Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) vs United States: Age dependency ratio, old
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
5.7%
in 2025
United States
28.5%
in 2025
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank
44th
United States rank
46th
Age dependency ratio, old over time
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 28.5% against 5.7% in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), a difference of 22.8%.
That makes United States's figure about 5.0 times Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)'s.
Across all 66 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 44th and United States ranks 46th of 47 groups.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5.8% | 15.3% | 9.5% | United States |
| 1970s | 5.9% | 16.0% | 10.1% | United States |
| 1980s | 6.0% | 17.5% | 11.5% | United States |
| 1990s | 5.8% | 18.7% | 12.9% | United States |
| 2000s | 5.7% | 18.2% | 12.5% | United States |
| 2010s | 5.6% | 21.3% | 15.7% | United States |
| 2020s | 5.7% | 26.4% | 20.8% | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher age dependency ratio, old, Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) or United States?
- United States, at 28.5% against 5.7% in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) as of 2025.
- What is the difference in age dependency ratio, old between Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) and United States?
- 22.8%, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) and United States?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
- How do Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) and United States rank globally for age dependency ratio, old?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 44th and United States ranks 46th of 47 groups.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division, published as Age dependency ratio, old (% of working-age population). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Age dependency ratio, old, is the ratio of older dependents--people older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. Data are shown as the proportion of dependents per 100 working-age population.