12 answers, 5 from Saudi Arabia's own official bodies, with a link to each figure.
98.1% of people aged 15 and over in Saudi Arabia are literate, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) Adult Skills and Learning Statistics 2025. Among 15 to 24 year olds the rate is 98.5%. The World Bank puts the adult literacy rate at 97.9% in 2024, using UNESCO data.
The GASTAT figure comes from a household survey and is self-reported. The mean years of schooling for people aged 25 and over was 12.5, at 12.8 years for men and 11.8 for women.
The completion rate for primary education in Saudi Arabia was 99.6% in 2025, and 99.1% for intermediate education, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) Education and Training Statistics 2025. For girls the rates were 99.5% and 98.6%, and for boys 99.8% and 99.5%.
The primary rate is measured among people aged 14 to 16 and the intermediate rate among those aged 17 to 19. The figures come from the Education and Training Survey and are self-reported.
35.8% of people aged 15 to 64 in Saudi Arabia took part in formal or non-formal education or training in the 12 months before the survey, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) Adult Skills and Learning Statistics 2025. Among 15 to 24 year olds the rate was 71.3%, at 74.1% for women and 69.3% for men.
Online training was the most common form, at 46.5% of participants, followed by in-person (39.8%) and blended (13.8%). Employers provided 36.9% of training. 66.1% of people aged 15 and over said they wanted to take part in learning in the next three years.
STEM fields accounted for 29.8% of the tertiary-educated population aged 25 and over in Saudi Arabia in 2025, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) Adult Skills and Learning Statistics 2025. Business, administration and law accounted for 27.6%, education 18.5% and health and welfare 11.2%. 85.9% of people aged 25 and over had at least intermediate education, at 88.7% for men and 79.9% for women.
Tertiary education here includes intermediate diplomas, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. STEM covers science, information technology, engineering and mathematics.
Saudi Arabia's government spending on education was 4.5% of GDP in 2023, according to the World Bank, using UNESCO Institute for Statistics data. The previous figure in the series, for 2008, was 5.1%.
The measure covers government spending on all levels of education, from schools to universities. It is a share of GDP, so it can rise or fall with the size of the economy as well as with spending. GASTAT's Education and Training Statistics 2025 found that 58.8% of students aged 8 to 19 had books at home to support their studies.
The figures below use one definition for every country, so they can differ from national figures.
94.5%: that is net primary school enrolment in Saudi Arabia for 2018, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. The peak was 99.8% in 2012 and the low 91.4% in 2009. It is 5th highest of 11 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 94.1%. Of 69 countries with 2018 data, 26th highest.
110.7%: that is gross secondary school enrolment in Saudi Arabia for 2024, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Since 2005 it has ranged from 87.1% (2005) to 122.2% (2022). It is 1st highest of 13 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 95.1%. World rank, highest first: 12th of 100.
83.9%: that is gross tertiary enrolment in Saudi Arabia for 2024, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. It is the top of the series, which starts in 2005. Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan median: 48.2%; Saudi Arabia is 1st highest of 11. World rank, highest first: 12th of 90.
In 2024, the adult literacy rate in Saudi Arabia was 97.9%, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. That compares with 94.4% in 2013.
According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, government spending on education in Saudi Arabia was 4.5% of GDP in 2023. In 2008 the figure was 5.1% of GDP. Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan median: 4.0% of GDP; Saudi Arabia is 5th highest of 10. World rank, highest first: 39th of 112.
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics puts the number of primary pupils per teacher in Saudi Arabia at 14 in 2018. It is the top of the series, which starts in 2005. It is 9th highest of 13 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 19. Worldwide: 71st of 85.
99.4%: that is the primary completion rate in Saudi Arabia for 2024, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. The peak was 128.3% in 2012 and the low 96.6% in 2021. It is 3rd highest of 11 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 97.0%. Worldwide: 28th of 104.
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