Over the past 160 years, life expectancy (from birth) in the United States has risen from 39.4 years in 1860, to 78.9 years in 2020. One of the major reasons for the overall increase of life expectancy in the last two centuries is the fact that the infant and child mortality rates have decreased by so much during this time. Medical advancements, fewer wars and improved living standards also mean that people are living longer than they did in previous centuries.

Despite this overall increase, the life expectancy dropped three times since 1860; from 1865 to 1870 during the American Civil War, from 1915 to 1920 during the First World War and following Spanish Flu epidemic, and it has dropped again between 2015 and now. The reason for the most recent drop in life expectancy is not a result of any specific event, but has been attributed to negative societal trends, such as unbalanced diets and sedentary lifestyles, high medical costs, and increasing rates of suicide and drug use.

The life expectancy for men aged 65 years in the U.S. has gradually increased since the 1960s. Now men in the United States aged 65 can expect to live 17 more years on average. Women aged 65 years can expect to live around 19.7 more years on average.

Life expectancy in the U.S.

As of 2021, the average life expectancy at birth in the United States was 76.33 years. Life expectancy in the U.S. had steadily increased for many years but has recently dropped slightly. Women consistently have a higher life expectancy than men but have also seen a slight decrease. As of 2019, a woman in the U.S. could be expected to live up to 79.3 years.

Leading causes of death

The leading causes of death in the United States include heart disease, cancer, unintentional injuries, chronic lower respiratory diseases and cerebrovascular diseases. However, heart disease and cancer account for around 38 percent of all deaths. Although heart disease and cancer are the leading causes of death for both men and women, there are slight variations in the leading causes of death. For example, unintentional injury and suicide account for a larger portion of deaths among men than they do among women.

Global life expectancy at birth has risen significantly since the mid-1900s, from roughly 46 years in 1950 to 73.2 years in 2023. Post-COVID-19 projections There was a drop of 1.7 years during the COVID-19 pandemic, between 2019 and 2021, however, figures resumed upon their previous trajectory the following year due to the implementation of vaccination campaigns and the lower severity of later strains of the virus. By the end of the century it is believed that global life expectancy from birth will reach 82 years, although growth will slow in the coming decades as many of the more-populous Asian countries reach demographic maturity. However, there is still expected to be a wide gap between various regions at the end of the 2100s, with the Europe and North America expected to have life expectancies around 90 years, whereas Sub-Saharan Africa is predicted to be in the low-70s. The Great Leap Forward While a decrease of one year during the COVID-19 pandemic may appear insignificant, this is the largest decline in life expectancy since the "Great Leap Forward" in China in 1958, which caused global life expectancy to fall by almost four years between by 1960. The "Great Leap Forward" was a series of modernizing reforms, which sought to rapidly transition China's agrarian economy into an industrial economy, but mismanagement led to tens of millions of deaths through famine and disease.

life expectancy for 2022 was 72.87, a 0.7% increase from 2021.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li> life expectancy for 2021 was <strong>72.37</strong>, a <strong>1.1% decline</strong> from 2020.</li>
<li> life expectancy for 2020 was <strong>73.17</strong>, a <strong>0.4% decline</strong> from 2019.</li>
<li> life expectancy for 2019 was <strong>73.47</strong>, a <strong>0.31% increase</strong> from 2018.</li>
</ul>Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.

life expectancy for 2022 was 70.40, a 0.96% increase from 2021.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li> life expectancy for 2021 was <strong>69.72</strong>, a <strong>1.45% decline</strong> from 2020.</li>
<li> life expectancy for 2020 was <strong>70.75</strong>, a <strong>0.93% decline</strong> from 2019.</li>
<li> life expectancy for 2019 was <strong>71.41</strong>, a <strong>0.28% increase</strong> from 2018.</li>
</ul>Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.

Graph and download economic data for Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for Small States (SPDYNLE00INSST) from 1960 to 2023 about life expectancy, life, and birth.

