In 2018, more than three fourths (77 percent) of people who identified as white surveyed in Brazil were deemed functionally literate – that is, minimally able to read and interpret memos, pieces of news, instructions, narratives, graphs, tables, ads, and other types of text. Among brown and black-skinned respondents, the functional literacy rate stood at 70 and 65 percent respectively. Less than half of Brazilians aged between 50 and 64 years were considered functionally literate.
Percentage of population deemed functionally literate in Brazil in 2018, by skin color
2,002 persons living in rural and urban areas in all regions of Brazil
Age group
15-64 years
Special properties
include people with elementary, intermediate, and proficient levels of functional literacy**
Method of interview
Face-to-face interview
Supplementary notes
* Include yellow and indigenous.
** The respondents were assessed based on their ability to read and to interpret memos, pieces of news, instructions, narratives, graphs, tables, advertisements, among other types of text.
The source uses the word "cor" ("color", as in "skin color"), as does the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE, as abbreviated in Portuguese).
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Instituto Paulo Montenegro. (August 15, 2018). Percentage of population deemed functionally literate in Brazil in 2018, by skin color [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved December 19, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1130399/brazil-functional-literacy-color/
Instituto Paulo Montenegro. "Percentage of population deemed functionally literate in Brazil in 2018, by skin color." Chart. August 15, 2018. Statista. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1130399/brazil-functional-literacy-color/
Instituto Paulo Montenegro. (2018). Percentage of population deemed functionally literate in Brazil in 2018, by skin color. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: December 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1130399/brazil-functional-literacy-color/
Instituto Paulo Montenegro. "Percentage of Population Deemed Functionally Literate in Brazil in 2018, by Skin Color." Statista, Statista Inc., 15 Aug 2018, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1130399/brazil-functional-literacy-color/
Instituto Paulo Montenegro, Percentage of population deemed functionally literate in Brazil in 2018, by skin color Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1130399/brazil-functional-literacy-color/ (last visited December 19, 2024)
Percentage of population deemed functionally literate in Brazil in 2018, by skin color [Graph], Instituto Paulo Montenegro, August 15, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1130399/brazil-functional-literacy-color/
