More adults in the EU are taking part in education and training, with 13.7% of people aged 25 to 64 reporting formal or non-formal learning in the previous four weeks in 2025, up from 10.1% in 2015.
The increase was steady across the decade, apart from a dip in 2020 that was likely linked to COVID-19 restrictions and related measures, Eurostat reported on Monday.
Sweden recorded the highest share of adult learning in 2025 at 38.2%, followed by Denmark at 31.0% and Finland at 28.1%.
The lowest shares were in Greece (5.2%), Bulgaria (6.1%) and Croatia (6.5%).
Compared with 2015, participation rose in almost all EU countries, with the biggest increases in Malta (+12.3 percentage points), Estonia (+11.9), Belgium (+11.1) and Slovenia (+10.9).
France (-3.1), Luxembourg (-0.6) and Denmark (-0.5) were the only countries to record falls over the period.
Gaps by gender and where people live
Women were more likely than men to take part in adult learning in 2025, with participation 2.5 percentage points higher among women (14.9%) than men (12.4%), the data showed.
Women’s participation rose by 4.0 percentage points between 2015 and 2025, compared with 3.2 points for men.
Participation also varied by where people lived: adults in cities reported the highest rate at 16.8%, compared with 12.3% in towns and suburbs and 10.3% in rural areas.
Eurostat published the statistics as part of monitoring progress on Sustainable Development Goal 4 — “quality education” — one of the UN goals tracked in an EU context using indicators including adult learning and skills.
