English Language Proficiency Ranking

English is the most popular second language in the world. It is studied by 97% of all European schoolchildren and the majority of students in Asia and Latin America. The English proficiency index among the adult population is an important international indicator. It shows how easily you can integrate into society in a particular country, even without knowing the local language, and how easily you can handle everyday issues when first encountering a new country.

Global statistics show that people aged 26-30 are the most proficient in English. Data for the index is collected based on testing 2.2 million adults in 100 countries, which allows for an accurate assessment of English language proficiency worldwide.

English Language Proficiency Ranking by Country in 2024

Rank		English proficiency level	Literacy ratepercents
1	Netherlands	647	99.00
2	Austria	631	98.00
3	Singapore	631	97.00
4	Denmark	615	99.00
5	Norway	614	100.00
6	Sweden	609	99.00
7	Belgium	608	99.00
8	Portugal Visa Digital Nomad Financially Independent Residence Permit Freelance visa Study visa Startup visa	607	96.00
9	South Africa	605	95.00
10	Germany Freelance visa Work visa The Blue Card The Chance Card Study visa Career Counseling Career support	604	99.00
11	Croatia Visa Digital Nomad	603	99.00
12	Greece	602	98.00
13	Poland	598	99.00
14	Finland	597	100.00
15	Romania	596	99.00
16	Bulgaria Business Residence Permit	589	98.00
17	Hungary Visa Digital Nomad Business Residence Permit	588	99.00
18	Slovakia	587	100.00
19	Kenya	584	82.00
20	Philippines	578	96.00
21	Lithuania	576	100.00
22	Luxembourg	575	-
23	Estonia	570	100.00
24	Serbia Business Residence Permit	569	99.00
25	Latvia	569	100.00
26	Malaysia	568	95.00
27	Czechia	565	99.00
28	Nigeria	562	62.00
29	Argentina	560	99.00
30	Hong Kong SAR China	558	-
31	Switzerland	553	99.00
32	Georgia	541	100.00
33	Belarus	539	100.00
34	Ghana	537	79.00
35	Spain Visa Digital Nomad Startup Visa Study visa Financially Independent Residence Permit	535	99.00
36	Moldova	535	99.00
37	Italy Visa Digital Nomad Study visa	535	99.00
38	Costa Rica	534	98.00
39	Uruguay	533	99.00
40	Albania	533	98.00
41	Bolivia	532	92.00
42	Russia	532	100.00
43	Cuba	531	100.00
44	France	531	99.00
45	Paraguay	530	95.00
46	Ukraine	530	100.00
47	Uganda	529	77.00
48	Armenia	528	100.00
49	South Korea	525	98.00
50	El Salvador	524	89.00
51	Peru	521	94.00
52	Chile	518	96.00
53	Guatemala	515	81.00
54	Israel	514	97.00
55	Dominican Republic	512	94.00
56	Venezuela	508	97.00
57	Nepal	507	68.00
58	Honduras	506	89.00
59	Iran	505	86.00
60	Vietnam	505	96.00
61	Bangladesh	504	75.00
62	India	504	74.00
63	Nicaragua	503	83.00
64	Tunisia	502	79.00
65	Pakistan	497	58.00
66	Lebanon	496	95.00
67	Turkey Visa Digital Nomad	493	97.00
68	Sri Lanka	491	92.00
69	Tanzania	491	78.00
70	Ethiopia	490	52.00
71	Brazil	487	93.00
72	United Arab Emirates	486	98.00
73	Panama	486	96.00
74	Mongolia	482	99.00
75	Qatar	482	93.00
76	Mozambique	482	61.00
77	Colombia	480	96.00
78	Morocco	478	74.00
79	Bahrain	476	91.00
80	Algeria	475	81.00
81	Madagascar	474	77.00
82	Indonesia	473	96.00
83	Ecuador	467	94.00
84	Syria	467	81.00
85	China	464	97.00
86	Egypt	463	71.00
87	Azerbaijan	463	100.00
88	Kuwait	461	96.00
89	Malawi	460	62.00
90	Japan	457	99.00
91	Afghanistan	456	31.00
92	Mexico	451	95.00
93	Myanmar (Burma}	450	89.00
94	Kyrgyzstan	450	100.00
95	Palestinian Territories	445	98.00
96	Uzbekistan	442	100.00
97	Senegal	438	52.00
98	Cameroon	438	77.00
99	Jordan	431	98.00
100	Sudan	430	61.00
101	Cambodia	421	81.00
102	Haiti	421	62.00
103	Oman	418	96.00
104	Angola	416	66.00
105	Benin	416	42.00
106	Thailand	416	94.00
107	Kazakhstan	415	100.00
108	Somalia	411	-
109	Iraq	410	86.00
110	Côte d’Ivoire	409	90.00
111	Saudi Arabia	408	98.00
112	Rwanda	405	73.00
113	Libya	392	86.00
114	Yemen	392	54.00
115	Tajikistan	388	100.00
116	Congo - Kinshasa	385	77.00
117	South Sudan	363	35.00
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Top 10 countries with the highest percentage of English proficiency

The rating considers countries in which English is not the main spoken language of the population, although in some of them it may be the official language.

In the first place The Netherlands, which consistently ranks first in the rankings in the field of English proficiency, with a score of "very high" (Score 70+). Austria is in second place: there are many opportunities for study and practice, as well as the influence of English media on everyday life (Score 63.57). And Singapore takes third place among the leaders, where English is one of the four official languages (Score 61.16).

Denmark ranks fourth: most Danes have been learning English since early childhood. Then there is Norway and Sweden, where dubbing is not developed, and residents of these countries watch most TV series and films in the original language.

Belgium, Portugal, South Africa and Germany close the top ten. Thus, most of the countries that actively use English are European countries.

Top 10 countries with the lowest percentage of English proficiency

The lowest English language proficiency among residents was recorded in South Sudan. This is due to long-term conflicts, a low level of education in general and the lack of the necessary infrastructure for learning languages. Next comes Congo-Kinshasa, where the French language dominates and there are many factors limiting access to education. Tajikistan ranks third among outsiders due to Russia's historically strong cultural influence and insufficient attention to learning foreign languages.

English is also poorly spoken in Yemen due to high political instability and early interruption of education. And also in Libya, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Ivory Coast, Iraq and Somalia. Instability, poor access to schooling and international conflicts have persisted for a long time in all these countries.

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