A nation at a crossroads: Declining adult literacy threatens U.S. competitiveness
By willowt // 2025-12-19
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  • A major international study finds U.S. adult literacy scores have declined significantly since 2017, with more Americans now at the lowest proficiency levels.
  • The U.S. ranks in the middle internationally for literacy but lags behind in numeracy and problem-solving skills.
  • An estimated 130 million American adults have low literacy skills, impacting economic productivity and personal opportunity.
  • Access to adult education programs is limited, with long waitlists due to high demand and insufficient funding.
  • State-level disparities in literacy rates and funding highlight an uneven national landscape for addressing the issue.
In a sobering assessment of the nation’s human capital, new international data reveals a significant decline in the foundational skills of American adults. The latest Survey of Adult Skills, released in December 2024, shows U.S. literacy proficiency has dropped sharply since 2017, with a growing number of adults clustered at the lowest levels. This erosion of basic competencies coincides with a stark domestic reality: approximately 130 million U.S. adults now possess low literacy skills, a crisis with profound implications for economic mobility, public health and national security in an increasingly complex global landscape.

A widening skills divide

The 2023 Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), coordinated by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), places the United States in a middling and declining position. The average U.S. literacy score fell 12 points from 2017 to 2023, dropping to 258 on a 500-point scale. While this score is on par with the international average, the domestic trend is alarming. The proportion of U.S. adults scoring at the lowest proficiency level jumped from 19% to 28% in just six years. Simultaneously, the percentage of high-performing adults decreased. National Center for Education Statistics Commissioner Peggy G. Carr described a “dwindling middle” and a widening skills gap that is now the largest in numeracy among all participating countries.

The economic and social cost of low literacy

The consequences of low adult literacy extend far beyond individual struggle. Experts estimate it costs the U.S. economy up to $2.2 trillion annually in lost productivity and earnings. Adults with low literacy skills face limited employment prospects, lower wages, and are more likely to live in poverty. The ripple effects are intergenerational; children of parents with low literacy are 72% more likely to have low reading levels themselves, perpetuating a cycle of limited opportunity. Furthermore, low literacy is linked to billions in annual healthcare costs, as individuals struggle to navigate complex medical information and systems—a vulnerability starkly exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A system struggling to respond

Despite the clear need, the system designed to support adult learners is fragmented and under-resourced. Federally funded adult education and literacy programs, primarily supported through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, serve only a fraction of those in need. Less than 10% of adults with low literacy skills are enrolled, and over half of all programs report waitlists due to insufficient funding and volunteers. National enrollment in these programs has plummeted from 2.78 million in 2002 to 1.1 million in 2020. The burden also falls unevenly across states. While Minnesota invests heavily in adult education, correlating with some of the nation’s highest literacy rates, states like New Mexico and California—with severe literacy challenges—commit far fewer state resources per learner, relying more on uneven federal grants.

Historical context and a path forward

The decline in adult skills is not an isolated event but a symptom of long-standing systemic issues, including disparities in K-12 education funding, the erosion of middle-skill career pathways, and underinvestment in lifelong learning. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these trends, disrupting education and widening performance gaps. Historically, adult literacy has been chronically underfunded and overlooked in policy debates, often treated as a welfare issue rather than an economic imperative. Reversing the trend requires a paradigm shift. Policymakers must prioritize a "skills-first" approach, aligning education with labor market demands and dramatically increasing investment in accessible, flexible adult education. As the OECD report notes, fostering lifelong learning is not merely an educational goal but a critical strategy for ensuring social cohesion and economic resilience.

An urgent call for investment and integration

The data present a clear warning: the United States is failing to maintain the skill base necessary for a thriving 21st-century democracy and economy. The growing divide between high- and low-skilled adults threatens social stability and undermines national competitiveness. Addressing the adult literacy crisis demands more than incremental change; it requires integrating adult education into broader economic and workforce development strategies, incentivizing employer-led training, and ensuring equitable funding across states. The nation’s capacity to innovate, adapt and prosper depends on its commitment to elevating the skills of all its citizens, not just those entering the workforce, but the tens of millions already in it. The time for a national strategy on adult literacy and upskilling is now. Sources for this article include: NU.edu OECD.org IES.ed.gov AMPresearchlab.org
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