Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia

Australia: Difference in male and female life expectancy was 3.63 in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
3.63
Change on year
down 13.9%
World rank
183rd
of 229 countries
All-time high
6.97
in 1980
All-time low
2.66
in 1928
Years of data
103
1921–2023

Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia, 1921–2023

0246192119722023

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

Australia recorded 3.63 for difference in male and female life expectancy in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 13.9% on the previous year and down 11.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia peaked at 6.97 in 1980 and was at its lowest, 2.66, in 1928.

Australia ranks 183rd of 229 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 103 years of available data.

Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia, year by year

Annual values for Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia, 1921 to 2023.
Year Value Change
1921 3.06
1922 3.07 +0.3%
1923 2.73 -11.1%
1924 2.98 +9.2%
1925 3.26 +9.4%
1926 2.97 -8.9%
1927 2.88 -3.0%
1928 2.66 -7.6%
1929 3.3 +24.1%
1930 2.98 -9.7%
1931 2.83 -5.0%
1932 2.93 +3.5%
1933 3.15 +7.5%
1934 2.83 -10.2%
1935 3.26 +15.2%
1936 3.17 -2.8%
1937 3.54 +11.7%
1938 3.27 -7.6%
1939 3.65 +11.6%
1940 4 +9.6%
1941 3.39 -15.2%
1942 3.24 -4.4%
1943 2.95 -9.0%
1944 2.81 -4.7%
1945 3.01 +7.1%
1946 3.81 +26.6%
1947 4.08 +7.1%
1948 4.26 +4.4%
1949 4.66 +9.4%
1950 4.69 +0.6%
1951 5.11 +9.0%
1952 5.18 +1.4%
1953 5.08 -1.9%
1954 5.15 +1.3%
1955 5.52 +7.3%
1956 5.47 -0.9%
1957 5.63 +3.0%
1958 5.74 +1.9%
1959 5.92 +3.1%
1960 5.82 -1.8%
1961 6.14 +5.5%
1962 6.13 -0.1%
1963 6.11 -0.3%
1964 6.22 +1.8%
1965 6.27 +0.9%
1966 6.15 -1.9%
1967 6.41 +4.2%
1968 6.52 +1.6%
1969 6.61 +1.4%
1970 6.39 -3.2%
1971 6.36 -0.5%
1972 6.52 +2.6%
1973 6.73 +3.2%
1974 6.69 -0.6%
1975 6.8 +1.7%
1976 6.78 -0.2%
1977 6.73 -0.7%
1978 6.81 +1.1%
1979 6.93 +1.7%
1980 6.97 +0.6%
1981 6.9 -1.0%
1982 6.74 -2.3%
1983 6.52 -3.2%
1984 6.35 -2.7%
1985 6.2 -2.4%
1986 6.2 +0.1%
1987 6.22 +0.4%
1988 6.26 +0.5%
1989 6.09 -2.6%
1990 6.03 -1.0%
1991 5.87 -2.7%
1992 5.84 -0.4%
1993 5.82 -0.3%
1994 5.81 -0.3%
1995 5.66 -2.6%
1996 5.7 +0.7%
1997 5.44 -4.6%
1998 5.58 +2.5%
1999 5.46 -2.1%
2000 5.25 -3.9%
2001 5.08 -3.1%
2002 4.91 -3.4%
2003 4.88 -0.7%
2004 4.8 -1.5%
2005 4.74 -1.4%
2006 4.58 -3.3%
2007 4.55 -0.6%
2008 4.46 -2.1%
2009 4.46 +0.0%
2010 4.26 -4.3%
2011 4.29 +0.5%
2012 3.99 -6.8%
2013 4.11 +3.1%
2014 3.97 -3.5%
2015 4 +0.8%
2016 4.03 +0.5%
2017 4.01 -0.3%
2018 4.01 -0.2%
2019 4 -0.2%
2020 4.02 +0.4%
2021 3.77 -6.2%
2022 4.21 +11.8%
2023 3.63 -13.9%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1920s 2.99 2.66 3.3 9
1930s 3.16 2.83 3.65 10
1940s 3.62 2.81 4.66 10
1950s 5.35 4.69 5.92 10
1960s 6.24 5.82 6.61 10
1970s 6.67 6.36 6.93 10
1980s 6.45 6.09 6.97 10
1990s 5.72 5.44 6.03 10
2000s 4.77 4.46 5.25 10
2010s 4.07 3.97 4.29 10
2020s 3.91 3.63 4.21 4

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 180 Samoa 3.68 compare
  2. 181 Albania 3.67 compare
  3. 182 Sweden 3.64 compare
  4. 184 Northern Mariana Islands 3.58 compare
  5. 185 Liechtenstein 3.54 compare
  6. 186 Burundi 3.54 compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More health data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia?
Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia was 3.63 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest difference in male and female life expectancy recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 6.97 in 1980.
What is the lowest difference in male and female life expectancy recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 2.66 in 1928.
How does Australia rank for difference in male and female life expectancy?
Australia ranks 183rd out of 229 countries with data for 2023.
Is difference in male and female life expectancy rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is down 11.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Difference in male and female life expectancy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 103 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/difference-in-male-and-female-life-expectancy/australia/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/stat/difference-in-male-and-female-life-expectancy/australia/">Difference in male and female life expectancy in Australia</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Difference in male and female life expectancy
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 18,722 data points, 1751–2023
Last refreshed