Adult literacy rate in Tonga
99.5% of adults in Tonga could read and write in 2023. The value for 2023 is the highest since 1976.
Tonga, 2023
99.5%
Change from 2019
+8.4percentage points
World, 2023
87.6%
Adult literacy rate in Tonga over time
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Tonga
World
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The chart loads when you scroll to it. The table below shows the same data.
The chart shows a calculation from the published values. The table below keeps the published values.
% of people aged 15 and above. Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators. Gaps mean no published value; points are not joined across missing years.
| Period | Tonga | World |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | – | 87.7% |
| 2023 | 99.5% | 87.6% |
| 2022 | – | 87.4% |
| 2021 | – | 87.2% |
| 2020 | – | 87.0% |
| 2019 | 91.1% | 86.8% |
| 2018 | – | 86.8% |
| 2017 | – | 86.5% |
| 2016 | 97.2% | 86.3% |
| 2015 | – | 86.0% |
| 2014 | – | 85.6% |
| 2013 | – | 85.2% |
| 2012 | – | 84.9% |
| 2011 | 99.4% | 84.7% |
| 2010 | – | 84.4% |
| 2009 | – | 83.8% |
| 2008 | – | 83.5% |
| 2007 | – | 83.1% |
| 2006 | 99.0% | 82.5% |
| 2005 | – | 82.6% |
| 2004 | – | 82.6% |
| 2003 | – | 82.2% |
| 2002 | – | 81.7% |
| 2001 | – | 81.4% |
| 2000 | – | 81.1% |
A dash means no value was published for that period.
In short
- The previous available figure was 91.1% in 2019, a change of +8.4 percentage points.
- Since 1976, when it was 99.6%, the figure has changed by −0.1 percentage points.
- The figure for the world in 2023 was 87.6%.
More for Tonga
All statistics for Tonga
Primary school enrolment (gross)
108.8%
2024 · World Bank
ILO estimate of the youth NEET rate
25.8%
2025 · ILOSTAT
Primary completion (UIS)
98.2%
2019 · UNESCO UIS
Lower secondary completion
92.4%
2019 · UNESCO UIS
Out-of-school children
2.3%
2022 · UNESCO UIS
Out-of-school adolescents
6.9%
2024 · UNESCO UIS