Female Literacy Rate by Country 2026: Data, Rankings & Charts
Female adult literacy is shown as the percentage of women ages 15 and above who can read and write a short simple statement. The 2026 edition uses latest available World Development Indicators observations sourced from UNESCO Institute for Statistics; country source years vary from 1970 to 2024.
Female Literacy Statistics
Snapshot values are visible text and do not depend on chart rendering.
Female Literacy Rate Ranking
The chart is a visual extract from the full country table.
Highest reported female adult literacy rates
Top 20 latest country/economy observations in WDI / UIS.
Values are latest available country observations; source years should be read with the ranking table because some high-literacy economies last reported before 2020.
Chart analysis
- Korea, Dem. People’s Rep., Tuvalu, and Uzbekistan appear at 100.0%, with different source years.
- The top 20 visual extract stays between 99.4% and 100.0%.
- Several high values have older source years, including Estonia and Latvia in 2011 and Kazakhstan in 2009.
Full Country Female Literacy Table
Ranking uses the latest available WDI / UIS country value for adult female literacy. Countries without a reported value are not assigned a rank.
| Rank | Country | Code | Rate | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Korea, Dem. People's Rep. | PRK | 100.0% | 2008 |
| 2 | Tuvalu | TUV | 100.0% | 2022 |
| 3 | Uzbekistan | UZB | 100.0% | 2022 |
| 4 | Russian Federation | RUS | 99.9% | 2021 |
| 5 | San Marino | SMR | 99.9% | 2022 |
| 6 | Estonia | EST | 99.9% | 2011 |
| 7 | Latvia | LVA | 99.9% | 2011 |
| 8 | Armenia | ARM | 99.9% | 2023 |
| 9 | Turkmenistan | TKM | 99.9% | 2022 |
| 10 | Belarus | BLR | 99.9% | 2019 |
| 11 | Lithuania | LTU | 99.8% | 2011 |
| 12 | Azerbaijan | AZE | 99.7% | 2023 |
| 13 | Nauru | NRU | 99.7% | 2023 |
| 14 | Palau | PLW | 99.7% | 2020 |
| 15 | Kazakhstan | KAZ | 99.7% | 2009 |
| 16 | Tonga | TON | 99.6% | 2023 |
| 17 | Georgia | GEO | 99.6% | 2024 |
| 18 | Spain | ESP | 99.6% | 2021 |
| 19 | Slovenia | SVN | 99.4% | 1991 |
| 20 | Antigua and Barbuda | ATG | 99.4% | 2001 |
| 21 | Guam | GUM | 99.3% | 1990 |
| 22 | Romania | ROU | 99.3% | 2021 |
| 23 | Barbados | BRB | 99.2% | 1970 |
| 24 | Italy | ITA | 99.2% | 2019 |
| 25 | Ukraine | UKR | 99.2% | 2001 |
| 26 | Uruguay | URY | 99.2% | 2024 |
| 27 | Argentina | ARG | 99.2% | 2020 |
| 28 | Moldova | MDA | 99.1% | 2014 |
| 29 | Serbia | SRB | 99.1% | 2022 |
| 30 | Cayman Islands | CYM | 99.0% | 2017 |
| 31 | Kyrgyz Republic | KGZ | 99.0% | 2009 |
| 32 | Mongolia | MNG | 98.9% | 2024 |
| 33 | Kiribati | KIR | 98.9% | 2020 |
| 34 | Hungary | HUN | 98.4% | 1980 |
| 35 | United Arab Emirates | ARE | 98.4% | 2024 |
| 36 | Maldives | MDV | 98.3% | 2019 |
| 37 | Poland | POL | 98.2% | 1978 |
| 38 | Cyprus | CYP | 98.1% | 2011 |
| 39 | Bulgaria | BGR | 98.0% | 2011 |
| 40 | Montenegro | MNE | 97.9% | 2018 |
| 41 | North Macedonia | MKD | 97.8% | 2018 |
| 42 | Samoa | WSM | 97.7% | 2019 |
| 43 | Korea, Rep. | KOR | 97.6% | 2008 |
| 44 | Grenada | GRD | 97.6% | 1970 |
| 45 | Qatar | QAT | 97.6% | 2014 |
| 46 | Venezuela, RB | VEN | 97.2% | 2017 |
| 47 | Albania | ALB | 97.2% | 2023 |
| 48 | American Samoa | ASM | 97.2% | 1980 |
| 49 | Croatia | HRV | 97.1% | 2001 |
| 50 | Philippines | PHL | 97.0% | 2022 |
Table analysis
- The visible table is the first 50 ranked rows from a 171-country WDI / UIS country extract.
- The full source coverage includes 102 countries/economies with source year 2020 or later.
- Older source years remain visible because no value is replaced by imputation.
Long-Run Female Literacy Trend
World Bank regional aggregates use WDI / UIS series values, not page-level country medians.
Female adult literacy trend by world region
Selected anchor years from 2000 to 2024.
The line chart uses official WDI aggregate series for the selected anchor years.
Trend analysis
- The world aggregate increased from 75.9% in 2000 to 84.6% in 2024.
- South Asia moved from 47.0% in 2000 to 71.6% in 2024.
- Sub-Saharan Africa moved from 47.2% in 2000 to 62.7% in 2024.
| Group | 2000 | 2010 | 2020 | 2024 | Change since 2000 | 10-year change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| World | 75.9% | 80.2% | 83.6% | 84.6% | +8.7 pp | +2.9 pp |
| East Asia & Pacific | 86.3% | 91.7% | 94.6% | 95.3% | +9.0 pp | +2.2 pp |
| Europe & Central Asia | 95.5% | 97.2% | 98.2% | 98.5% | +3.0 pp | +0.8 pp |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 88.2% | 91.3% | 94.0% | 94.7% | +6.5 pp | +1.8 pp |
| Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | 49.3% | 59.5% | 64.6% | 67.4% | +18.2 pp | +5.5 pp |
| South Asia | 47.0% | 58.3% | 67.9% | 71.6% | +24.6 pp | +9.7 pp |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 47.2% | 50.9% | 61.4% | 62.7% | +15.4 pp | +6.6 pp |
Reading Notes for the Ranking
These notes define the limits of the table and charts.
Indicator scope
The metric covers adult women ages 15 and above. It is not a youth literacy rate, completion rate, or assessment score.
Source-year spread
Country source years differ because adult literacy is usually reported from census or household survey rounds.
Ranking basis
Ranks use the latest available country value in WDI / UIS. Missing country values are not estimated.
Aggregate use
World and regional trend values are official WDI aggregates where available.
Source and Methodology
Values are rounded to one decimal place for display. Ranking uses the unrounded WDI value where available. Missing country values are not imputed. Historical changes are percentage-point differences between official WDI aggregate values for the years shown.
The ranking is limited to the adult female literacy indicator and the countries/economies with reported WDI / UIS values. Source years vary, so rank position should be read with the year column. The data describe reported literacy levels and do not assign causes to country differences.