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 dataset presents life expectancy at birth estimates based on annual complete period life tables for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia (D.C.) in 2021 for the total, male and female populations.

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

1. 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.

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. National Center for Health Statistics. Historical Data, 1900-1998. 2009. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/mortality_historical_data.htm.

Life expectancy at birth, total (years) in United States was reported at 77.43 years in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - Life expectancy at birth, total (years) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on March of 2025.

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.

The dataset presents life expectancy at birth estimates based on annual complete period life tables for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia (D.C.) in 2018 for the total, male and female populations.

In 2022, the life expectancy of men at birth in the United States increased by 1.3 years (+1.77 percent) compared to 2021. In total, the life expectancy amounted to 74.8 years in 2022. This increase was preceded by a declining life expectancy.Life expectancy at birth refers to the number of years the average newborn is expected to live, providing that mortality patterns at the time of birth do not change thereafter.Find more statistics on other topics about the United States with key insights such as total fertility rate, infant mortality rate, and total life expectancy at birth.

This statistic shows the average life expectancy in North America for those born in 2022, by gender and region. In Canada, the average life expectancy was 80 years for males and 84 years for females.

Life expectancy in North America

Of those considered in this statistic, the life expectancy of female Canadian infants born in 2021 was the longest, at 84 years. Female infants born in America that year had a similarly high life expectancy of 81 years. Male infants, meanwhile, had lower life expectancies of 80 years (Canada) and 76 years (USA).

Compare this to the worldwide life expectancy for babies born in 2021: 75 years for women and 71 years for men. Of continents worldwide, North America ranks equal first in terms of life expectancy of (77 years for men and 81 years for women). Life expectancy is lowest in Africa at just 63 years and 66 years for males and females respectively. Japan is the country with the highest life expectancy worldwide for babies born in 2020.

Life expectancy is calculated according to current mortality rates of the population in question. Global variations in life expectancy are caused by differences in medical care, public health and diet, and reflect global inequalities in economic circumstances. Africa’s low life expectancy, for example, can be attributed in part to the AIDS epidemic. In 2019, around 72,000 people died of AIDS in South Africa, the largest amount worldwide. Nigeria, Tanzania and India were also high on the list of countries ranked by AIDS deaths that year. Likewise, Africa has by far the highest rate of mortality by communicable disease (i.e. AIDS, neglected tropics diseases, malaria and tuberculosis).

Chart and table of United State Of America life expectancy from 1950 to 2025. United Nations projections are also included through the year 2100.

United States - Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for High Income Countries was 80.88737 Number of Years in January of 2019, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for High Income Countries reached a record high of 80.88737 in January of 2019 and a record low of 68.55283 in January of 1960. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for High Income Countries - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.

Notation, definition, and formula of each column of an abridged life table to calculate life expectancy.

As of 2023, the countries with the highest life expectancy included Switzerland, Japan, and Spain. As of that time, a new-born child in Switzerland could expect to live an average of 84.2 years. Around the world, females consistently have a higher average life expectancy than males, with females in Europe expected to live an average of six years longer than males on this continent. Increases in life expectancy The overall average life expectancy in OECD countries increased by 11.3 years from 1970 to 2019. The countries that saw the largest increases included Turkey, India, and South Korea. The life expectancy at birth in Turkey increased an astonishing 24.4 years over this period. The countries with the lowest life expectancy worldwide as of 2022 were Chad, Lesotho, and Nigeria, where a newborn could be expected to live an average of 53 years. Life expectancy in the U.S. The life expectancy in the United States was 77.43 years as of 2022. Shockingly, the life expectancy in the United States has decreased in recent years, while it continues to increase in other similarly developed countries. The COVID-19 pandemic and increasing rates of suicide and drug overdose deaths from the opioid epidemic have been cited as reasons for this decrease.

United States - Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for the Arab World was 71.98971 Number of Years in January of 2019, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for the Arab World reached a record high of 71.98971 in January of 2019 and a record low of 40.34559 in January of 1950. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Life Expectancy at Birth, Total for the Arab World - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.

