According to the latest edition of the EF English Proficiency Index (EF EPI), prepared by Education First, Colombia ranks fifth among Latin American countries with the least proficiency in English. This index is considered the largest ranking in the world in this area.
This report, prepared annually, covered 116 countries in 2024 and was applied to 2.1 million people whose native language is not English. The assessment classified the level of language proficiency into five categories: “very high,” “high,” “moderate,” “low,” and “very low.” Countries were rated according to a scoring scale, with a maximum possible score of 800.
In this context, Colombia is in position 74 worldwide and in position 17 among the 21 countries in Latin America. who were part of the study. With an average score of 485, the country is underperforming in its English proficiency.
At the regional level, Colombia surpasses only Brazil (466), Ecuador (465), Mexico (459) and Haiti (432)the latter being the only country in the region with a performance rated as “very low.”
At the other extreme, the Latin American countries with the best results are Suriname (563) and Argentina (562), both with a high level. Next are Honduras (545), Uruguay (538) and Costa Rica (534), which achieve a moderate level of English proficiency.
As for the positive aspects, it is the first time that Colombia, since its inclusion in this study, exceeds the global average, which this year was 477 points. In addition, it has advanced one position compared to 2023, when it ranked 75th with 480 points, and has improved three places compared to 2022, when it ranked 77th with 477 points.
This increase reflects a constant improvement, especially when compared to 2021, when Colombia reached 465 points, or with 2020 when it obtained 448 points, placing it among the countries with a level considered “very low” at that time.
Likewise, when measurements began in 2011, Colombia obtained a score of 420, placing it in the “very low” category. This means that, compared to 2024, the country has seen an improvement of 65 points.
At the regional level, the department that obtained the highest score was Quindío, with 517 points, followed by Antioquia with 505 and Atlántico with 503, all within a moderate range according to the study. Next, although with lower scores, are Santander (498) and Caldas (492).
As for the cities, those that occupied The first places were Armenia (516), Bogotá (513) and Bucaramanga (511). Subsequently, Cali (510), Medellín (509), Barranquilla (507), Manizales (504) and Pereira (502) were located, all within the moderate range, according to the EF EPI 2024. On the other hand, the cities with the highest scores lowest were Tuluá (400), Valledupar (420) and Montería (430).