In the world's most populous country, life expectancy has been continuously rising over the last decades, benefitting greatly from China's economic ascendance. In 2022, average life expectancy at birth in China reached about 78.6 years. Life expectancy at birth Life expectancy at birth refers to the average number of years a group of people born in the same year would live, assuming constant mortality rates. San Marino and Monaco had the highest life expectancy at birth, while China had reached a life expectancy above global average. People who were born in San Marino or Monaco in 2023 had a life expectancy of approximately 87 years or 86 years on average respectively. Demographic development in China Whereas average life expectancy at birth has been growing steadily, birth rates in China have been experiencing a slowdown. In 2024, about 6.77 babies had been born per 1,000 women in China, the second lowest point in the recent decade. As a result of low fertility rates and the extended life expectancy in China, the share of elderly people had been rising rapidly. The number of Chinese population aged 60 and older had more than doubled over the past three decades and is projected to reach its peak at 504 million in 2050. People aged 60 and older have been estimated to account for approximately one fourth of China’s total population by 2030, indicating a sharp climb from just around 13 percent in 2010. In order to pinpoint this massive shift in the age pyramid of China, an important indicator for measuring the pressure of aging population on productive population may be consulted. The old-age dependency ratio in China was expected to reach 52.3 percent in 2050.

Life expectancy at birth, total (years) The average expected length of a person's life based on their year and country of birth. About the Life Expectancy data ( 1 ) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2019 Revision, or derived from male and female life expectancy at birth from sources such as: ( 2 ) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, ( 3 ) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, ( 4 ) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot ( various years ), ( 5 ) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and ( 6 ) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.Data source: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN

life expectancy for 2022 was 76.79, a 2.66% increase from 2021.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li> life expectancy for 2021 was <strong>74.80</strong>, a <strong>1.69% decline</strong> from 2020.</li>
<li> life expectancy for 2020 was <strong>76.08</strong>, a <strong>1.53% decline</strong> from 2019.</li>
<li> life expectancy for 2019 was <strong>77.27</strong>, a <strong>0.38% increase</strong> from 2018.</li>
</ul>Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.

Sweden SE: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data was reported at 84.100 Year in 2016. This stayed constant from the previous number of 84.100 Year for 2015. Sweden SE: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data is updated yearly, averaging 80.150 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 84.200 Year in 2014 and a record low of 74.870 Year in 1960. Sweden SE: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Sweden – Table SE.World Bank: Health Statistics. Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.; ; (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision. (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years), (5) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and (6) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.; Weighted average;

This dataset of U.S. mortality trends since 1900 highlights the differences in age-adjusted death rates and life expectancy at birth by race and sex. Age-adjusted death rates (deaths per 100,000) after 1998 are calculated based on the 2000 U.S. standard population. Populations used for computing death rates for 2011–2017 are postcensal estimates based on the 2010 census, estimated as of July 1, 2010. Rates for census years are based on populations enumerated in the corresponding censuses. Rates for noncensus years between 2000 and 2010 are revised using updated intercensal population estimates and may differ from rates previously published. Data on age-adjusted death rates prior to 1999 are taken from historical data (see References below). Life expectancy data are available up to 2017. Due to changes in categories of race used in publications, data are not available for the black population consistently before 1968, and not at all before 1960. More information on historical data on age-adjusted death rates is available at https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/mortality/hist293.htm. SOURCES CDC/NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, historical data, 1900-1998 (see https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/mortality_historical_data.htm); CDC/NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, mortality data (see http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/deaths.htm); and CDC WONDER (see http://wonder.cdc.gov). REFERENCES National Center for Health Statistics, Data Warehouse. Comparability of cause-of-death between ICD revisions. 2008. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/mortality/comparability_icd.htm. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital statistics data available. Mortality multiple cause files. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data_access/vitalstatsonline.htm. Kochanek KD, Murphy SL, Xu JQ, Arias E. Deaths: Final data for 2017. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 68 no 9. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_09-508.pdf. Arias E, Xu JQ. United States life tables, 2017. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 68 no 7. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_07-508.pdf. National Center for Health Statistics. Historical Data, 1900-1998. 2009. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/mortality_historical_data.htm.

