Employees by educational attainment level in Portugal

Portugal: Employees by educational attainment level was 4,468 Thousand persons in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
4,468 Thousand persons
Change on year
up 2.8%
World rank
14th
of 47 countries
All-time high
4,468 Thousand persons
in 2025
All-time low
2,886 Thousand persons
in 1986
Years of data
40
1986–2025

Employees by educational attainment level in Portugal, 1986–2025

01.0k2.0k3.0k4.0k1986200520251986: 2.9k Thousand persons1987: 2.9k Thousand persons1988: 3.1k Thousand persons1989: 3.2k Thousand persons1990: 3.3k Thousand persons1991: 3.4k Thousand persons1992: 3.4k Thousand persons1993: 3.3k Thousand persons1994: 3.2k Thousand persons1995: 3.2k Thousand persons1996: 3.2k Thousand persons1997: 3.2k Thousand persons1998: 3.4k Thousand persons1999: 3.5k Thousand persons2000: 3.6k Thousand persons2001: 3.7k Thousand persons2002: 3.7k Thousand persons2003: 3.7k Thousand persons2004: 3.7k Thousand persons2005: 3.7k Thousand persons2006: 3.8k Thousand persons2007: 3.8k Thousand persons2008: 3.9k Thousand persons2009: 3.8k Thousand persons2010: 3.8k Thousand persons2011: 3.7k Thousand persons2012: 3.5k Thousand persons2013: 3.5k Thousand persons2014: 3.6k Thousand persons2015: 3.7k Thousand persons2016: 3.8k Thousand persons2017: 4.0k Thousand persons2018: 4.1k Thousand persons2019: 4.1k Thousand persons2020: 4.0k Thousand persons2021: 4.0k Thousand persons2022: 4.2k Thousand persons2023: 4.3k Thousand persons2024: 4.3k Thousand persons2025: 4.5k Thousand persons

Source: Eurostat. Measured in Thousand persons.

Analysis

The most recent figure for employees by educational attainment level in Portugal is 4,468 Thousand persons, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 40 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.8% on the previous year and up 20.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, employees by educational attainment level in Portugal peaked at 4,468 Thousand persons in 2025 and was at its lowest, 2,886 Thousand persons, in 1986.

Portugal ranks 14th of 47 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 40 years of available data.

Employees by educational attainment level in Portugal, year by year

Annual values for Employees by educational attainment level in Portugal, 1986 to 2025.
Year Thousand persons Change
1986 2,886 Thousand persons —
1987 2,939 Thousand persons +1.8%
1988 3,054 Thousand persons +3.9%
1989 3,176 Thousand persons +4.0%
1990 3,289 Thousand persons +3.6%
1991 3,354 Thousand persons +2.0%
1992 3,352 Thousand persons -0.1%
1993 3,302 Thousand persons -1.5%
1994 3,224 Thousand persons -2.4%
1995 3,189 Thousand persons -1.1%
1996 3,169 Thousand persons -0.6%
1997 3,236 Thousand persons +2.1%
1998 3,442 Thousand persons +6.4%
1999 3,548 Thousand persons +3.1%
2000 3,646 Thousand persons +2.8%
2001 3,689 Thousand persons +1.2%
2002 3,741 Thousand persons +1.4%
2003 3,702 Thousand persons -1.1%
2004 3,741 Thousand persons +1.1%
2005 3,742 Thousand persons +0.0%
2006 3,822 Thousand persons +2.1%
2007 3,826 Thousand persons +0.1%
2008 3,870 Thousand persons +1.2%
2009 3,772 Thousand persons -2.5%
2010 3,762 Thousand persons -0.3%
2011 3,706 Thousand persons -1.5%
2012 3,534 Thousand persons -4.7%
2013 3,450 Thousand persons -2.4%
2014 3,608 Thousand persons +4.6%
2015 3,711 Thousand persons +2.9%
2016 3,790 Thousand persons +2.1%
2017 3,951 Thousand persons +4.2%
2018 4,060 Thousand persons +2.8%
2019 4,088 Thousand persons +0.7%
2020 3,997 Thousand persons -2.2%
2021 4,031 Thousand persons +0.9%
2022 4,184 Thousand persons +3.8%
2023 4,303 Thousand persons +2.8%
2024 4,345 Thousand persons +1.0%
2025 4,468 Thousand persons +2.8%

Portugal compared with similar countries

  • Portugal's 4,468 Thousand persons is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2,801 Thousand persons, 1.6× the median. (34 countries reporting)
  • Portugal's 4,468 Thousand persons is above the median for high income countries, which is 3,127 Thousand persons, 1.4× the median. (31 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 3,014 Thousand persons 2,886 Thousand persons 3,176 Thousand persons 4
1990s 3,310 Thousand persons 3,169 Thousand persons 3,548 Thousand persons 10
2000s 3,755 Thousand persons 3,646 Thousand persons 3,870 Thousand persons 10
2010s 3,766 Thousand persons 3,450 Thousand persons 4,088 Thousand persons 10
2020s 4,222 Thousand persons 3,997 Thousand persons 4,468 Thousand persons 6

Countries ranked near Portugal

  1. 12 Romania 6,687 Thousand persons compare
  2. 13 Sweden 4,766 Thousand persons compare
  3. 15 Czechia 4,409 Thousand persons compare
  4. 16 Belgium 4,370 Thousand persons compare
  5. 17 Hungary 4,099 Thousand persons compare

See the full ranking of 49 places →

More work & labour data for Portugal

All data for Portugal →

Frequently asked questions

What is employees by educational attainment level in Portugal?
Employees by educational attainment level in Portugal was 4,468 Thousand persons in 2025, according to Eurostat.
What is the highest employees by educational attainment level recorded in Portugal?
The highest recorded value was 4,468 Thousand persons in 2025.
What is the lowest employees by educational attainment level recorded in Portugal?
The lowest recorded value was 2,886 Thousand persons in 1986.
How does Portugal rank for employees by educational attainment level?
Portugal ranks 14th out of 47 countries with data for 2025.
Is employees by educational attainment level rising or falling in Portugal?
Over the last ten years it is up 20.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Portugal data come from?
The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Employees by educational attainment level. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Employees by educational attainment level in Portugal. Statizoid, drawing on Eurostat. Retrieved 10 November 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/employees-by-educational-attainment-level/portugal/

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About this data

Indicator
Employees by educational attainment level
Unit
Thousand persons
Source
Eurostat
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat)
Coverage
49 places, 1,479 data points, 1983–2025
Last refreshed