During the population and housing census, information on the highest level of education attained by inhabitants of Estonia was also gathered and data were compared with that of other countries. Estonia has seen an increase in the proportion of people with higher education, while the share of persons with basic education has decreased. Estonian women are still among the most highly educated in Europe, and overall Estonia ranks 7th in terms of the share of people with higher education.

Data from the 2021 census show that the share of people with higher education in Estonia is increasing and the share of people with basic education is decreasing. A fifth of the inhabitants in Estonia have a master's degree, and Tartu and Viimsi stand out for their particularly high concentration of highly educated people.

A total of 737,873 dwellings were counted in the 2021 Population and Housing Census, based on registers. Compared to the 2011 census, 47,793 new dwellings have been built, which is 1000 fewer than in the previous ten years (2001–2011). According to census data, there are now 14% more private houses than 10 years ago and 24% of all dwellings are vacant.

Data collected from registers in the 2021 census reveal that in ten years, Estonia’s population has grown, people live longer, and the number of working-age persons has fallen. Over the last decade, Estonia has seen a rise in the number of ethnic nationalities, countries of citizenship, mother tongues, and countries of birth, as well as an increase in the number of Estonians.

There are 259,341 children aged 0–17 living in Estonia. This is 9.1% more than ten years ago. Children constitute 19.5% of the total population of Estonia. The share of children is the lowest in Hiiu and Ida-Viru counties and the highest in Harju and Tartu counties, as revealed by the census results published today.

Today, on June 1, Statistics Estonia will publish the first results of the population census. We will reveal the size of population of Estonia, sex and age distribution of the population, location of inhabitants, representation of various ethnic nationalities, mother tongues, and countries of citizenship in the Estonian society, and the changes that have occurred over the decades. On the occasion of the International Day for Protection of Children, we will also highlight census data on children.