In 2023, the median age of the population of the United States was 39.2 years. While this may seem quite young, the median age in 1960 was even younger, at 29.5 years. The aging population in the United States means that society is going to have to find a way to adapt to the larger numbers of older people. Everything from Social Security to employment to the age of retirement will have to change if the population is expected to age more while having fewer children. The world is getting older It’s not only the United States that is facing this particular demographic dilemma. In 1950, the global median age was 23.6 years. This number is projected to increase to 41.9 years by the year 2100. This means that not only the U.S., but the rest of the world will also have to find ways to adapt to the aging population.

This statistic shows the median age of the world population from 1950 to 2100. By 2100, the global median age is projected to be 41.9 years of age.

Since 1970, the median age of China’s population has continued to increase from around ** years to around **** years in 2020. According to estimates from the United Nations, the increasing trend will slow down when the median age will reach ** years in the middle of the 21st century and will remain at around ** years up to 2100. China’s aging population Although the median age of China’s population is still lower than in many developed countries, for example in Japan, the consequences of a rapidly aging population have already become a concern for the country’s future. As the most populated country in the world, the large labor force in China contributed to the country’s astonishing economic growth in the last decades. Nowadays however, the aging population is going to become a burden for China’s social welfare system and could change China’s economic situation. Reasons for the aging population Like in many other countries, increasing life expectancy is regarded as the main reason for the aging of the population. As healthcare and living standards have improved, life expectancy in China has also increased. In addition, the one-child policy led to a decreasing fertility rate in China, which further increased the share of older people in the society. Even though the one-child policy has been abolished in 2016, many young people are refraining from having children, largely due to the high costs of raising a child, career pressure and the pursuit of freedom.

The median age of the population of Singapore has been increasing since 1965, and is projected to reach 56 years by 2100. The median age is the age that divides a population into two numerically equal groups, such that half the people are younger than this age and half are older. An aging population As Singapore’s median age increases, its fertility rate has decreased. In 2017, Singapore’s fertility rate was 1.16 children per woman of childbearing age, which is below the amount needed to replace the population. Additionally, Singapore is one of the leading countries and territories with the highest life expectancy at birth; an expectancy of 87.63 years. As such, Singapore is faced with adapting to aging population and a growing ratio of old-age dependency. A trend of population aging Many countries are facing this demographic dilemma: the global median age is projected to grow from 29.6 in 2015 to around 41.6 years through the end of the century. Population aging could be one of the most substantial societal transformations of the twenty-first century, affecting most sectors of society, including healthcare, housing, and pensions.

The median age of Germans in 2025 was 45.5 years, meaning that half the German population was younger, half older. Following some fluctuation during the post-WWII baby boom waves, Germany's average age has been on an upwards trajectory since the 1970s, with a sharp rise in the 1990s and 2000s, although it has slowed in recent years. It is projected to peak at over 48 years in the 2040s, before plateauing around the 47 year mark for the remainder of the century. Aging in Germany This shift in the age makeup of Germany is driven by having fewer young people and more old people. While it has increased slightly in the last decade, the German fertility rate remains low. Fewer young people lead to a higher median age, as does rising life expectancy. These trends have significant economic and societal impacts, where workforces shrink and the elderly population places greater demand on healthcare systems and public finances, while families must increasingly care for elderly relatives. Regional and global trends The entire European Union, due to higher levels of development, shows an upward shift in its age distribution. While this shift is occurring globally, the level of Germany’s median age is particularly high. In many other parts of the world, particularly Subsaharan Africa, the proportion of young and old inhabitants is skewed sharply toward the young, pulling the median age lower.

In 2025, the average age of the population in Italy is estimated to be **** years. This figure constantly rose over the last decade. In 2010, the mean age was **** years, steadily growing in the following years. Recent studies indicate that the median age is projected to increase in the future as well. By 2050, it could reach **** years. Few births over the past years Italy has the highest share of the elderly population in Europe. In 2023, ** percent of the Italian inhabitants were aged 65 years and over. One of the main reasons for the population aging is the low number of births recorded in the past years. In fact, Italy counted about *** births every 100,000 inhabitants in 2023, the lowest figure recorded since 2002 at least. Longer lifespan In addition to a low birth rate, Italy is among the countries with the highest life expectancy worldwide. In 2024, life expectancy at birth for Italian women was **** years, whereas Italian men could expect to live up to **** years. A longer life expectancy combined with fewer births explain why the average age of Italian inhabitants has been rising recently.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.

The data for this report, including forecasts, are sourced from the US Census Bureau and IBISWorld. The estimates provided refer to the population as of July 1 for that year. The forecasts in this report are also sourced from the US Census Bureau and assume that population rates will continue to rise.

In 2023, about 17.7 percent of the American population was 65 years old or over; an increase from the last few years and a figure which is expected to reach 22.8 percent by 2050. This is a significant increase from 1950, when only eight percent of the population was 65 or over. A rapidly aging population In recent years, the aging population of the United States has come into focus as a cause for concern, as the nature of work and retirement is expected to change to keep up. If a population is expected to live longer than the generations before, the economy will have to change as well to fulfill the needs of the citizens. In addition, the birth rate in the U.S. has been falling over the last 20 years, meaning that there are not as many young people to replace the individuals leaving the workforce. The future population It’s not only the American population that is aging -- the global population is, too. By 2025, the median age of the global workforce is expected to be 39.6 years, up from 33.8 years in 1990. Additionally, it is projected that there will be over three million people worldwide aged 100 years and over by 2050.

