Reading comprehension results vary substantially by assessment, age group, and geography. In PISA 2022, the OECD-wide reading mean was 476 points for 15-year-old students, while NAEP 2024 reported that 31% of U.S. fourth-graders performed at or above the Proficient level. England’s 2024 Key Stage 2 reading assessment found that 74% of pupils met the expected standard.
Contents
- Global PISA 2022 benchmarks
- Reading performance by education system
- What proficiency levels measure
- Trends and reading gaps
- U.S. reading results from NAEP 2024
- England’s primary reading attainment
Global PISA 2022 benchmarks
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) measures how well 15-year-old students can use knowledge and skills in reading, mathematics, and science. In 2022, the assessment covered about 690,000 tested students, representing approximately 29 million 15-year-olds in 81 participating countries and economies. These figures describe the PISA sample and its represented population, not every student worldwide. OECD, PISA 2022 Results (Volume I and II) - Country Notes: United States
The OECD-wide mean score in reading was 476 points in PISA 2022. Across OECD countries, an average of 74% of students reached at least reading Level 2, while 26% were low performers below Level 2. At the upper end, an average of 7% reached Level 5 or Level 6. OECD, What can students do in mathematics, reading and science?
The spread between education systems was wide. The highest and lowest participating systems differed by 214 reading-score points. Comparing only OECD countries, the difference between the highest and lowest countries was 107 points. These are comparisons of PISA 2022 results, not measures of individual reading growth. OECD, How did countries perform in PISA?
PISA Level 2 is a useful reference point because it represents basic functional comprehension in the assessment. Reaching at least this level requires identifying a main idea in a moderately long text and finding information using explicit criteria. OECD, What can students do in mathematics, reading and science?
Reading performance by education system
Singapore recorded the highest mean reading score among PISA 2022 participants, at 543 points. Ireland and Japan each recorded 516 points, followed by Korea and Chinese Taipei at 515 points each. Estonia recorded 511 points, and Macao (China) recorded 510 points. Italy’s mean reading score was 482 points. OECD, How did countries perform in PISA?
| Education system | PISA 2022 mean reading score | Share at or above Level 2 where supplied |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore | 543 | 89% |
| Ireland | 516 | Not supplied |
| Japan | 516 | Not supplied |
| Korea | 515 | Not supplied |
| Chinese Taipei | 515 | Not supplied |
| Estonia | 511 | Not supplied |
| Macao (China) | 510 | Not supplied |
| Italy | 482 | Not supplied |
| United States | Not supplied | 80% |
Singapore had 89% of students at or above reading Level 2. The United States had 80% at or above that level. Because the supplied results report these as separate measures, the percentages should not be used to infer an unreported mean score or a ranking. OECD, PISA 2022 Results (Volume I and II) - Country Notes: United States; OECD, How did countries perform in PISA?
Eighteen countries and economies performed above the OECD average in reading, mathematics, and science at the same time. Singapore was also notable at the highest reading proficiency: 5% of its students scored at Level 6. OECD, How did countries perform in PISA?
What proficiency levels measure
The OECD distribution shows how students were spread across reading proficiency levels in 2022. Across OECD countries, 24% of students scored at Level 2, 25% at Level 3, and 17% at Level 4. At the lower levels, 17% scored at Level 1a, 8% at Level 1b, 2% at Level 1c, and 0.2% below Level 1c. At the top, 6% scored at Level 5 and 1% at Level 6. OECD, What can students do in mathematics, reading and science?
These percentages put the 74% at-or-above-Level-2 figure in context: Level 2 through Level 6 account for the students who reached that threshold, while the lower-level groups account for the 26% below it. The categories describe performance on PISA reading tasks; they are not labels for a student’s overall intelligence, motivation, or future achievement.
