Top 10 · education
Top 10 countries by adult literacy
How well working-age adults read and use written information. OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) data, latest year 2023, covering 31 countries.
The top 10
1st of 31 · 2023
Finland296 score
- 2ndJapan289 score
- 3rdSweden284 score
- 4thNorway281 score
- 5thNetherlands279 score
- 6thEstonia276 score
- 7thBelgium275 score
- 8thDenmark273 score
- 9thUnited Kingdom272 score
- 10thCanada271 score
The other end · bottom 5 of 31
Where the big countries land
- 16thUnited States258 score
- 12thGermany266 score
Common questions
Questions people ask about adult literacy
Which country ranks highest for adult literacy?
Finland ranks 1st of 31 countries at 296 score (2023 data). Source: OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC).
Which countries are in the top 10 for adult literacy?
The top 10 are Finland, Japan, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Estonia, Belgium, Denmark, United Kingdom and Canada — computed from OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) data, latest year 2023.
Where does the United States rank in adult literacy?
The United States ranks 16th of 31 countries at 258 score (2023 data). Source: OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC).
What is the median adult literacy worldwide?
Across the 31 countries covered, the median is 258 score. Values run from 296 score (Finland, ranked 1st) to 218 score (Chile, ranked 31st).
Is adult literacy higher in Europe or the US?
The median across 23 European countries is 260 score, against 258 score in the United States — it is higher in Europe. Source: OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC).
Which country ranks lowest for adult literacy?
Chile sits at the other end of the list: 218 score ranks 31st of 31 (2023 data). Source: OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC).
Keep ranking
Keep exploring
More on education
- Years in educationExpected years of schooling for a child entering school today.
- Pupil performanceStandardized test performance (PISA countries, NAEP states, linked scale).
- Adult numeracyHow well working-age adults handle numbers and mathematical ideas.
- Adults with weak literacyShare of adults at PIAAC literacy Level 1 or below — they can read short, simple texts but little more.
- Adults with weak numeracyShare of adults at PIAAC numeracy Level 1 or below — they manage single-step arithmetic but little more.
- Nobel laureatesNobel laureates by place of birth, per million current residents.
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Finland leads on adult literacy — see where it lands on every other measure, and which US state it most resembles.
All 68 measures →Every country ranked →Every US state →All the Top 10s →The overall board →How we read the data →