What is the life expectancy in United Kingdom?

81.3 years at birth for both sexes combined, by the UN's 2024 estimate. Men can expect 79.4 years and women 83.2. The figure describes today's death rates applied across a whole life, so a child born now will probably live longer if mortality keeps falling.

How much longer do women live than men in United Kingdom?

3.8 years. The global figure gap is 5.4 years, so United Kingdom's gap is narrower than usual. Wide gaps usually trace back to male smoking, drinking and accidents; narrow ones to women facing similar risks or poorer maternal health.

How does United Kingdom compare to Hong Kong?

Hong Kong has the highest life expectancy in our data at 85.5 years, 4.2 years more than United Kingdom. For men the difference is 3.4 years, for women 4.9.

How does United Kingdom compare to Bahrain?

Bahrain ranks 37th at 81.3 years, 0.0 years more than United Kingdom. Men: 80.7 against 79.4. Women: 82.0 against 83.2.

Life expectancy in United Kingdom

People in United Kingdom can expect to live 81.3 years at birth: men 79.4, women 83.2. That puts United Kingdom 38th of 200 countries in our data.

Key numbers

Both sexes

81.3 yrs

Men

79.4 yrs

Women

83.2 yrs

Gender gap

3.8 yrs

women minus men

Rank

38 of 200

vs Hong Kong (best)

-4.2 yrs

vs global figure

+8.1 yrs

73.2 yrs

United Kingdom among its neighbours

Ranking neighbours (three above and below) plus every Europe country in our data
#	Country	Both	Men	Women	Region
5	Switzerland	84.0	82.0	85.8	Europe
7	Spain	83.7	81.0	86.3	Europe
8	Italy	83.7	81.6	85.7	Europe
11	France	83.3	80.4	86.1	Europe
12	Malta	83.3	81.3	85.3	Europe
13	Norway	83.3	81.7	84.8	Europe
14	Sweden	83.3	81.4	85.1	Europe
17	Iceland	82.7	81.0	84.5	Europe
20	Ireland	82.4	80.4	84.5	Europe
22	Portugal	82.4	79.4	85.1	Europe
24	Luxembourg	82.2	80.6	83.8	Europe
25	Netherlands	82.2	80.5	83.7	Europe
26	Belgium	82.1	79.9	84.3	Europe
29	Austria	82.0	79.5	84.3	Europe
30	Denmark	81.9	80.0	83.9	Europe
31	Finland	81.9	79.2	84.7	Europe
32	Greece	81.9	79.3	84.3	Europe
34	Cyprus	81.6	79.6	83.7	Europe
35	Slovenia	81.6	78.9	84.3	Europe
36	Germany	81.4	79.0	83.8	Europe
37	Bahrain	81.3	80.7	82.0	Asia
38	United Kingdom	81.3	79.4	83.2	Europe
39	Chile	81.2	79.2	83.1	Americas
40	Maldives	81.0	79.7	82.8	Asia
41	Costa Rica	80.8	78.1	83.4	Americas
45	Czechia	79.8	77.0	82.6	Europe
46	Jersey	79.7	77.7	81.8	Europe
47	Albania	79.6	77.7	81.4	Europe
50	Estonia	79.2	74.9	83.0	Europe
53	Croatia	78.6	75.4	81.7	Europe
54	Poland	78.6	74.9	82.4	Europe
55	Slovakia	78.3	75.0	81.6	Europe
59	Kosovo	78.0	75.8	80.1	Europe
60	Bosnia and Herzegovina	77.9	74.4	80.9	Europe
69	North Macedonia	77.4	75.1	79.6	Europe
71	Turkey	77.2	74.5	79.9	Europe
72	Montenegro	77.1	73.7	80.3	Europe
74	Hungary	77.0	73.7	80.2	Europe
76	Serbia	76.8	73.5	80.0	Europe
83	Latvia	76.2	71.6	80.5	Europe
86	Lithuania	76.0	71.2	80.7	Europe
87	Romania	75.9	72.4	79.6	Europe
90	Bulgaria	75.6	72.2	79.2	Europe
102	Belarus	74.4	69.5	79.1	Europe
110	Ukraine	73.4	66.9	80.2	Europe
111	Russia	73.2	67.3	79.0	Europe
132	Moldova	71.2	66.6	75.5	Europe

Rough years remaining by age

Life expectancy at birth minus current age. A rough guide only, see note.
Age	Men	Women
20	59.4	63.2
30	49.4	53.2
40	39.4	43.2
50	29.4	33.2
60	19.4	23.2

This is a rough approximation. We do not have life tables for United Kingdom, so we subtract age from life expectancy at birth. Real remaining life expectancy is higher, especially at 50 and 60, because someone who has reached that age has already survived the risks of childhood and young adulthood. In high-income countries a 60-year-old typically has 4 to 6 more years than this table shows.

In plain language

A child born in United Kingdom today, if death rates at every age stayed exactly as they are, would live 81.3 years on average. Girls would get 3.8 more years than boys. That places United Kingdom 38th of the 200 countries we track, 8.1 years above the global figure of 73.2.

The gap to Hong Kong, the best in our data, is 4.2 years. Most of that difference comes from deaths before 60, not from how long the oldest people live.

Questions

What is the life expectancy in United Kingdom?: 81.3 years at birth for both sexes combined, by the UN's 2024 estimate. Men can expect 79.4 years and women 83.2. The figure describes today's death rates applied across a whole life, so a child born now will probably live longer if mortality keeps falling.
How much longer do women live than men in United Kingdom?: 3.8 years. The global figure gap is 5.4 years, so United Kingdom's gap is narrower than usual. Wide gaps usually trace back to male smoking, drinking and accidents; narrow ones to women facing similar risks or poorer maternal health.
How does United Kingdom compare to Hong Kong?: Hong Kong has the highest life expectancy in our data at 85.5 years, 4.2 years more than United Kingdom. For men the difference is 3.4 years, for women 4.9.
How does United Kingdom compare to Bahrain?: Bahrain ranks 37th at 81.3 years, 0.0 years more than United Kingdom. Men: 80.7 against 79.4. Women: 82.0 against 83.2.

Source: United Nations, World Population Prospects 2024, estimates for 2023. Percentiles on this page are our estimate from a normal distribution with the stated mean and SD.

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🇬🇧Life expectancy in United Kingdom