Mali ML: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data was reported at 58.674 Year in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 58.163 Year for 2015. Mali ML: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data is updated yearly, averaging 45.552 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 58.674 Year in 2016 and a record low of 29.026 Year in 1960. Mali ML: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Mali – Table ML.World Bank: Health Statistics. Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.; ; (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision. (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years), (5) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and (6) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.; Weighted average;

In 2021, a woman in the United States aged 65 years could expect to live another 19.7 years on average. This number decreased in the years 2020 and 2021, after reaching a high of 20.8 years in 2019. Nevertheless, the life expectancy of a woman aged 65 years in the United States is still higher than that of a man of that age. In 2021, a man aged 65 years could be expected to live another 17 years on average.

Why has the life expectancy in the U.S. declined? Overall, life expectancy in the United States has declined in recent years. In 2019, the life expectancy for U.S. women was 81.4 years, but by 2021 it had decreased to 79.3 years. Likewise, the life expectancy for men decreased from 76.3 years to 73.5 years in the same period. The biggest contributors to this decline in life expectancy are the COVID-19 pandemic and the opioid epidemic. Although deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic have decreased significantly since 2022, deaths from opioid overdose continue to increase, reaching all-time highs in 2021.

The leading causes of death among U.S. women The leading causes of death among women in the United States in 2020 were heart disease, cancer, and COVID-19. That year heart disease and cancer accounted for a combined 37 percent of all deaths among women, while around 10 percent of deaths were due to COVID-19. The overall leading causes of death in the United States generally reflect the leading causes among women with some slight variations. For example, Alzheimer’s disease is the fourth leading cause of death among women, but the seventh leading cause of death overall in the United States.

Jordan JO: Life Expectancy at Birth: Total data was reported at 74.329 Year in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 74.182 Year for 2015. Jordan JO: Life Expectancy at Birth: Total data is updated yearly, averaging 69.311 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 74.329 Year in 2016 and a record low of 52.651 Year in 1960. Jordan JO: Life Expectancy at Birth: Total data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Jordan – Table JO.World Bank: Health Statistics. Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.; ; (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision, or derived from male and female life expectancy at birth from sources such as: (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years), (5) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and (6) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.; Weighted average;

The average for 2022 based on 24 countries was 77.36 years. The highest value was in Bermuda: 84.51 years and the lowest value was in Haiti: 66.7 years. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Graph and download economic data for Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for Mexico (SPDYNLE00INMEX) from 1960 to 2023 about life expectancy, life, birth, and Mexico.

Mauritius's Average life expectancy is 74.18Age which is the 101st highest in the world ranking. Transition graphs on Average life expectancy in Mauritius and comparison bar charts (USA vs. China vs. Japan vs. Mauritius), (Timor-Leste vs. Cyprus vs. Mauritius) are used for easy understanding. Various data can be downloaded and output in csv format for use in EXCEL free of charge.

Germany: Life expectancy, in years, male: The latest value from 2022 is 78.33 years, a decline from 78.4 years in 2021. In comparison, the world average is 69.65 years, based on data from 192 countries. Historically, the average for Germany from 1960 to 2022 is 72.69 years. The minimum value, 66.51 years, was reached in 1960 while the maximum of 79 years was recorded in 2019.

Georgia: Life expectancy, in years, male: The latest value from 2022 is 66.76 years, a decline from 66.8 years in 2021. In comparison, the world average is 69.65 years, based on data from 192 countries. Historically, the average for Georgia from 1960 to 2022 is 63.85 years. The minimum value, 57.13 years, was reached in 1960 while the maximum of 68.84 years was recorded in 2017.

This dataset shows the life expectancy at birth for Cambodia from 1960 to 2022. It tracks the number of years a newborn is expected to live, assuming current mortality rates remain constant.