What is child mortality in Afghanistan?

Child mortality in Afghanistan was 5.3 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest child mortality recorded in Afghanistan?

The highest recorded value was 48.28 deaths per 100 live births in 1894.

What is the lowest child mortality recorded in Afghanistan?

The lowest recorded value was 5.3 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.

How does Afghanistan rank for child mortality?

Afghanistan ranks 26th out of 203 countries with data for 2024.

Is child mortality rising or falling in Afghanistan?

Over the last ten years it is down 28.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Afghanistan data come from?

The figures come from Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Child mortality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Child mortality in Afghanistan

Name: Child mortality in Afghanistan
Creator: Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Afghanistan: Child mortality was 5.3 deaths per 100 live births in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)

5.3 deaths per 100 live births

Change on year

down 3.3%

World rank

26th

of 203 countries

All-time high

48.28 deaths per 100 live births

in 1894

All-time low

5.3 deaths per 100 live births

in 2024

Years of data

225

1800–2024

Child mortality in Afghanistan, 1800–2024

Source: Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 100 live births.

Analysis

In 2024, child mortality in Afghanistan stood at 5.3 deaths per 100 live births. That is the lowest value across all 225 years on record.

The figure is down 3.3% on the previous year and down 28.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, child mortality in Afghanistan peaked at 48.28 deaths per 100 live births in 1894 and was at its lowest, 5.3 deaths per 100 live births, in 2024.

That places Afghanistan 26th out of 203 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 225 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1800s	46.91 deaths per 100 live births	46.86 deaths per 100 live births	47 deaths per 100 live births	10
1810s	47.05 deaths per 100 live births	47 deaths per 100 live births	47.14 deaths per 100 live births	10
1820s	47.2 deaths per 100 live births	47.14 deaths per 100 live births	47.28 deaths per 100 live births	10
1830s	47.34 deaths per 100 live births	47.28 deaths per 100 live births	47.42 deaths per 100 live births	10
1840s	47.5 deaths per 100 live births	47.42 deaths per 100 live births	47.57 deaths per 100 live births	10
1850s	47.64 deaths per 100 live births	47.57 deaths per 100 live births	47.71 deaths per 100 live births	10
1860s	47.78 deaths per 100 live births	47.71 deaths per 100 live births	47.85 deaths per 100 live births	10
1870s	47.92 deaths per 100 live births	47.85 deaths per 100 live births	48 deaths per 100 live births	10
1880s	48.07 deaths per 100 live births	48 deaths per 100 live births	48.14 deaths per 100 live births	10
1890s	48.21 deaths per 100 live births	48.14 deaths per 100 live births	48.28 deaths per 100 live births	10
1900s	47.98 deaths per 100 live births	47.67 deaths per 100 live births	48.18 deaths per 100 live births	10
1910s	47.14 deaths per 100 live births	46.69 deaths per 100 live births	47.57 deaths per 100 live births	10
1920s	46.14 deaths per 100 live births	45.69 deaths per 100 live births	46.57 deaths per 100 live births	10
1930s	44.7 deaths per 100 live births	43.78 deaths per 100 live births	45.57 deaths per 100 live births	10
1940s	42.71 deaths per 100 live births	41.8 deaths per 100 live births	43.56 deaths per 100 live births	10
1950s	38.91 deaths per 100 live births	35.64 deaths per 100 live births	41.59 deaths per 100 live births	10
1960s	32.74 deaths per 100 live births	30.49 deaths per 100 live births	35.06 deaths per 100 live births	10
1970s	28.6 deaths per 100 live births	25.11 deaths per 100 live births	34.43 deaths per 100 live births	10
1980s	25.09 deaths per 100 live births	18.78 deaths per 100 live births	30.38 deaths per 100 live births	10
1990s	15.7 deaths per 100 live births	13.6 deaths per 100 live births	18.14 deaths per 100 live births	10
2000s	11.17 deaths per 100 live births	9.19 deaths per 100 live births	13.17 deaths per 100 live births	10
2010s	7.41 deaths per 100 live births	6.27 deaths per 100 live births	8.8 deaths per 100 live births	10
2020s	5.68 deaths per 100 live births	5.3 deaths per 100 live births	6.07 deaths per 100 live births	5

Countries ranked near Afghanistan

23 Togo 5.61 deaths per 100 live births compare
24 Pakistan 5.6 deaths per 100 live births compare
25 Kiribati 5.31 deaths per 100 live births compare
27 Haiti 5.28 deaths per 100 live births compare
28 Angola 4.9 deaths per 100 live births compare

See the full ranking of 203 places →

More health data for Afghanistan

Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 812.4 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
Number of infants who die before age 1 14,735 deaths (2100)
Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 454 deaths (2026)
Deaths in armed conflicts by region 454 deaths (2026)
Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 407,307 (2025)
Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 393,205 (2025)
Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 421,296 (2025)
Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 405,329 (2025)
Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 434,707 (2025)
Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 416,770 (2025)

All data for Afghanistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is child mortality in Afghanistan?: Child mortality in Afghanistan was 5.3 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest child mortality recorded in Afghanistan?: The highest recorded value was 48.28 deaths per 100 live births in 1894.
What is the lowest child mortality recorded in Afghanistan?: The lowest recorded value was 5.3 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.
How does Afghanistan rank for child mortality?: Afghanistan ranks 26th out of 203 countries with data for 2024.
Is child mortality rising or falling in Afghanistan?: Over the last ten years it is down 28.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Afghanistan data come from?: The figures come from Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Child mortality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 225 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Child mortality
Unit: deaths per 100 live births
Source: Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 203 places, 42,924 data points, 1800–2024
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

The estimated share of newborns who die before reaching the age of five.