Austria's Public Education Expenditure in the Lower Middle Range of the EU
A report published today by the European Commission entitled “Investing in Education 2025” shows that public investment in education in the European Union is increasing again, but has not yet reached pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.
In total, EU countries spent €806 billion on education in 2023. / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons / Thelmadatter, CC BY-SA 3.0
In 2023, EU countries spent a total of €806 billion on education, which corresponds to an EU average of 9.6 percent of total public expenditure and 4.7 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
There are considerable differences between member states. Austria is at the lower end of the ranking, spending slightly less than 10 percent of its public expenditure on education. In comparison, Estonia (14.5 percent), Sweden (14.4 percent), and Latvia (14 percent) invest the largest share, while Italy (7.3 percent), Greece (8 percent), and Romania (8.1 percent) invest the least.
According to the report, the majority of public education spending goes to schools. In 2023, this figure was more than 70 percent across the EU. These funds are distributed roughly equally between preschools and elementary schools (35 percent) and secondary schools (37 percent). The share for tertiary education institutions (universities and colleges) was 16 percent, with the remainder going to other educational programs. This distribution also reflects the situation in Austria.
Looking at spending as a percentage of GDP, the picture is similar. Sweden tops the list with 7.2 percent, while Ireland brings up the rear with 2.8 percent. Austria is in the middle of the pack in this category, at around five percent.