Sex gap in life expectancy in Lesotho
Lesotho: Sex gap in life expectancy was 5.39 years in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
5.39 years
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
96th
of 236 countries
All-time high
8.7 years
in 1986
All-time low
3.32 years
in 2006
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Sex gap in life expectancy in Lesotho, 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 Lesotho is 5.39 years, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 12.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sex gap in life expectancy in Lesotho peaked at 8.7 years in 1986 and was at its lowest, 3.32 years, in 2006.
Lesotho ranks 96th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Sex gap in life expectancy in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 6.2 years | — |
| 1951 | 6.02 years | -2.9% |
| 1952 | 6.02 years | -0.1% |
| 1953 | 6.06 years | +0.7% |
| 1954 | 6.12 years | +1.0% |
| 1955 | 6.13 years | +0.1% |
| 1956 | 6.21 years | +1.3% |
| 1957 | 6.26 years | +0.8% |
| 1958 | 6.27 years | +0.1% |
| 1959 | 6.29 years | +0.3% |
| 1960 | 6.39 years | +1.7% |
| 1961 | 6.42 years | +0.5% |
| 1962 | 6.46 years | +0.5% |
| 1963 | 6.42 years | -0.6% |
| 1964 | 6.58 years | +2.5% |
| 1965 | 6.64 years | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 7.06 years | +6.3% |
| 1967 | 7.13 years | +0.9% |
| 1968 | 7.2 years | +1.0% |
| 1969 | 7.17 years | -0.4% |
| 1970 | 7.16 years | -0.0% |
| 1971 | 7.28 years | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 7.22 years | -0.8% |
| 1973 | 7.38 years | +2.2% |
| 1974 | 7.2 years | -2.6% |
| 1975 | 7.32 years | +1.8% |
| 1976 | 7.64 years | +4.3% |
| 1977 | 7.86 years | +2.9% |
| 1978 | 8.08 years | +2.7% |
| 1979 | 8.25 years | +2.1% |
| 1980 | 8.35 years | +1.2% |
| 1981 | 8.24 years | -1.3% |
| 1982 | 8.14 years | -1.2% |
| 1983 | 8.28 years | +1.7% |
| 1984 | 8.29 years | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 8.48 years | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 8.7 years | +2.7% |
| 1987 | 8.62 years | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 8.61 years | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 8.43 years | -2.1% |
| 1990 | 8.33 years | -1.3% |
| 1991 | 8.18 years | -1.7% |
| 1992 | 8.08 years | -1.2% |
| 1993 | 7.93 years | -1.9% |
| 1994 | 7.74 years | -2.3% |
| 1995 | 7.24 years | -6.5% |
| 1996 | 6.82 years | -5.8% |
| 1997 | 6.29 years | -7.8% |
| 1998 | 5.92 years | -5.9% |
| 1999 | 5.19 years | -12.4% |
| 2000 | 4.68 years | -9.7% |
| 2001 | 4.6 years | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 4.27 years | -7.3% |
| 2003 | 4.16 years | -2.7% |
| 2004 | 4.46 years | +7.2% |
| 2005 | 4.46 years | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 3.32 years | -25.5% |
| 2007 | 4.7 years | +41.3% |
| 2008 | 4.49 years | -4.4% |
| 2009 | 4.52 years | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 4.45 years | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 4.9 years | +10.2% |
| 2012 | 4.88 years | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 4.81 years | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 4.94 years | +2.7% |
| 2015 | 5.07 years | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 4.9 years | -3.4% |
| 2017 | 4.88 years | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 4.93 years | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 4.96 years | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 5.17 years | +4.2% |
| 2021 | 5.22 years | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 5.35 years | +2.6% |
| 2023 | 5.39 years | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 6.16 years | 6.02 years | 6.29 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 6.75 years | 6.39 years | 7.2 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 7.54 years | 7.16 years | 8.25 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.42 years | 8.14 years | 8.7 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.17 years | 5.19 years | 8.33 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.37 years | 3.32 years | 4.7 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.87 years | 4.45 years | 5.07 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.28 years | 5.17 years | 5.39 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More health data for Lesotho
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.05 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.4669 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,227 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 382 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate -0.1593 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.1694 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, annual growth rate -0.0688 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.1716 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sex gap in life expectancy in Lesotho?
- Sex gap in life expectancy in Lesotho was 5.39 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 Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 8.7 years in 1986.
- What is the lowest sex gap in life expectancy recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.32 years in 2006.
- How does Lesotho rank for sex gap in life expectancy?
- Lesotho ranks 96th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is sex gap in life expectancy rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho 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
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About this data
Difference in period life expectancy (females - males) at a given age.