35 Countries With The Best Education in the World

Published on January 28, 2024 at 4:28 pm by Ramish Cheema in Lists, News

In this piece, we will take a look at the 35 countries with the best education in the world.

Universities all over the world offer all kinds of programs to anyone talented enough to secure admission and fund their studies. Publishing companies such as Pearson plc (NYSE:PSO) are multi billion dollar enterprises, and other firms such as the Australian consultancy IDP Education Limited (ASX:IEL.AX) help thousands of people all over the world move across continents to secure access to education.

Gaining an education often requires decades of years as an investment. Companies, like TAL Education Group (NYSE:TAL), spend resources and provide products for the first phase of an individual’s education journey, i.e., schooling. Then, firms like Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) and Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR) provide a diversified set of services to students during their college and university years. Overall, billions of dollars are spent on education each year, and for the most ambitious of students, an educational journey can last as long as three decades starting from pre schooling.

At the same time, the age of the Internet and the knowledge economy has fundamentally transformed the global educational landscape. The utility offered by a four year college degree in the United States depended on universities being a place where students could access resources to hone their knowledge about advanced subjects. Now, these very materials are available online, allowing companies such as 2U, Inc. (NASDAQ:TWOU) to become stock market roller coasters in just five years.

What does this mean? Well, 2U is best known for running the online education platform edX and its business is based on revenue sharing with universities that offer the lectures and grade the assignments. Like other online technology companies, such as Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM), 2U’s shares blossomed during the COVID-19 lockdown era as online education appeared to be a viable alternative to traditional classroom based instruction. However, even during the pandemic, the stock was struggling to meet its 2018 levels, and since 2018, the shares have tanked by 99% on the stock market. Investing in online education, it appears, requires a selective approach that can mean entire positions are wiped out if the stocks are not consistently monitored. 2023 was quite a controversial year for 2U as well, since it had to end ties with the University of California’s social work school.

Yet, even though 2U might be a shadow of its former self on the stock market, one thing that is certain is that attitudes towards education are changing. A 2023 poll from Gallup shows that only 37% of Americans now believe that higher education leads to better well being, a figure that marks consistent annual drops.

So, with the global education landscape changing as we advance in the 21st century, we decided to take a look at the countries with the best education system in the world.

35 Countries With The Best Education in the World

Pixabay/Public Domain

Our Methodology

To make our list of the countries with the best education in the world, we ranked countries based on their annual education spending as a percentage of their gross domestic product (GDP), the number of highly ranked universities in each country, and the years of schooling for young adults.

Then, since the GDP percentage does not account for large differences in GDP, its weight was reduced and the weights of education index and number of universities were increased. The scores were averaged, and the countries with the best education in the world are as follows. Data relied on by the rankings was sourced from UNESCO and our coverage of the 30 Countries With Best Universities In The World.

Countries With The Best Education in the World

35. Republic of Lithuania

Insider Monkey’s Score: 39.20

Lithuania offers free public higher education and ranks high on the education index. However, teacher salaries and other issues continue to hamper the education system.

35. Swiss Confederation

Insider Monkey’s Score: 38.50

Switzerland is a highly developed European country with a GDP of $788 billion. There is little federal involvement across Swiss education, and the country has a litany of public and private schools and universities.

34. Kingdom of Belgium

Insider Monkey’s Score: 38.06

Belgium is another prosperous European nation. It is known for high levels of post secondary enrollment as well as literacy levels. Belgium makes it on our list of the countries with the best education also because a large portion of its GDP is spent on education.

33. Slovak Republic

Insider Monkey’s Score: 37.76

Slovakia, the third European country on our list provides parental assistance for funding their children’s education. It has public and private universities and ranks high in global assessment scores.

32. Kingdom of Sweden

Insider Monkey’s Score: 37.04

Sweden is part of the group of European nations called the Nordic countries. What this means is that education is free for its citizens, and the costs are so low that international students who want quality on a budget are also drawn to Sweden’s shores.

31. Republic of Ireland

Insider Monkey’s Score: 36.74

Ireland is an island European country with a federally regulated school education system. It ranks high on the UNESCO education index, and citizens benefit from free primary and secondary education.

30. Kingdom of Denmark

Insider Monkey’s Score: 36.73

Another Nordic country, Denmark also has free primary and secondary education. Also, it is one of the few countries in the world with no school exams.

29. Singapore

Insider Monkey’s Score: 36.43

Singapore is one of the most prosperous nations in the world when it comes to GDP per capita. It ranks among the top ten countries in the education index, and primary education is compulsory for all citizens.

28. Commonwealth of Australia

Insider Monkey’s Score: 35.79

Australia is one of the most popular destinations when it comes to international students. Its universities offer a diverse set of pathways to entry, and educational spending as a proportion of GDP is also high.

27. Federated Republic of Brazil

Insider Monkey’s Score: 35.55

Brazil is one of the most developed countries in South America. However, education in the country often depends on the ability to pay.

26. Iceland

Insider Monkey’s Score: 35.02

Iceland is the third Nordic country on our list of countries with the best education. Unsurprisingly, it has universal education and places high standards on homeschooling.

