India — Education spending
Government Education Spending (% of GDP) for India, 1997–2022.
Education spending for India was 4.10% in 2022, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 22 years, from 1997 to 2022. The highest recorded value was 4.63% in 2021. The lowest was 3.14% in 2006 (about 1.3× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to 0.80% per year.
India ranks 91 of 172 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 53%. The median for South Asia is 4.10%, so India sits level with it. It peaked in 2021 and has fallen 11% since. Over the last decade (2012–2022) the figure moved up 6%. Within South Asia it ranks 3 of 6 economies; Nepal (3.69%) is just below it. Its sharpest one-year move was up 24% in 1999.
Data highlights
Doubling roughly every 87 years at that pace.
World ranking. Slipped: 20th of 36 in 1997 → 49th of 116 in 2000 → 89th of 130 in 2010 → 84th of 157 in 2020 → 75th of 150 in 2022.
Key figures
Full history — 1997 to 2022
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 4.1% | -0.5 pp |
| 2021 | 4.63% | +0.3 pp |
| 2020 | 4.29% | +0.4 pp |
| 2019 | 3.9% | -0.5 pp |
| 2018 | 4.36% | +0.1 pp |
| 2017 | 4.31% | +0.1 pp |
| 2016 | 4.25% | +0.1 pp |
| 2015 | 4.11% | +0.2 pp |
| 2014 | 3.9% | +0.1 pp |
| 2013 | 3.84% | -0.0 pp |
| 2012 | 3.87% | +0.1 pp |
| 2011 | 3.8% | +0.4 pp |
| 2010 | 3.38% | +0.1 pp |
| 2009 | 3.28% | +0.1 pp |
| 2006 | 3.14% | -0.0 pp |
| 2005 | 3.19% | -0.2 pp |
| 2004 | 3.35% | -0.3 pp |
| 2003 | 3.61% | -0.7 pp |
| 2000 | 4.32% | -0.1 pp |
| 1999 | 4.42% | +0.8 pp |
| 1998 | 3.57% | +0.2 pp |
| 1997 | 3.36% | — |
Frequently asked questions
What was India’s Education spending in 1998?
3.57% (1998). The full year-by-year table above lists every published year, most recent first.
Are changes in this series measured in percentage points?
Yes. The series is a share expressed in % of GDP, so year-over-year movements in the Change column are percentage points (pp), not percent.
Is India’s Education spending growing or shrinking?
Between 1997 and 2022 the series was growing overall: +21.9% in total — about 0.8% a year compounded.
Where does this data come from?
World Bank Open Data (CC BY-4.0), indicator SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS. Values are reproduced as published; this page only computes summary statistics such as change, CAGR and extremes.
What are the most recent published figures?
The last five published years: 2022: 4.1%; 2021: 4.63%; 2020: 4.29%; 2019: 3.9%; 2018: 4.36%. Earlier years are in the full-history table below.
Related data
SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS — Government Education Spending (% of GDP). Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.