Life expectancy in the United Kingdom was below 39 years in the year 1765, and over the course of the next two and a half centuries, it is expected to have increased by more than double, to 81.1 by the year 2020. Although life expectancy has generally increased throughout the UK's history, there were several times where the rate deviated from its previous trajectory. These changes were the result of smallpox epidemics in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, new sanitary and medical advancements throughout time (such as compulsory vaccination), and the First world War and Spanish Flu epidemic in the 1910s.

In 2022 life expectancy for both males and females at birth fell when compared to 2021. Male life expectancy fell from 78.71 years to 78.57 years, and from 82.68 years to 82.57 years for women.

United Kingdom UK: Life Expectancy at Birth: Total data was reported at 80.956 Year in 2016. This stayed constant from the previous number of 80.956 Year for 2015. United Kingdom UK: Life Expectancy at Birth: Total data is updated yearly, averaging 75.380 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 81.305 Year in 2014 and a record low of 70.827 Year in 1963. United Kingdom UK: 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 UK – Table UK.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;

In 2022, the life expectancy at birth for women born in the UK was 82.57 years, compared with 78.57 years for men. By age 65 men had a life expectancy of 18.25 years, compared with 20.76 years for women.

The total life expectancy at birth in the United Kingdom saw no significant changes in 2023 in comparison to the previous year 2022 and remained at around 81.24 years. However, 2023 marked the third consecutive increase of the life expectancy at birth. These figures refer to the expected lifespan of the average newborn in a given country or region, providing that mortality patterns at the time of birth remain constant thereafter.Find more statistics on other topics about the United Kingdom with key insights such as infant mortality rate, death rate, and total fertility rate.

United Kingdom UK: Life Expectancy at Birth: Male data was reported at 79.200 Year in 2016. This stayed constant from the previous number of 79.200 Year for 2015. United Kingdom UK: Life Expectancy at Birth: Male data is updated yearly, averaging 72.600 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 79.500 Year in 2014 and a record low of 67.900 Year in 1963. United Kingdom UK: 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 United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: 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;

Life expectancy at birth, male (years) in United Kingdom was reported at 79.36 years in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United Kingdom - Life expectancy at birth, male (years) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

For most of the world, throughout most of human history, the average life expectancy from birth was around 24. This figure fluctuated greatly depending on the time or region, and was higher than 24 in most individual years, but factors such as pandemics, famines, and conflicts caused regular spikes in mortality and reduced life expectancy. Child mortality The most significant difference between historical mortality rates and modern figures is that child and infant mortality was so high in pre-industrial times; before the introduction of vaccination, water treatment, and other medical knowledge or technologies, women would have around seven children throughout their lifetime, but around half of these would not make it to adulthood. Accurate, historical figures for infant mortality are difficult to ascertain, as it was so prevalent, it took place in the home, and was rarely recorded in censuses; however, figures from this source suggest that the rate was around 300 deaths per 1,000 live births in some years, meaning that almost one in three infants did not make it to their first birthday in certain periods. For those who survived to adolescence, they could expect to live into their forties or fifties on average. Modern figures It was not until the eradication of plague and improvements in housing and infrastructure in recent centuries where life expectancy began to rise in some parts of Europe, before industrialization and medical advances led to the onset of the demographic transition across the world. Today, global life expectancy from birth is roughly three times higher than in pre-industrial times, at almost 73 years. It is higher still in more demographically and economically developed countries; life expectancy is over 82 years in the three European countries shown, and over 84 in Japan. For the least developed countries, mostly found in Sub-Saharan Africa, life expectancy from birth can be as low as 53 years.

Life expectancy, healthy life expectancy and disability-free life expectancy – at birth and age 65 by sex for local areas in the UK, 2016 to 2018.

Healthy life expectancy (HLE) is an estimate of expected years of life spent in self-reported good health. The figure used is for males aged under 1 year. Figures are based on the number of deaths registered and mid-year population estimates, aggregated over three consecutive years.

It is used as a high-level outcome to contrast and monitor the health status of different populations at specific points in time, giving context to the impacts of policy changes and interventions at both national and local levels.

Healthy life expectancy has value across state, private, and voluntary sectors, in the assessment of healthy ageing, fitness for work, health improvement monitoring, extensions to the state pension age, pension provision, and health and social care need. This indicator is an extremely important summary measure of mortality and morbidity. It complements the supporting indicators such as mortality by cause by showing the overall trends and setting the context in which local authorities can assess the other indicators and identify the drivers of healthy life expectancy.

The health prevalence data used in calculating HLE estimates for the various geographies in England were derived from the Annual Population Survey (APS).

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Life expectancy at birth, total (years) in United Kingdom was reported at 81.24 years in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United Kingdom - Life expectancy at birth, total (years) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

United Kingdom UK: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data was reported at 82.800 Year in 2016. This stayed constant from the previous number of 82.800 Year for 2015. United Kingdom UK: Life Expectancy at Birth: Female data is updated yearly, averaging 78.300 Year from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 83.200 Year in 2014 and a record low of 73.900 Year in 1963. United Kingdom UK: 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 United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: 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;

Pivot table for healthy life expectancy by sex and area type, divided by three-year intervals starting from 2011 to 2013.

Healthy life expectancy (HLE) is an estimate of expected years of life spent in self-reported good health. The figure used is for females aged under 1 year. Figures are based on the number of deaths registered and mid-year population estimates, aggregated over three consecutive years.

It is used as a high-level outcome to contrast and monitor the health status of different populations at specific points in time, giving context to the impacts of policy changes and interventions at both national and local levels.

Healthy life expectancy has value across state, private, and voluntary sectors, in the assessment of healthy ageing, fitness for work, health improvement monitoring, extensions to the state pension age, pension provision, and health and social care need. This indicator is an extremely important summary measure of mortality and morbidity. It complements the supporting indicators such as mortality by cause by showing the overall trends and setting the context in which local authorities can assess the other indicators and identify the drivers of healthy life expectancy.

The health prevalence data used in calculating HLE estimates for the various geographies in England were derived from the Annual Population Survey (APS).

Data is Powered by LG Inform Plus and automatically checked for new data on the 3rd of each month.

Historical dataset showing U.K. life expectancy by year from 1950 to 2025.

Life expectancy at birth, female (years) in United Kingdom was reported at 83.21 years in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United Kingdom - Life expectancy at birth, female (years) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Period life expectancy by age and sex for England. Each national life table is based on population estimates, births and deaths for a period of three consecutive years. Tables are published annually.

The life expectancy figure used is for females aged under 1 year. Figures are based on the number of deaths registered and mid-year population estimates, aggregated over three consecutive years.

Expectation of life at a given age for an area is the average number of years a person would live if he or she experienced that area's age-specific mortality rates for that time period throughout his or her life. It is therefore not the number of years someone of that age in the area could actually expect to live, both because the death rates of the area are likely to change in the future and because people may live in other areas for at least part of their lives.

Data is Powered by LG Inform Plus and automatically checked for new data on the 3rd of each month.