Difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan

Japan: Difference in male and female life expectancy was 6.05 in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
6.05
Change on year
up 0.5%
World rank
57th
of 229 countries
All-time high
6.91
in 2003
All-time low
3.1
in 1951
Years of data
77
1947–2023

Difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan, 1947–2023

0246194719852023

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan is 6.05, measured in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% on the previous year and down 4.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan peaked at 6.91 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 3.1, in 1951.

That places Japan 57th out of 229 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 77 years of available data.

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

Annual values for Difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan, 1947 to 2023.
Year Value Change
1947 3.77
1948 3.34 -11.4%
1949 3.32 -0.6%
1950 3.17 -4.4%
1951 3.1 -2.3%
1952 3.17 +2.2%
1953 3.29 +3.8%
1954 3.87 +17.7%
1955 3.85 -0.5%
1956 3.9 +1.1%
1957 4 +2.6%
1958 4.17 +4.4%
1959 4.22 +1.1%
1960 4.4 +4.1%
1961 4.42 +0.5%
1962 4.53 +2.4%
1963 4.64 +2.4%
1964 4.71 +1.6%
1965 4.74 +0.6%
1966 4.83 +1.8%
1967 4.83 -0.0%
1968 4.87 +0.8%
1969 5.07 +4.1%
1970 5.01 -1.1%
1971 5.06 +1.0%
1972 5.09 +0.6%
1973 4.96 -2.6%
1974 4.85 -2.3%
1975 4.87 +0.5%
1976 4.93 +1.2%
1977 4.99 +1.1%
1978 5.04 +1.0%
1979 5.13 +1.9%
1980 5.19 +1.1%
1981 5.19 -0.0%
1982 5.3 +2.1%
1983 5.46 +3.0%
1984 5.53 +1.3%
1985 5.54 +0.3%
1986 5.59 +0.8%
1987 5.67 +1.4%
1988 5.65 -0.2%
1989 5.75 +1.8%
1990 5.82 +1.1%
1991 5.96 +2.4%
1992 6.06 +1.8%
1993 6.12 +1.0%
1994 6.2 +1.3%
1995 6.28 +1.2%
1996 6.39 +1.7%
1997 6.45 +0.9%
1998 6.66 +3.3%
1999 6.69 +0.4%
2000 6.78 +1.4%
2001 6.78 +0.1%
2002 6.83 +0.7%
2003 6.91 +1.2%
2004 6.84 -1.1%
2005 6.86 +0.3%
2006 6.74 -1.6%
2007 6.75 +0.0%
2008 6.71 -0.5%
2009 6.77 +0.9%
2010 6.69 -1.3%
2011 6.45 -3.6%
2012 6.43 -0.2%
2013 6.35 -1.4%
2014 6.28 -1.0%
2015 6.22 -1.0%
2016 6.18 -0.7%
2017 6.18 +0.1%
2018 6.09 -1.6%
2019 6.06 -0.4%
2020 6.14 +1.2%
2021 6.08 -1.0%
2022 6.02 -1.0%
2023 6.05 +0.5%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1940s 3.48 3.32 3.77 3
1950s 3.67 3.1 4.22 10
1960s 4.7 4.4 5.07 10
1970s 4.99 4.85 5.13 10
1980s 5.49 5.19 5.75 10
1990s 6.26 5.82 6.69 10
2000s 6.8 6.71 6.91 10
2010s 6.29 6.06 6.69 10
2020s 6.07 6.02 6.14 4

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 54 Dominica 6.06 compare
  2. 55 Malawi 6.06 compare
  3. 56 Brazil 6.05 compare
  4. 58 Taiwan, China 5.96 compare
  5. 59 Mozambique 5.95 compare
  6. 60 Republic of Korea 5.93 compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More health data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan?
Difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan was 6.05 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest difference in male and female life expectancy recorded in Japan?
The highest recorded value was 6.91 in 2003.
What is the lowest difference in male and female life expectancy recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 3.1 in 1951.
How does Japan rank for difference in male and female life expectancy?
Japan ranks 57th out of 229 countries with data for 2023.
Is difference in male and female life expectancy rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is down 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Japan 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.

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Difference in male and female life expectancy in Japan. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 24 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/difference-in-male-and-female-life-expectancy/japan/

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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