Infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of)

China (People’s Republic of): Infant health: low birthweight was 5 Percentage of live births in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
5 Percentage of live births
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
36th
of 41 countries
All-time high
5.7 Percentage of live births
in 2000
All-time low
5 Percentage of live births
in 2015
Years of data
21
2000–2020

Infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of), 2000–2020

02462000201020202000: 5.7 Percentage of live births2001: 5.7 Percentage of live births2002: 5.7 Percentage of live births2003: 5.6 Percentage of live births2004: 5.5 Percentage of live births2005: 5.5 Percentage of live births2006: 5.4 Percentage of live births2007: 5.3 Percentage of live births2008: 5.3 Percentage of live births2009: 5.2 Percentage of live births2010: 5.2 Percentage of live births2011: 5.2 Percentage of live births2012: 5.1 Percentage of live births2013: 5.1 Percentage of live births2014: 5.1 Percentage of live births2015: 5 Percentage of live births2016: 5 Percentage of live births2017: 5 Percentage of live births2018: 5 Percentage of live births2019: 5 Percentage of live births2020: 5 Percentage of live births

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of live births.

Analysis

In 2020, infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of) stood at 5 Percentage of live births. That is the lowest value across all 21 years on record.

The figure is down 3.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of) peaked at 5.7 Percentage of live births in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5 Percentage of live births, in 2015.

That places China (People’s Republic of) 36th out of 41 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 5.49 Percentage of live births 5.2 Percentage of live births 5.7 Percentage of live births 10
2010s 5.07 Percentage of live births 5 Percentage of live births 5.2 Percentage of live births 10
2020s 5 Percentage of live births 5 Percentage of live births 5 Percentage of live births 1

Countries ranked near China (People’s Republic of)

  1. 33 Switzerland 6 Percentage of live births compare
  2. 33 Ireland 6 Percentage of live births compare
  3. 35 Austria 5.8 Percentage of live births compare
  4. 37 Denmark 4.6 Percentage of live births compare
  5. 38 Norway 4.4 Percentage of live births compare
  6. 39 Sweden 4.1 Percentage of live births compare

See the full ranking of 51 places →

More health data for China (People’s Republic of)

All data for China (People’s Republic of) →

Frequently asked questions

What is infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of)?
Infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of) was 5 Percentage of live births in 2020, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest infant health: low birthweight recorded in China (People’s Republic of)?
The highest recorded value was 5.7 Percentage of live births in 2000.
What is the lowest infant health: low birthweight recorded in China (People’s Republic of)?
The lowest recorded value was 5 Percentage of live births in 2015.
How does China (People’s Republic of) rank for infant health: low birthweight?
China (People’s Republic of) ranks 36th out of 41 countries with data for 2020.
Is infant health: low birthweight rising or falling in China (People’s Republic of)?
Over the last ten years it is down 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this China (People’s Republic of) data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Infant health: low birthweight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Infant health: low birthweight in China (People’s Republic of). Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/infant-health-low-birthweight/china/

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About this data

Indicator
Infant health: low birthweight
Unit
Percentage of live births
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
51 places, 2,043 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset presents time series on the number of live births weighing less than 2500 grams as a percentage of the total number of live births. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.