There is a gender gap in the global literacy rate. Although literacy rates have generally increased worldwide for both men and women, men are on average more literate than women. As of 2023, about 90.6 percent of men and a little less than 84.1 percent of women in the world were literate. Adult literacy rate is defined as the percentage of people aged 15 years and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life. Youth literacy rate Not only does the literacy gender gap concern adults, it also exists among the world’s younger generations aged 15 to 24. Despite an overall increase in literacy, young men are still more literate than young women. In fact, the global youth literacy rate as gender parity index was 0.98 as of 2023, indicating that young women are not yet as literate as young men. Gender pay gap Gender gaps occur in many different spheres of global society. One such issue concerns salary gender gaps in the professional life. Regarding the controlled gender pay gap, which measures the median salary for men and women with the same job and qualifications, women still earned less than men as of 2024. The difference was even bigger when measuring the median salary for all men and women. However, not everyone worries about gender pay gaps. According to a survey from 2021, 54 percent of the female respondents deemed the gender pay gap a real problem, compared to 45 percent of the male respondents.

In the past five decades, the global literacy rate among adults has grown from 67 percent in 1976 to 87.36 percent in 2023. In 1976, males had a literacy rate of 76 percent, compared to a rate of 58 percent among females. This difference of over 17 percent in 1976 has fallen to just seven percent in 2020. Although gaps in literacy rates have fallen across all regions in recent decades, significant disparities remain across much of South Asia and Africa, while the difference is below one percent in Europe and the Americas. Reasons for these differences are rooted in economic and cultural differences across the globe. In poorer societies, families with limited means are often more likely to invest in their sons' education, while their daughters take up a more domestic role. Varieties do exist on national levels, however, and female literacy levels can sometimes exceed the male rate even in impoverished nations, such as Lesotho (where the difference was over 17 percent in 2014); nonetheless, these are exceptions to the norm.

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.

The rate of adult literacy as share of the country's population 15 years and above in Brazil increased by 1.7 percentage points (+1.83 percent) in 2022. Therefore, the rate of adult literacy in Brazil reached a peak in 2022 with 94.69 percent. The adult literacy rate refers to the share of individuals aged 15 years and older who can read and write as well as understand simple expressions about their daily lives.

Graph and download economic data for Literacy Rate, Adult Total for Small States (SEADTLITRZSSST) from 1987 to 2023 about literacy, adult, and rate.

Adult literacy rate of Kenya jumped by 5.27% from 78.7 % in 2014 to 82.9 % in 2022. Since the 12.00% slump in 2007, adult literacy rate surged by 14.86% in 2022. Adult (15+) literacy rate (%). Total is the percentage of the population age 15 and above who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life. Generally, ‘literacy’ also encompasses ‘numeracy’, the ability to make simple arithmetic calculations. This indicator is calculated by dividing the number of literates aged 15 years and over by the corresponding age group population and multiplying the result by 100.

Adult Literacy Rate for Male, Female, and Total Population by country for most recent year available. Year of data collection for each country is listed when known. Adult literacy rates are defined as the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life. Data Sources: United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics, via World Bank DataBank; CIA World Factbook; Country shapes from Natural Earth 50M scale data.

In 2020, the adult literacy rate among the population above 15 years of age in Mongolia amounted to approximately 99.2 percent, more than in any other country in the Asia-Pacific region. Comparatively, the adult literacy rate in Afghanistan amounted to approximately 37.3 percent of the population aged 15 years and above in 2021.

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.

National Assessment of Adult Literacy, 2003 (NAAL:2003), is a study that is part of the National Assessment of Adult Literacy program. NAAL:2003 (https://nces.ed.gov/naal/) is a cross-sectional assessment that collected information about English literacy among American adults age 16 and older. The study was conducted using direct assessment from 19,000 adults 16 or older, in their homes and some in prisons from the 50 states and District of Columbia. Households and prison inmates were sampled in 2003. The weighted response rate was 62.1 percent for households and 88.3 percent for prison inmates. Key statistics produced from NAAL:2003 include reading skills, general literacy, relationships, demographics, and background characteristics.

Adult literacy rate of Morocco increased by 1.78% from 76.00 % in 2014 to 77.35 % in 2022. Since the 40.00% surge in 1994, adult literacy rate shot up by 84.17% in 2022. Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life.

In 2023, the share of women aged 15 or older who could read and write in Latin America and the Caribbean amounted to 94.79 percent, around 0.33 percentage point lower than the literacy rate among adult men. This region's adult literacy rate averaged at 94.8 percent in 2023.

Global Male Adult Literacy Rate by Country, 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

Cuba CU: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data was reported at 99.717 % in 2021. This records an increase from the previous number of 96.353 % for 2019. Cuba CU: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data is updated yearly, averaging 99.859 % from Dec 2002 (Median) to 2021, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 100.000 % in 2012 and a record low of 96.353 % in 2019. Cuba CU: Literacy Rate: Adult Female: % of Females Aged 15 and Above data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Cuba – Table CU.World Bank.WDI: Social: Education Statistics. 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.;UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). UIS.Stat Bulk Data Download Service. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://apiportal.uis.unesco.org/bdds.;Weighted average;

Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) in Serbia was reported at 99 % in 2019, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Serbia - Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on March of 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Literacy Rate, Adult Total for the World (SEADTLITRZSWLD) from 1976 to 2023 about literacy, adult, World, and rate.

Adult literacy rate of Philippines improved by 2.08% from 96.0 % in 2019 to 98.0 % in 2020. Adult (15+) literacy rate (%). Total is the percentage of the population age 15 and above who can, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life. Generally, ‘literacy’ also encompasses ‘numeracy’, the ability to make simple arithmetic calculations. This indicator is calculated by dividing the number of literates aged 15 years and over by the corresponding age group population and multiplying the result by 100.

Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) in Saudi Arabia was reported at 98 % in 2020, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Saudi Arabia - Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on March of 2025.

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.

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.