Ranked: Top Countries by Their Second-Language English Proficiency

Marcus Lu
2024-09-23 20:36:33
www.visualcapitalist.com

Top Countries by Their Second-Language English Proficiency

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This graphic ranks the top 25 countries according to their English proficiency. Data is sourced from the EF English Proficiency Index, which aggregated the test results of 2.2 million adults accross 113 countries.

Countries where English is the primary natively spoken language—the UK, U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand—are not included in this ranking. Ranks are determined by each country’s average score in the EF Standard English Test (EF SET).

English is Europe’s New Lingua Franca

English proficiency is measured in bands with the following scores:

• Very high proficiency: 600+
• High proficiency: 550-599
• Moderate proficiency: 500-549
• Low proficiency: 450-499
• Very low proficiency: <450

From the data, the Netherlands has the highest English proficiency with an average score of 647.

Rank	Country	Classification	Average Test Score
1	Netherlands	Very high proficiency	647
2	Singapore	Very high proficiency	631
3	Austria	Very high proficiency	616
4	Denmark	Very high proficiency	615
5	Norway	Very high proficiency	614
6	Sweden	Very high proficiency	609
7	Belgium	Very high proficiency	608
8	Portugal	Very high proficiency	607
9	South Africa	Very high proficiency	605
10	Germany	Very high proficiency	604
11	Croatia	Very high proficiency	603
12	Greece	Very high proficiency	602
13	Poland	High proficiency	598
14	Finland	High proficiency	597
15	Romania	High proficiency	596
16	Bulgaria	High proficiency	589
17	Hungary	High proficiency	588
18	Slovakia	High proficiency	587
19	Kenya	High proficiency	584
20	Philippines	High proficiency	568
21	Lithuania	High proficiency	576
22	Luxembourg	High proficiency	575
23	Estonia	High proficiency	570
24	Serbia	High proficiency	569
25	Malaysia	High proficiency	568

Eleven other countries join the Netherlands in the “very high proficiency” category, all with average test scores above 600. Singapore and South Africa are the only non-European countries in the top 10.

Regionally, Europe has improved its English the most (+50 points) since 2011. Latin America (+42) and the Middle East (+36) rank and second and third respectively.

On a global scale, English proficiency has been falling among those aged 18-20 years. This cohort scored on average 537 points (moderate proficiency) in 2015. By 2023, the average score fell for the same group fell to 448 points, or very low proficiency.

No significant decline has been measured across older age groups.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

English is the most-spoken language in the world. Spanish ranks fourth, but where all is it spoken? Check out Countries with the Most Native Spanish Speakers. Spoiler: Spain only ranks #4.

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