DATA

POINT

Financial Literacy of 

15-Year-Olds: 

U.S.

JULY 2014

DEPARTMENT

 NCES 2014

OF EDUCATION

-102

Results from PISA 2012

The Program for International Student 

Assessment (PISA) is an international 

assessment that measures 15-year-old 

students’ reading, mathematics, and 

science literacy and, in 2012, general 

problem solving and financial literacy. PISA 

is coordinated by the Organization for 

Economic Cooperation and Development 

(OECD), an intergovernmental organization 

of industrialized countries.1 The PISA 

financial literacy assessment assessed 

students’ knowledge and understanding of 

fundamental elements of the financial world, 

including financial concepts, products, and 

risks, as well as their ability to apply what 

they know to real-life situations involving 

financial issues and decisions.2

How did U.S. 15-year-olds 

perform, on average, on the 

Program for International Student 

Assessment (PISA) financial 

literacy assessment compared to 

their peers in 17 other education 

systems? 

• Average scores in financial literacy in

2012 ranged from 603 in ShanghaiChina to 379 in Colombia. The U.S.

average was 492, which was not

measurably different from the OECD

average of 500. The U.S. average was

lower than the average in seven

education systems, higher than the

average in three education systems, and

not measurably different from the

average in seven education systems.

TABLE 1. Average scores of 15-year-old students on PISA financial 

literacy scale, by education system: 2012 

Education system Average score s.e.

OECD average (FL) 500 1.0

Shanghai-China 603 3.2

Belgium-Flemish Community 541 3.5

Estonia 529 3.0

Australia 526 2.1

New Zealand 520 3.7

Czech Republic 513 3.2

Poland 510 3.7

Latvia 501 3.3

United States 492 4.9

Russian Federation 486 3.7

France 486 3.4

Slovenia 485 3.3

Spain 484 3.2

Croatia 480 3.8

Israel 476 6.1

Slovak Republic 470 4.9

Italy 466 2.1

Colombia 379 4.7

Average score is higher than U.S. average score.

Average score is lower than U.S. average score.

NOTE: Education systems are ordered by 2012 average score. Scores are reported on a scale from 0 to 1,000. All average scores reported as higher or lower than 

the U.S. average score are different at the 0.05 level of statistical significance. 

The OECD average (FL) is the average of the national averages of the 13 OECD 

member countries (including the Flemish Community of Belgium) that participated 

in the financial literacy (FL) assessment, with each country (including the Flemish 

Community of Belgium) weighted equally. Standard error is noted by s.e. Italics 

indicate non-OECD countries and education systems.

SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 

Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), 2012.

Data in this report are from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), an 

international assessment of 15-year-old students, a sample-based survey. To learn more, 

visit http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pisa. For questions about content or to view this report 

online, go to http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2014102.
What were the percentages of 

top performers and low 

performers on the PISA 

financial literacy assessment? 

• Percentages of top performing

15-year-old students (those scoring

at level 5) in financial literacy ranged

from 43 percent in Shanghai-China to

1 percent in Colombia. In the United

States, 9 percent of 15-year-old

students scored at proficiency level 5.

The U.S. percentage was lower than

in four education systems and higher

than in eight education systems. It

was not measurably different from

the OECD average of 10 percent or

from the percentage in five education

systems.

• The percentage of 15-year-old

students scoring below level 2, which

is considered a baseline of proficiency

by the OECD, ranged from 2 percent in

Shanghai-China to 56 percent in

Colombia. In the United States,

18 percent of 15-year-old students

were low performers (scored below

level 2), which was higher than in

seven education systems and lower

than in four education systems. It was

not measurably different from the

OECD average of 15 percent or from

the percentage in six education

systems.

FIGURE 1. Percentage of 15-year-old students performing at PISA financial 

literacy proficiency level 5 and below level 2, by education system: 2012 

*p<.05. Significantly different from the U.S. percentage at the 0.05 level of statistical

significance.

! Interpret data with caution. Estimate is unstable due to high coefficient of variation.

NOTE: Education systems are ordered by 2012 percentages of 15-year-olds in level 5. To 

reach a particular proficiency level, a student must correctly answer a majority of items at

that level. Students were classified into financial literacy levels according to their scores on 

a scale ranging from 0 to1,000. Exact cut scores are as follows: below level 1 (a score less

than or equal to 325.57); level 1 (a score greater than 325.57 and less than or equal to 

400.33); level 2 (a score greater than 400.33 and less than or equal to 475.10); level 3

(a score greater than 475.10 and less than or equal to 549.86); level 4 (a score greater

than 549.86 and less than or equal to 624.63); and level 5 (a score greater than 624.63).

Proficiency levels below 1 and level 1 have been collapsed into a below level 2 category for

this figure in order to provide descriptive and meaningful proficiency levels for the financial

literacy assessment. Standard errors are available in table FL1b at: 

http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pisa/pisa2012/index.asp. The OECD average (FL) is the 

average of the national percentages of the 13 OECD member countries (including the 

Flemish Community of Belgium) that participated in the financial literacy (FL) assessment,

with each country (including the Flemish Community of Belgium) weighted equally. Italics

indicate non-OECD countries and education systems.

SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Program for

International Student Assessment (PISA), 2012.

This NCES Data Point presents information on education topics of 

current interest. It was authored by Patrick Gonzales and Dana Kelly of 

NCES. Estimates based on samples are subject to sampling variability, 

and apparent differences may not be statistically significant. All noted 

differences are statistically significant at the .05 level. In the design, 

conduct, and data processing of National Center for Education 

Statistics (NCES) surveys, efforts are made to minimize the effects of 

nonsampling errors, such as item nonresponse, measurement error, 

data processing error, or other systematic error. 
Endnotes 

1. PISA is conducted in the United States by NCES. In 2012, all 34 OECD member countries and 31 other 

education systems, some of which are countries and some of which are subnational entities, participated 

in PISA, for a total of 65 participating education systems. Eighteen of the 65 education systems chose to 

administer the optional financial literacy assessment.

2. More information about the PISA financial literacy assessment is available at www.pisa.oecd.org. This was the 

first time PISA assessed financial literacy and it was the first large-scale international assessment of the financial

literacy of young people.