by households and private bodies are left out, so countries where families pay a large share show lower values. For some countries UIS takes the figure from government budget documents, so a recent year can be revised when final accounts come in. Countries only; UIS publishes no World figure.
How to cite
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). Government expenditure on education, total, % of GDP (SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS). Retrieved through World Bank World Development Indicators (data.worldbank.org). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. UIS does not endorse Invokely or this use of the data.Use this data in your AI agent
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What is the latest government spending on education, share of GDP in United Kingdom? Cite the source.
get_value {"indicator":"education_expenditure_gdp","place":"gb"}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/value?indicator=education_expenditure_gdp&place=gbQuestions
What is the government spending on education, share of GDP in United Kingdom?
Government spending on education, share of GDP in the United Kingdom was 5.9% of GDP in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics. That is up 0.5 pts from 2020.
Where does this figure come from?
UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Government expenditure on education, total, % of GDP (SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS). Retrieved by Invokely on 2026-10-12.
What was the highest government spending on education, share of GDP in United Kingdom?
6.4% of GDP in 1976, the highest value since 1971 in this series.