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Complete guide: Pisa

Updated: October 17, 2026
PISA 2025 International Comparison

U.S. PISA 2025 International Comparison: OECD Average and Other Countries

The United States recorded a mean score of 502 in science, 490 in reading and 463 in mathematics in PISA 2025. The comparison below places those results against the OECD average and the full set of participating countries and economies while keeping sampling uncertainty in view.

Assessment: PISA Cycle: 2025 Subjects: Science, Reading, Mathematics Population: 15-year-old students Released: September 8, 2026
U.S. Science
502
OECD average: 482
U.S. Reading
490
OECD average: 461
U.S. Mathematics
463
OECD average: 463
Participating Systems
91
38 OECD members and 53 partner systems

U.S. and OECD Average Across PISA 2025 Domains

Mean PISA scores for 15-year-old students in science, reading and mathematics.

Displayed differences use rounded mean scores. OECD statistical comparisons use unrounded estimates and sampling uncertainty rather than rounded values alone.

OECD PISA 2025 Results, Volume I.

United States Compared With the OECD Average

Science502482+20Higher than the OECD average
Reading490461+29Higher than the OECD average
Mathematics4634630Not statistically different from the OECD average
U.S. Performance Differed by Domain
  • The U.S. result was above the OECD average in science and reading, while mathematics was not statistically different from the OECD average. The 2025 profile therefore varies by subject rather than showing one common U.S. position across all three domains.
  • Science was the major PISA 2025 assessment domain. Science, reading and mathematics use separate PISA scales, so a point gap between two subjects is not a direct measure of how much stronger performance was in one domain than another.
  • Country and economy ordering should not be treated as an exact league rank. OECD publishes lower and upper rank bounds because estimated positions depend on sampling uncertainty and comparisons with other participating systems.
  • The OECD marks the United States with a caution symbol because one or more PISA sampling standards were not met. International comparisons involving the U.S. estimate should be read with that qualification in view.
Statistical Position

PISA 2025 Rank Ranges and Score Uncertainty

A mean score is a point estimate, not an exact international position. OECD reports lower and upper rank bounds for science, reading and mathematics after accounting for uncertainty and the many comparisons involved in ranking education systems.

95% Mean IntervalOECD Rank Table
Science501.65.8490.2–513.0I.2.o3
Reading489.55.8478.1–501.0I.2.o4
Mathematics462.85.4452.3–473.4I.2.o5

The intervals above describe uncertainty around the U.S. mean estimates. They are not rank ranges. OECD derives rank bounds separately by comparing systems simultaneously rather than by sorting rounded mean scores.

A Sorted Score Table Is Not an Exact Ranking
  • OECD Annex A3 calculates rank ranges using the uncertainty attached to each country or economy estimate and a procedure that accounts for multiple comparisons. Tables I.2.o3, I.2.o4 and I.2.o5 report the corresponding science, reading and mathematics positions.
  • Rank bounds can differ even when displayed means are the same. OECD gives Australia a science rank range of 8th–14th and New Zealand a range of 8th–15th in PISA 2025, although both displayed means round to 509.
  • Pairwise comparison and rank range answer different questions. Counting systems whose scores are statistically similar to a country does not reproduce the OECD rank interval because the ranking procedure considers all comparisons together.

Rank ranges should not be reconstructed from the rounded table below. The displayed country order is useful for browsing mean scores, while formal rank questions require the OECD lower and upper bounds. The U.S. sampling qualification also remains relevant; a rank interval addresses uncertainty in estimated position but does not remove response-rate or sampling concerns.

PISA 2025 Mean Scores Across Participating Systems

The OECD average is shown first for comparison. Country and economy rows then follow descending displayed science mean. This ordering is descriptive and should not be read as an exact statistical rank.

OECD average482461463
B-S-J-Z (China)597527612
Singapore560535563
Macao (China)541501549
Chinese Taipei540508546
Japan538503525
Estonia527499508
Korea526501522
United Kingdom511494488
Canada*510490485
New Zealand*509497480
Australia509491478
Finland504474469
United States*502490463
Switzerland501470499
Ireland500500480
Austria497467477
Hong Kong (China)496480522
Poland495482484
Türkiye494472462
Czechia490468477
Belgium490466480
Lithuania488464470
Germany486465464
Netherlands*485441483
Sweden485466464
Slovenia484445460
France483456458
Italy483474468
Portugal482462460
Hungary480452459
Denmark478460471
Spain477451457
Croatia476453455
Slovak Republic475448469
Luxembourg474443458
Norway*470453452
Latvia468430460
United Arab Emirates458433453
Viet Nam457392443
Malta453415439
Ukrainian regions (17 of 27)448418431
Uruguay445423405
Chile442436403
Israel442436433
Iceland441422450
Brunei Darussalam439426435
Mauritius438405407
Uzbekistan438mm
Montenegro435418411
Albania*435408433
Qatar434418416
Greece434423424
Thailand432392407
Serbia429415417
Romania425413419
Mongolia424374419
Costa Rica424416387
Georgia422384416
Moldova422404410
Bulgaria421387405
Kazakhstan420385414
Malaysia419393397
Colombia414399381
Mexico414408388
Saudi Arabia413387390
Cyprus411379412
Azerbaijan409374422
Brazil409408377
Jordan407363388
Peru406390382
Ecuador393385366
Argentina393389367
Indonesia389365364
El Salvador385366346
Cambodia382347366
North Macedonia378357380
Philippines373367371
Lebanon372331377
Armenia369348376
Kyrgyzstan363344364
Dominican Republic361346339
Palestinian Authority359350354
Morocco358321355
Kosovo357340350
Paraguay355352334
Kurdistan Region (Iraq)352312339
Guatemala351337334
Zambia337325314
Kenya335320326
Dushanbe (Tajikistan)334368382
Rwanda317301312

m indicates data not available in the OECD summary table. An asterisk marks a system for which the OECD reports that one or more PISA sampling standards were not met.

Data Sources, Measurement and Comparability

Assessment Cycle and Coverage

PISA 2025 results were released on September 8, 2026. The cycle included 91 participating countries and economies: 38 OECD member countries and 53 partner systems. The international target population is 15-year-old students enrolled in school.

U.S. Population

NCES technical documentation defines the U.S. PISA 2025 target population as students aged 15 years 3 months through 16 years 2 months at the beginning of the assessment period, enrolled in grade 7 or higher. A total of 4,625 U.S. students participated.

Score Interpretation

PISA scores are estimates on domain-specific scales. Science was the major domain in 2025, while reading and mathematics were assessed as minor domains. Statistical comparisons rely on sampling uncertainty and unrounded estimates; the displayed order of rounded means is descriptive and should not be treated as an exact rank.

Rank Ranges

OECD Tables I.2.o3, I.2.o4 and I.2.o5 report lower and upper rank bounds for science, reading and mathematics. Annex A3 explains that the ranking procedure accounts for the many comparisons among participating systems, so rank bounds cannot be reproduced reliably by sorting rounded scores or by counting pairwise similarities.

U.S. Sampling Caution

The OECD places an asterisk beside the United States because one or more PISA sampling standards were not met. The same OECD caution also applies to several other participating systems marked with an asterisk in the table.

International score differences should be interpreted with sampling uncertainty, assessment coverage and sampling qualifications in view. A higher rounded mean does not by itself establish that two systems are statistically different, and an ordered list of means does not establish one exact rank.

Official Publications and Data

Related Topics

Guides:Pisa