Which has higher sex gap in life expectancy, South Africa or Tonga?

Tonga, at 7.04 years against 6.99 years in South Africa as of 2023.

How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Tonga?

74 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2023.

Where does this data come from?

Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Sex gap in life expectancy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

South Africa vs Tonga: Sex gap in life expectancy

South Africa

6.99 years

in 2023

Tonga

7.04 years

in 2023

South Africa rank

38th

Tonga rank

36th

Sex gap in life expectancy over time

South Africa
Tonga

How they compare

Tonga currently reports 7.04 years against 6.99 years in South Africa, a difference of 0.05 years.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 74 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Tonga ahead.

South Africa ranks 38th and Tonga ranks 36th of 236 countries.

Tonga has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	South Africa	Tonga	Difference	Ahead
1950s	2.8 years	6.14 years	3.34 years	Tonga
1960s	4.12 years	4.93 years	0.8065 years	Tonga
1970s	4.65 years	5.5 years	0.8499 years	Tonga
1980s	6.14 years	6.6 years	0.4625 years	Tonga
1990s	6.9 years	7.44 years	0.5386 years	Tonga
2000s	4.39 years	7.41 years	3.02 years	Tonga
2010s	6.1 years	7.2 years	1.1 years	Tonga
2020s	6.39 years	7.06 years	0.6642 years	Tonga

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher sex gap in life expectancy, South Africa or Tonga?: Tonga, at 7.04 years against 6.99 years in South Africa as of 2023.
What is the difference in sex gap in life expectancy between South Africa and Tonga?: 0.05 years, with Tonga ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Tonga?: 74 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2023.
How do South Africa and Tonga rank globally for sex gap in life expectancy?: South Africa ranks 38th and Tonga ranks 36th of 236 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Sex gap in life expectancy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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South Africa vs Tonga: Sex gap in life expectancy. Statizoid, drawing on Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 11 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/compare/difference-in-female-and-male-life-expectancy-at-birth/south-africa/tonga/

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<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/compare/difference-in-female-and-male-life-expectancy-at-birth/south-africa/tonga/">South Africa vs Tonga: Sex gap in life expectancy</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator: Sex gap in life expectancy
Unit: years
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 236 places, 18,722 data points, 1751–2023
Last refreshed: 28 August 2026

Difference in period life expectancy (females - males) at a given age.