Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34
Oberbayern had the highest tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34 of 38 regions in 2016, at 43.6%. Sachsen-Anhalt had the lowest, at 18.6%. The median was 27.2% and the figure for Germany was 30.5%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.
All regions, 2016
Full ranking
| Rank | Regions | 2016 (%) | Change on 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oberbayern | 43.6 | +1.6 pts |
| 2 | Berlin | 42.4 | +3.5 pts |
| 3 | Hamburg | 39.7 | -1.2 pts |
| 4 | Stuttgart | 38.2 | +1.5 pts |
| 5 | Karlsruhe | 37.5 | +2.2 pts |
| 6 | Darmstadt | 36.4 | +2 pts |
| 7 | Tübingen | 34.8 | +1.1 pts |
| 8 | Köln | 34 | +3.7 pts |
| 8 | Unterfranken | 34 | +1.4 pts |
| 10 | Freiburg | 32 | +2 pts |
| 11 | Leipzig | 31.6 | -0.7 pts |
| 12 | Mittelfranken | 31.2 | -0.6 pts |
| 13 | Rheinhessen-Pfalz | 30.4 | +1.4 pts |
| 14 | Oberpfalz | 29.9 | -2.2 pts |
| 15 | Dresden | 29.5 | -1.1 pts |
| 16 | Gießen | 28.6 | -1.1 pts |
| 17 | Bremen | 28.3 | -2.7 pts |
| 18 | Schwaben | 28.1 | +0.2 pts |
| 19 | Münster | 27.2 | +1.8 pts |
| 20 | Düsseldorf | 27.1 | 0 pts |
| 20 | Saarland | 27.1 | +5.6 pts |
| 22 | Braunschweig | 26.8 | -4.1 pts |
| 22 | Hannover | 26.8 | -0.9 pts |
| 24 | Oberfranken | 26.6 | +0.9 pts |
| 24 | Trier | 26.6 | -2.4 pts |
| 26 | Kassel | 26.2 | -0.5 pts |
| 27 | Niederbayern | 25.3 | +1.7 pts |
| 28 | Detmold | 24.3 | +1 pts |
| 29 | Arnsberg | 24.1 | +0.1 pts |
| 30 | Thüringen | 23.8 | +2.4 pts |
| 31 | Schleswig-Holstein | 22.9 | +1.5 pts |
| 32 | Koblenz | 22.5 | -0.2 pts |
| 33 | Weser-Ems | 22.3 | -0.3 pts |
| 34 | Chemnitz | 22.2 | -1 pts |
| 35 | Brandenburg | 21 | +2.4 pts |
| 36 | Mecklenburg-Vorpommern | 20.8 | +1.6 pts |
| 37 | Lüneburg | 20.4 | -1.2 pts |
| 38 | Sachsen-Anhalt | 18.6 | +0.1 pts |
Other periods
About this ranking
People aged 25 to 34 whose highest completed level of education is tertiary (ISCED 2011 levels 5 to 8: short-cycle tertiary, bachelor's or equivalent, master's or equivalent, and doctoral), as a percentage of all people aged 25 to 34 living in private households (EU Labour Force Survey).
The EU has set a target of at least 45% by 2030 for this age group. It shows recent graduates; for the whole adult population use tertiary_attainment_share_25_64. Not comparable with the US bachelors_degree_share, which excludes associate degrees and covers everyone aged 25 and over.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the regions are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
Eurostat. Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.Citation styles
APA 7
Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04) (Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table
MLA 9
Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04), Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016. Eurostat, European Commission, 10 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/germany-regions?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04). Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/germany-regions?period=2016.
Harvard
Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04), Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/germany-regions?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_regions_of_germany_nuts_2016,
author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
title = {{Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat\_lfse\_04): Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table},
urldate = {2026-10-12},
note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/germany-regions?period=2016. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat\_lfse\_04). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat\_lfse\_04/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - Eurostat, European Commission
TI - Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04): Regions of Germany (NUTS 2) by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/10
PB - Eurostat, European Commission
DB - Invokely
UR - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/germany-regions?period=2016
Y2 - 2026/10/12
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/germany-regions?period=2016.
N1 - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_04/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Regions of Germany by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34 using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"tertiary_attainment_share_25_34","level":"region","within":"Germany","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=tertiary_attainment_share_25_34&level=region&within=Germany&limit=10Questions
Which region has the highest tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34?
Oberbayern, with 43.6% in 2016, according to Eurostat, European Commission.
Which region has the lowest tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34?
Sachsen-Anhalt, with 18.6% in 2016.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Population by educational attainment level and NUTS 2 region, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_04). Retrieved 2026-10-12.