What is the life expectancy in United States?

79.3 years at birth for both sexes combined, by the UN's 2024 estimate. Men can expect 76.9 years and women 81.8. 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 States?

4.9 years. The global figure gap is 5.4 years, so United States'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 States compare to Hong Kong?

Hong Kong has the highest life expectancy in our data at 85.5 years, 6.2 years more than United States. For men the difference is 5.9 years, for women 6.3.

How does United States compare to Panama?

Panama ranks 48th at 79.6 years, 0.3 years more than United States. Men: 76.7 against 76.9. Women: 82.6 against 81.8.

Life expectancy in United States

People in United States can expect to live 79.3 years at birth: men 76.9, women 81.8. That puts United States 49th of 200 countries in our data.

Key numbers

Both sexes

79.3 yrs

Men

76.9 yrs

Women

81.8 yrs

Gender gap

4.9 yrs

women minus men

Rank

49 of 200

vs Hong Kong (best)

-6.2 yrs

vs global figure

+6.1 yrs

73.2 yrs

United States among its neighbours

Ranking neighbours (three above and below) plus every Americas country in our data
#	Country	Both	Men	Women	Region
18	Canada	82.6	80.4	84.8	Americas
19	Martinique	82.6	79.3	85.6	Americas
27	Guadeloupe	82.1	78.1	85.5	Americas
33	Puerto Rico	81.7	78.0	85.2	Americas
39	Chile	81.2	79.2	83.1	Americas
41	Costa Rica	80.8	78.1	83.4	Americas
46	Jersey	79.7	77.7	81.8	Europe
47	Albania	79.6	77.7	81.4	Europe
48	Panama	79.6	76.7	82.6	Americas
49	United States	79.3	76.9	81.8	Americas
50	Estonia	79.2	74.9	83.0	Europe
51	New Caledonia	78.8	76.3	81.3	Oceania
52	Saudi Arabia	78.7	77.1	81.2	Asia
56	Cuba	78.1	75.7	80.5	Americas
57	Uruguay	78.1	74.2	81.9	Americas
63	Colombia	77.7	75.0	80.5	Americas
65	Peru	77.7	75.4	80.1	Americas
67	Argentina	77.4	74.8	79.9	Americas
68	Ecuador	77.4	74.7	80.1	Americas
73	French Guiana	77.0	74.1	80.0	Americas
75	Curaçao	76.8	72.5	80.8	Americas
79	Aruba	76.4	73.7	78.8	Americas
82	Barbados	76.2	73.6	78.6	Americas
88	Brazil	75.8	72.8	79.0	Americas
93	Grenada	75.2	72.4	78.4	Americas
94	Mexico	75.1	72.2	77.8	Americas
96	Nicaragua	74.9	72.3	77.4	Americas
98	Bahamas	74.6	70.9	78.2	Americas
104	Paraguay	73.8	70.9	77.0	Americas
105	Dominican Republic	73.7	70.5	77.0	Americas
106	Belize	73.6	70.9	76.5	Americas
108	Suriname	73.6	70.5	76.8	Americas
109	Trinidad and Tobago	73.5	70.4	76.7	Americas
113	Honduras	72.9	70.3	75.5	Americas
116	Saint Lucia	72.7	69.3	76.3	Americas
117	Guatemala	72.6	70.3	74.9	Americas
118	Venezuela	72.5	68.7	76.5	Americas
121	El Salvador	72.1	67.5	76.3	Americas
129	Jamaica	71.5	69.0	74.0	Americas
133	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	71.2	68.7	74.3	Americas
138	Guyana	70.2	66.5	73.9	Americas
147	Bolivia	68.6	66.1	71.1	Americas
174	Haiti	64.9	61.7	68.3	Americas

Rough years remaining by age

Life expectancy at birth minus current age. A rough guide only, see note.
Age	Men	Women
20	56.9	61.8
30	46.9	51.8
40	36.9	41.8
50	26.9	31.8
60	16.9	21.8

This is a rough approximation. We do not have life tables for United States, 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 States today, if death rates at every age stayed exactly as they are, would live 79.3 years on average. Girls would get 4.9 more years than boys. That places United States 49th of the 200 countries we track, 6.1 years above the global figure of 73.2.

The gap to Hong Kong, the best in our data, is 6.2 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 States?: 79.3 years at birth for both sexes combined, by the UN's 2024 estimate. Men can expect 76.9 years and women 81.8. 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 States?: 4.9 years. The global figure gap is 5.4 years, so United States'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 States compare to Hong Kong?: Hong Kong has the highest life expectancy in our data at 85.5 years, 6.2 years more than United States. For men the difference is 5.9 years, for women 6.3.
How does United States compare to Panama?: Panama ranks 48th at 79.6 years, 0.3 years more than United States. Men: 76.7 against 76.9. Women: 82.6 against 81.8.

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 States