About this dataset

Context

The dataset presents the distribution of median household income among distinct age brackets of householders in Rising Star. Based on the latest 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates from the American Community Survey, it displays how income varies among householders of different ages in Rising Star. It showcases how household incomes typically rise as the head of the household gets older. The dataset can be utilized to gain insights into age-based household income trends and explore the variations in incomes across households.

Key observations: Insights from 2023

In terms of income distribution across age cohorts, in Rising Star, the median household income stands at $36,071 for householders within the 25 to 44 years age group, followed by $35,789 for the 45 to 64 years age group. Notably, householders within the 65 years and over age group, had the lowest median household income at $16,875.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates. All incomes have been adjusting for inflation and are presented in 2023-inflation-adjusted dollars.

Age groups classifications include:

• Under 25 years
• 25 to 44 years
• 45 to 64 years
• 65 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Of The Head Of Household: This column presents the age of the head of household
• Median Household Income: Median household income, in 2023 inflation-adjusted dollars for the specific age group

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Rising Star median household income by age. You can refer the same here

Demographic development in South Korea in the final decades of the 21st century saw rapid change across its society. In South Korea, the average age of the population rose from below 20 years in the late-70s to around 45 years today, and it is projected to rise to over 62 years in 2074. With one of the lowest fertility rates in the world, population aging is one of the largest challenges facing South Korea today. If these projections come true, then South Korea is on course to soon have a smaller working-age population than its combined child and elderly populations. Recent years have shown population aging to be a compounding issue that exacerbates itself - young people often become responsible for providing care for elderly relatives, straining time and financial resources and dissuading many from having their own children. The state must also invest much more money into elderly care and healthcare, often redistributing resources that were previously invested in childcare and education. Although the state (and even some private companies) are now offering financial incentives for couples to have children, it remains to be seen whether these measures will be enough to reverse years of rapid population aging and declining fertility rates.

In 2020, the child and old-age dependency ratios in China ranged at around 25.9 and 18.2 percent respectively, summing up to a total dependency ratio of 44.1 percent. While the child dependency ratio is expected to drop slightly and then remain stable, the old-age dependency ratio will rise steadily in coming decades. Age demographics in China With a populace of 1.4 billion people by the end of 2023, China stands the country with the second largest population in the world. Since its foundation in 1949, the PRC has experienced high population growth. With the beginning of the reform period in the end of the 1970s, population growth decreased steadily. Finally, China's population size peaked in 2021 and entered a declining path. Falling birth rates in combination with higher life expectancy led to a continuously increasing median age of the population in China over the past five decades. The median age of the Chinese population is expected to rise further and to reach 50 years by the middle of the century. Development of the dependency ratio China has enjoyed a continuously growing work force since the late 1970s. Simultaneously, the total dependency ratio in China decreased from 80 percent in 1970 to about 37 percent in 2010. However, an important turning point was reached in 2011, as the total dependency ratio was set to increase again after 30 years of population bonus. As can be seen from the above graph, until 2100, child-dependency is estimated to remain steady around 15 to 20 percent. Old-age dependency on the other hand is expected to grow from about 12 percent in 2010 to 69 percent in 2060, implying a growing number of senior citizens that need support from the working population. The shift of age demographics in the near future in China is bound to have ineligible economical and social impacts. To learn more about age demographics in China, take a look at our dossier aging population in China.

This study examines how population change is associated with changes in sociodemographics and economic outcomes across diverse geographic contexts in the United States from 2000 to 2020. Using Census Tract-level data and generalized additive models (GAMs), we found that communities experiencing population growth showed significant improvements in socioeconomic indicators: for example, a 50% population increase in Northeast metropolitan non-coastal areas was associated with a $10,062 rise [95% confidence interval (CI) = $9,181, $10,944] in median household income. Conversely, areas with population decline faced increasing challenges to community composition: communities experiencing a 50% population decline in West coastal metropolitan areas saw their median age increase by 2.556 years (95% CI = 2.23, 2.89 years), indicating an accelerated aging population. We observed a positive relationship between population growth and local economic growth, with areas experiencing population decline or slow growth showing below-average economic growth. While population change alone explained 10.1% of the variance in county-level GDP growth, incorporating sociodemographic shifts alongside population change using a partial least squares regression (PLSR) more than doubled the explanatory power to 21.4%. Overall, we often found the strength of relationships and sometimes the direction varied by geographic context: coastal areas showed distinct patterns from inland regions, and metropolitan areas responded differently than rural ones. For instance, the percentage of owner-occupied housing was negatively associated with population growth in metropolitan areas, but positively associated in non-metropolitan areas. Our research provides valuable insights for policymakers and planners working to address community changes, particularly in the context of anticipated climate-induced migration. The results suggest that strategies for maintaining economic vitality need to consider not just population retention, but also demographic profiles and socioeconomic opportunities across different geographic contexts.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.

In 2024, Japan was estimated to have the highest median age of the G7 countries at 49.4 years. Italy followed behind with 47.9 years. On the other hand, the United States had the lowest at just 38.3. Germany had an increasing median age until 2016, before the curve started to flatten. This is because of the increased number of immigrants arriving in the country at the time, particularly in the aftermath of the Syrian Civil War.

The median age indicates the age separating the population group into two halves of equal size.