Sex gap in life expectancy in China
China: Sex gap in life expectancy was 5.73 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
5.73 years
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
81st
of 236 countries
All-time high
5.82 years
in 2017
All-time low
2.69 years
in 1960
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Sex gap in life expectancy in China, 1950–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for sex gap in life expectancy in China is 5.73 years, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sex gap in life expectancy in China peaked at 5.82 years in 2017 and was at its lowest, 2.69 years, in 1960.
China ranks 81st of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Sex gap in life expectancy in China, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 3.55 years | — |
| 1951 | 3.46 years | -2.5% |
| 1952 | 3.51 years | +1.5% |
| 1953 | 3.3 years | -6.0% |
| 1954 | 3.42 years | +3.8% |
| 1955 | 3.76 years | +9.8% |
| 1956 | 3.74 years | -0.5% |
| 1957 | 3.82 years | +2.2% |
| 1958 | 3.96 years | +3.6% |
| 1959 | 3.38 years | -14.6% |
| 1960 | 2.69 years | -20.4% |
| 1961 | 3.28 years | +21.7% |
| 1962 | 4.24 years | +29.6% |
| 1963 | 4.21 years | -0.9% |
| 1964 | 4.2 years | -0.2% |
| 1965 | 4.27 years | +1.7% |
| 1966 | 4.13 years | -3.2% |
| 1967 | 4.08 years | -1.4% |
| 1968 | 3.96 years | -2.7% |
| 1969 | 3.91 years | -1.3% |
| 1970 | 3.84 years | -1.9% |
| 1971 | 3.7 years | -3.5% |
| 1972 | 3.74 years | +1.0% |
| 1973 | 3.93 years | +5.1% |
| 1974 | 4.15 years | +5.6% |
| 1975 | 4.26 years | +2.5% |
| 1976 | 4.05 years | -4.8% |
| 1977 | 4.36 years | +7.5% |
| 1978 | 4.39 years | +0.8% |
| 1979 | 4.42 years | +0.6% |
| 1980 | 4.46 years | +0.8% |
| 1981 | 4.52 years | +1.4% |
| 1982 | 4.56 years | +0.9% |
| 1983 | 4.6 years | +0.8% |
| 1984 | 4.63 years | +0.7% |
| 1985 | 4.69 years | +1.1% |
| 1986 | 4.75 years | +1.4% |
| 1987 | 4.85 years | +2.0% |
| 1988 | 4.9 years | +1.0% |
| 1989 | 4.86 years | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 4.7 years | -3.2% |
| 1991 | 4.76 years | +1.3% |
| 1992 | 4.72 years | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 4.9 years | +3.8% |
| 1994 | 5 years | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 5.15 years | +3.0% |
| 1996 | 5.16 years | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 5.16 years | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 5.12 years | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 5.02 years | -1.9% |
| 2000 | 5.05 years | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 5.05 years | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 5.07 years | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 5.09 years | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 5.1 years | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 5.17 years | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 5.2 years | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 5.11 years | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 5.14 years | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 5.23 years | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 5.14 years | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 5.32 years | +3.5% |
| 2012 | 5.36 years | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 5.34 years | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 5.39 years | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 5.42 years | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 5.48 years | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 5.82 years | +6.3% |
| 2018 | 5.54 years | -4.9% |
| 2019 | 5.44 years | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 5.75 years | +5.7% |
| 2021 | 5.43 years | -5.7% |
| 2022 | 5.67 years | +4.4% |
| 2023 | 5.73 years | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.59 years | 3.3 years | 3.96 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 3.9 years | 2.69 years | 4.27 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 4.08 years | 3.7 years | 4.42 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.68 years | 4.46 years | 4.9 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.97 years | 4.7 years | 5.16 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.12 years | 5.05 years | 5.23 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.42 years | 5.14 years | 5.82 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.64 years | 5.43 years | 5.75 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near China
More health data for China
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.15 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.0985 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 2,029 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 4,642 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 80 and above, female, per capita 0.016 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 80 and above, male, annual growth rate 3.29 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 80 and above, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 80 and above, male, per capita 0.0101 units per person (2025)
- Pertussis - number of reported cases, gaps filled 33,364 (2025)
- Pertussis - number of reported cases, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sex gap in life expectancy in China?
- Sex gap in life expectancy in China was 5.73 years in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest sex gap in life expectancy recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 5.82 years in 2017.
- What is the lowest sex gap in life expectancy recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.69 years in 1960.
- How does China rank for sex gap in life expectancy?
- China ranks 81st out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is sex gap in life expectancy rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Sex gap in life expectancy. 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
Difference in period life expectancy (females - males) at a given age.