Education in Leiden, Netherlands: official figures
49.8% of residents aged 15 to 74 in Leiden held a higher professional (hbo) or university degree in 2024, above the national figure of 33.3%; that is 2nd highest among the 31 large municipalities covered here, up from 46.9% in 2019.
What is the education level in Leiden?
17.8% of residents aged 15 to 74 in Leiden had no qualification above vmbo or mbo level 1 in 2024, 2nd lowest among the 31 large municipalities covered here (below the national figure of 25.9%).
Source: Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS) · saved copyHow many students live in Leiden?
Leiden was home to 129.7 higher-education students (hbo and university) per 1,000 residents in 2025, 2nd highest among the 31 large municipalities covered here (Netherlands: 43.0).
Source: Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS) · saved copyHow many vocational students are there in Leiden?
There were 16.7 mbo (secondary vocational) students per 1,000 residents of Leiden in 2025, below the national figure of 25.9.
Source: Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS) · saved copyHow many secondary school pupils are there in Leiden?
Secondary-school pupils living in Leiden numbered 41.2 per 1,000 residents in 2025, against 51.0 nationally.
Source: Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS) · saved copyHow far is the nearest primary school in Leiden?
The average resident of the municipality of Leiden lived 0.8 km by road from the nearest primary school in 2025, level with the national figure of 0.8 km.
Source: Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS) · saved copyHow far is the nearest secondary school in Leiden?
The nearest havo or vwo school was an average 1.3 km away for people in the municipality of Leiden in 2024, below the national figure of 3.4 km; that is 2nd shortest among the 31 large municipalities covered here.
Source: Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS) · saved copyHow many young children are in childcare in Leiden?
49% of children under 5 were in day care or school in 2019 (492 per 1,000).
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow many students are there in Leiden?
22,930 students were enrolled in higher education in Leiden in 2024, 83 for every 1,000 residents.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow many people in Leiden have a degree?
Of adults aged 25 to 64 in Leiden in 2024, 52% had a degree-level education, 32% an upper secondary education and 17% at most lower secondary schooling.
Source: Eurostat · saved copyHow Leiden compares with other cities in the Netherlands
Residents aged 15 to 74 with higher education (hbo or university) (%) (2024)
Leiden ranks 2 of 31, highest first. Heerlen-Kerkrade is shown with figures for the municipality of Heerlen.
| Rank | City | Residents aged 15 to 74 with higher education (hbo or university) (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utrecht | 55.2% |
| 2 | Leiden | 49.8% |
| 3 | Amsterdam | 49.7% |
| 4 | Nijmegen | 46.8% |
| 5 | Haarlem | 45.2% |
| 6 | Groningen | 44.8% |
| 7 | Amersfoort | 43.5% |
Residents aged 15 to 74 whose highest level is primary, vmbo or mbo-1 (%) (2024)
Leiden ranks 30 of 31, highest first. Heerlen-Kerkrade is shown with figures for the municipality of Heerlen.
| Rank | City | Residents aged 15 to 74 whose highest level is primary, vmbo or mbo-1 (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 25 | Haarlem | 21.9% |
| 26 | Zwolle | 21.9% |
| 27 | Amsterdam | 21.5% |
| 28 | Nijmegen | 19.4% |
| 29 | Utrecht | 18.0% |
| 30 | Leiden | 17.8% |
| 31 | Groningen | 15.7% |
Resident hbo and university students per 1,000 residents (2025)
Leiden ranks 2 of 31, highest first. Heerlen-Kerkrade is shown with figures for the municipality of Heerlen.
| Rank | City | Resident hbo and university students per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Groningen | 149.2 |
| 2 | Leiden | 129.7 |
| 3 | Maastricht | 125.9 |
| 4 | Nijmegen | 109.7 |
| 5 | Utrecht | 87.6 |
| 6 | Enschede | 80.3 |
| 7 | Eindhoven | 72.2 |
Average road distance to a havo/vwo secondary school (km) (2024)
Leiden ranks 30 of 31, highest first. Heerlen-Kerkrade is shown with figures for the municipality of Heerlen.
| Rank | City | Average road distance to a havo/vwo secondary school (km) |
|---|---|---|
| 25 | Arnhem | 1.6 km |
| 26 | s-Gravenhage | 1.5 km |
| 27 | Utrecht | 1.5 km |
| 28 | Nijmegen | 1.5 km |
| 29 | Amsterdam | 1.3 km |
| 30 | Leiden | 1.3 km |
| 31 | Haarlem | 1.2 km |
Higher education students per 1,000 residents (2024)
Leiden ranks 6 of 29, highest first.
| Rank | City | Higher education students per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Nijmegen | 116 |
| 4 | Enschede | 87 |
| 5 | Ede | 83 |
| 6 | Leiden | 83 |
| 7 | Utrecht | 83 |
| 8 | Tilburg | 77 |
| 9 | Leeuwarden | 73 |
Children 0-4 in day care per 1,000 (2019)
Leiden ranks 19 of 20, highest first.
| Rank | City | Children 0-4 in day care per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | s-Gravenhage | 910 |
| 15 | Amsterdam | 895 |
| 16 | Haarlem | 787 |
| 17 | Ede | 786 |
| 18 | Sittard-Geleen | 782 |
| 19 | Leiden | 492 |
| 20 | Rotterdam | 457 |
More on Leiden: overview · economy and jobs · health · poverty and living standards · all cities in the Netherlands
Sources
- Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS): Regionale kerncijfers Nederland (table 70072ned): provinces, COROP areas and selected municipalities, 2014-2026, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d2b63aac3a26…)
- Eurostat: Eurostat dataset urb_ceduc: Urban Audit: education (cities), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 af187c7040a4…)
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