Advanced performance was concentrated in relatively few systems. Only 13 countries or economies had more than 10% of students at Levels 5 or 6. In 55 countries or economies, fewer than 5% of students reached Level 5. In the United States, 14% of students reached Level 5 or higher in PISA 2022. OECD, What can students do in mathematics, reading and science?; OECD, PISA 2022 Results (Volume I and II) - Country Notes: United States
Trends and reading gaps
The OECD average reading score fell by 10 points from PISA 2018 to PISA 2022. Over the two decades of PISA assessments before that period, the OECD average reading score never changed by more than 5 points between consecutive assessments. This makes the 2018–2022 change unusually large within the reported series. OECD, The state of learning and equity in education in 2022
The change was not universal. Twenty-four countries and economies maintained their reading performance at the same level as in PISA 2018 in PISA 2022. The supplied OECD results do not establish one cause for the international pattern, so the score change should be read as an assessment trend rather than a causal explanation. OECD, The state of learning and equity in education in 2022
Gender differences also appeared in the 2022 results. Girls scored above boys in reading in 79 of the 81 participating countries and economies. The gap was 18 points in Ireland and 44 points in Slovenia. These are country-specific score differences for PISA 2022, not estimates of a single worldwide gender gap. OECD, The state of learning and equity in education in 2022
For the United States, the share of students below reading Level 2 did not change significantly from 2012 to 2022. The gap between the highest-scoring 10% and lowest-scoring 10% also did not change significantly from 2018 to 2022. “Did not change significantly” indicates that the reported assessment comparison did not identify a statistically significant change; it does not mean that every student’s performance stayed constant. OECD, PISA 2022 Results (Volume I and II) - Country Notes: United States
U.S. reading results from NAEP 2024
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is a U.S. assessment reported separately from PISA. NAEP 2024 assessed approximately 117,400 fourth-grade students, 114,600 eighth-grade students, and 24,300 twelfth-grade students in reading. These sample sizes identify the grades and assessment scale involved; they should not be combined with PISA participation figures. NAEP, Assessments - Reading
For fourth grade, the 2024 NAEP reading average score was 2 points lower than in 2022 and 5 points lower than in 2019. In 2024, 60% of fourth-graders performed at or above NAEP Basic, 31% performed at or above NAEP Proficient, and 8% performed at the Advanced level. Forty percent performed below NAEP Basic. NAEP, NAEP Reading: National Trends and Student Skills; NAEP, 2024 NAEP Mathematics and Reading, Grades 4 and 8 – Infographic
The eighth-grade NAEP reading average score was 258 in 2024. The 10th percentile score was 204, while the 90th percentile score was 307. These percentile results show the spread of scores within the assessed eighth-grade population; they do not describe a single student’s reading ability. NAEP, 2024 NAEP Mathematics and Reading, Grades 4 and 8 – Infographic
England’s primary reading attainment
England reports reading attainment through Key Stage 2 assessments, covering the end of primary school. In the 2023/24 academic year, 74% of pupils met the expected standard in the Key Stage 2 reading test. The rate rose from 73% in 2023 to 74% in 2024. Across the 2017–2024 period, it fluctuated between 72% and 75%. Department for Education, Key stage 2 attainment: National headlines - 2023-24
Reading is also reported alongside writing and mathematics. In 2024, 60.6% of England’s Key Stage 2 pupils met the combined reading, writing, and maths expected standard. A further 31.1% did not meet that combined standard after assessment, and 8.3% were not assessed in all three subjects. These figures are not interchangeable with the 74% reading-only rate because they use a broader three-subject measure. Department for Education, Release home - Key stage 2 attainment - 2023-24
The share of England Key Stage 2 pupils working below the assessment level in at least one subject was 7.6% in 2024, compared with 5.2% in 2019. That measure covers at least one subject and therefore should not be treated as a reading-only result. Together, the reading-specific and combined-subject figures show why the definition of a statistic matters when comparing comprehension outcomes across assessments. Department for Education, Release home - Key stage 2 attainment - 2023-24