A global phenomenon, known as the demographic transition, has seen life expectancy from birth increase rapidly over the past two centuries. In pre-industrial societies, the average life expectancy was around 24 years, and it is believed that this was the case throughout most of history, and in all regions. The demographic transition then began in the industrial societies of Europe, North America, and the West Pacific around the turn of the 19th century, and life expectancy rose accordingly. Latin America was the next region to follow, before Africa and most Asian populations saw their life expectancy rise throughout the 20th century.

In 2020, a newborn Hispanic child in the United States had a projected life expectancy of 77.9 years, the highest life expectancy among the ethnic groups studied. In comparison, the life expectancy at birth for a Black, non-Hispanic child in 2020 was 71.5 years.

The U.S. Small-area Life Expectancy Estimates Project (USALEEP) is a partnership of NCHS, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)external icon, and the National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems (NAPHSIS)external icon to produce a new measure of health for where you live. The USALEEP project produced estimates of life expectancy at birth—the average number of years a person can expect to live—for most of the census tracts in the United States for the period 2010-2015.MethodsThe abridged period life tables calculated to estimate census-tract life expectancy at birth for the period 2010-2015 are based on a methodology developed for this project and described in the report:Arias E, Escobedo LA, Kennedy J, Fu C, Cisewski J. U.S. Small-area Life Expectancy Estimates Project: Methodology and Results Summary pdf icon[PDF – 8 MB]. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Stat 2(181). 2018.Data and Documentation FilesLife Expectancy Files contain geographic identifiers, life expectancy at birth for 2010-2015, and flags noting whether the estimates were based exclusively on observed data, a combination of observed and predicted values, or exclusively predicted values.Abridged Period Life Table Files contain geographic identifiers and the abridged, period life tables for 2010-2015 that were calculated to generate the life expectancy estimates for each census tract.Record layout pdf icon[PDF – 69 KB] excel icon[XLS – 18 KB]Copyright informationAll material appearing on this page is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission; citation as to source, however, is appreciated.Suggested citationFor data files: National Center for Health Statistics. U.S. Small-Area Life Expectancy Estimates Project (USALEEP): Life Expectancy Estimates File for {Jurisdiction}, 2010-2015]. National Center for Health Statistics. 2018. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/usaleep/usaleep.html.For methodology: Arias E, Escobedo LA, Kennedy J, Fu C, Cisewski J. U.S. Small-area Life Expectancy Estimates Project: Methodology and Results Summary pdf icon[PDF – 8 MB]. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Stat 2(181). 2018.

United States US: Life Expectancy at Birth: Male data was reported at 76.300 Year in 2016. This stayed constant from the previous number of 76.300 Year for 2015. United States US: Life Expectancy at Birth: Male data is updated yearly, averaging 71.400 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 76.500 Year in 2014 and a record low of 66.000 Year in 1968. United States US: Life Expectancy at Birth: Male data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.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;

School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years) in United States was reported at 6.0693 years in 2018, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on March of 2025.

Total, disability-free, and disabled life expectancy by gender, living arrangement, and education for non-Hispanic whites at age 50: Status-based estimates with initial health state being disabled.

In 2023, the average life expectancy of the world was 70 years for men and 75 years for women. The lowest life expectancies were found in Africa, while Oceania and Europe had the highest.

What is life expectancy?

Life expectancy is defined as a statistical measure of how long a person may live, based on demographic factors such as gender, current age, and most importantly the year of their birth. The most commonly used measure of life expectancy is life expectancy at birth or at age zero. The calculation is based on the assumption that mortality rates at each age were to remain constant in the future.

Life expectancy has changed drastically over time, especially during the past 200 years. In the early 20th century, the average life expectancy at birth in the developed world stood at 31 years. It has grown to an average of 70 and 75 years for males and females respectively, and is expected to keep on growing with advances in medical treatment and living standard continuing.

Highest and lowest life expectancy worldwide

Life expectancy still varies greatly between different regions and countries of the world. The biggest impact on life expectancy is the quality of public health, medical care, and diet. As of 2021, the countries with the highest life expectancy were Japan, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, and South Korea, all at 84 years. Most of the countries with the lowest life expectancy are mostly African countries. The ranking was led by the Chad, Nigeria, and Lesotho with 53 years.