25. Kingdom of Norway

Insider Monkey’s Score: 34.51

Norway provides free education to its citizens and those of the European Union and Switzerland. Unlike in the U.S., a bachelor’s degree is three years in Norway.

24. United Mexican States

Insider Monkey’s Score: 33.90

Mexico is known for its high ranking universities. However, it ranks low in the education performance of citizens and overall spending.

23. Republic of Türkiye

Insider Monkey’s Score: 31.30

Turkiye, formerly known as Turkey, is a European and Asian country. It is quite advanced when it comes to engineering and technology, indicating the presence of a robust educational system.

22. Malaysia

Insider Monkey’s Score: 30.59

Malaysia is a Southeast Asian country that is known for its world renowned universities. Primary education is compulsory in the country.

21. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Insider Monkey’s Score: 25.96

The oil rich Arab nation Saudi Arabia also boasts several high ranking universities. However, it ranks quite low when it comes to educational spending as a percentage of GDP.

20. Republic of Chile

Insider Monkey’s Score: 21.55

Chile has several high ranking universities, and unlike the European countries on our list, most institutions in the country typically charge a fee.

19. Italian Federation

Insider Monkey’s Score: 19.60

Italy is a high ranking country when it comes to having some of the best universities in the world. It is also one of the most prosperous countries in the world.

18. Republic of Kazakhstan

Insider Monkey’s Score: 19.25

Kazakhstan is a former Soviet state and a Central Asian country. It secures a place on our list due to its high education index ranking and some great universities.

17. French Republic

Insider Monkey’s Score: 17.82

France is one of the most technologically advanced nations in the world. It follows a secular education system and has some of the best universities in the world such as HEC Paris and others also criticized as being elitist.

16. Kingdom of Spain

Insider Monkey’s Score: 16.56

Spain is yet another European country on our list of the best countries in education. With a $1.5 trillion GDP, it is one of the biggest economies on the planet. The economic prosperity is also evident through the fact that Spain ranks number 13th when it comes to countries with the best universities.

15. Argentine Republic

Insider Monkey’s Score: 16.21

Argentina is a South American country with a $621 billion economy. It has a rather interesting education system that allows pre-school enrollment for babies aged 45 days!

14. Russian Federation

Insider Monkey’s Score: 15.87

Russia is known for its fighter jets, space program, and other heavy engineering endeavors. All of these require a high quality education system.

13. Republic of Poland

Insider Monkey’s Score: 15.85

Poland is a Central European country that provides free university education to its citizens. It also has the unique honor of having the world’s oldest education ministry.

12. Czech Republic

Insider Monkey’s Score: 15.17

Czechia also provides tuition free university coverage and is among the few countries on our list that have several universities that have remained standing for centuries.

11. Netherlands

Insider Monkey’s Score: 14.16

The Netherlands is one of the most developed countries in the world. It ranks high on the education index and educational spending as a percentage of GDP.

10. Japan

Insider Monkey’s Score: 12.01

Japan is one of the biggest economies in the world and a leading player when it comes to high tech industries. Despite ranking low on educational spending, it has some of the best universities in the world. Japanese students are among some of the highest scorers in the world when it comes to math, and Japan also has a large number of university graduates compared to other developed countries.

9. Republic of Korea

Insider Monkey’s Score: 11.86

Like Japan, South Korea also has some of the highest numbers of university graduates as a percentage of its population in the developed world. Additionally, just like Japan, South Korea also dominates advanced, high technology industries such as semiconductor manufacturing and biotechnology.

8. Finland

Insider Monkey’s Score: 11.76

Finland marks the return of Europe to our list of countries with the best education in the world. Like other Nordic countries, it also offers free education that is relied on by most of its population.

7. Canada

Insider Monkey’s Score: 11.22

While not a Nordic country, Canada also offers parental stipends to help raise kids and cheap tertiary education that ensures access to some of the best universities in the world. It also ranks high on the education index.

6. People’s Republic of China

Insider Monkey’s Score: 10.35

Marking the entry of the heavy hitters, China has a large number of high ranking universities within its borders. Its university competitive entrance exams are some of the toughest in the world, paralleled by those of South Korea and some other countries.

4. United States of America

Insider Monkey’s Score: 6.20

Any talk about the countries with the best education would be incomplete without the U.S. The only reason it isn’t at the top is because a GDP that accounts for more than a tenth of the world’s output means that educational spending as a percentage of GDP is low. The U.S. sits at the top when it comes to having the most high ranking universities and is among the top 20 in the education index.

3. New Zealand

Insider Monkey’s Score: 5.46

Beating the U.S. is New Zealand which spends more on education as a percentage of GDP and is among the top ten nations on the education index.

2. Federal Republic of Germany

Insider Monkey’s Score: 2.57

Germany is a no brainer when it comes to ranking the countries with the best education. It ranks second on the education index, and offers extremely affordable and high quality tertiary education.

1. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Insider Monkey’s Score: 1.14

The U.K., like the U.S., has some of the best universities in the world. It also sits at the top of the education index, and has a secondary qualification system followed all over the world because of its depth and quality.