Death rate in Malawi

Malawi: Death rate was 5.36 deaths per 1,000 people in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
5.36 deaths per 1,000 people
Change on year
down 7.6%
World rank
201st
of 236 countries
All-time high
32.36 deaths per 1,000 people
in 1950
All-time low
5.36 deaths per 1,000 people
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Death rate in Malawi, 1950–2023

102030195019862023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 1,000 people.

Analysis

In 2023, death rate in Malawi stood at 5.36 deaths per 1,000 people. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 7.6% on the previous year and down 37.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, death rate in Malawi peaked at 32.36 deaths per 1,000 people in 1950 and was at its lowest, 5.36 deaths per 1,000 people, in 2023.

Malawi ranks 201st of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 31.01 deaths per 1,000 people 30.18 deaths per 1,000 people 32.36 deaths per 1,000 people 10
1960s 29.68 deaths per 1,000 people 29.12 deaths per 1,000 people 30.1 deaths per 1,000 people 10
1970s 25.57 deaths per 1,000 people 22.23 deaths per 1,000 people 28.75 deaths per 1,000 people 10
1980s 22.05 deaths per 1,000 people 21.69 deaths per 1,000 people 22.83 deaths per 1,000 people 10
1990s 20.7 deaths per 1,000 people 18.66 deaths per 1,000 people 22.23 deaths per 1,000 people 10
2000s 14.81 deaths per 1,000 people 11.54 deaths per 1,000 people 18.02 deaths per 1,000 people 10
2010s 8.11 deaths per 1,000 people 6.3 deaths per 1,000 people 10.71 deaths per 1,000 people 10
2020s 5.9 deaths per 1,000 people 5.36 deaths per 1,000 people 6.26 deaths per 1,000 people 4

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 198 Egypt 5.46 deaths per 1,000 people compare
  2. 199 Costa Rica 5.46 deaths per 1,000 people compare
  3. 200 Colombia 5.4 deaths per 1,000 people compare
  4. 202 Brunei 5.23 deaths per 1,000 people compare
  5. 203 Zambia 5.21 deaths per 1,000 people compare
  6. 204 Malaysia 5.16 deaths per 1,000 people compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More health data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is death rate in Malawi?
Death rate in Malawi was 5.36 deaths per 1,000 people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest death rate recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 32.36 deaths per 1,000 people in 1950.
What is the lowest death rate recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 5.36 deaths per 1,000 people in 2023.
How does Malawi rank for death rate?
Malawi ranks 201st out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is death rate rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is down 37.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Death rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Death rate
Unit
deaths per 1,000 people
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

The number of deaths in a year per 1,000 people in the population.