Literacy rate - Country rankings
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series
Literacy rate, 2021:
The average for 2021 based on 15 countries was 99 percent. The highest value was in Russia: 100 percent and the lowest value was in Malta: 94.94 percent. The indicator is available from 1970 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.Measure: percent; Source: UNESCO
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* indicates monthly or quarterly data series
| Countries | Literacy rate, 2021 | Global rank | Available data |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russia | 100 | 1 | 1989 - 2021 |
| Ukraine | 100 | 2 | 2001 - 2021 |
| Latvia | 99.89 | 3 | 1989 - 2021 |
| Estonia | 99.87 | 4 | 1989 - 2021 |
| Lithuania | 99.83 | 5 | 1989 - 2021 |
| Poland | 99.8 | 6 | 1978 - 2021 |
| Moldova | 99.6 | 7 | 1989 - 2021 |
| Croatia | 99.45 | 8 | 1991 - 2021 |
| Cyprus | 99.36 | 9 | 1992 - 2021 |
| Hungary | 99.1 | 10 | 1980 - 2021 |
| Romania | 99 | 11 | 1992 - 2021 |
| Montenegro | 98.98 | 12 | 1981 - 2021 |
| Bulgaria | 98.42 | 13 | 2001 - 2021 |
| Portugal | 96.78 | 14 | 1981 - 2021 |
| Malta | 94.94 | 15 | 1985 - 2021 |
Definition: Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.
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100.00
99.89
99.87
99.83
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99.60
99.45
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98.98
98.42
96.78
94.94
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