Infant mortality rate by sex in China

China: Infant mortality rate by sex was 0.3863 deaths per 100 live births in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
0.3863 deaths per 100 live births
Change on year
down 7.3%
World rank
157th
of 199 countries
All-time high
8.44 deaths per 100 live births
in 1969
All-time low
0.3863 deaths per 100 live births
in 2024
Years of data
56
1969–2024

Infant mortality rate by sex in China, 1969–2024

02468196919962024

Source: United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 100 live births.

Analysis

In 2024, infant mortality rate by sex in China stood at 0.3863 deaths per 100 live births. That is the lowest value across all 56 years on record.

That represents a change of down 7.3% on the previous year and down 53.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, infant mortality rate by sex in China peaked at 8.44 deaths per 100 live births in 1969 and was at its lowest, 0.3863 deaths per 100 live births, in 2024.

That places China 157th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 8.44 deaths per 100 live births 8.44 deaths per 100 live births 8.44 deaths per 100 live births 1
1970s 6.33 deaths per 100 live births 4.81 deaths per 100 live births 8.02 deaths per 100 live births 10
1980s 4.18 deaths per 100 live births 4.04 deaths per 100 live births 4.58 deaths per 100 live births 10
1990s 3.64 deaths per 100 live births 3 deaths per 100 live births 4.07 deaths per 100 live births 10
2000s 1.96 deaths per 100 live births 1.26 deaths per 100 live births 2.81 deaths per 100 live births 10
2010s 0.8251 deaths per 100 live births 0.5625 deaths per 100 live births 1.16 deaths per 100 live births 10
2020s 0.4514 deaths per 100 live births 0.3863 deaths per 100 live births 0.5207 deaths per 100 live births 5

Countries ranked near China

  1. 154 Canada 0.4322 deaths per 100 live births compare
  2. 155 Bulgaria 0.4223 deaths per 100 live births compare
  3. 156 Serbia 0.4056 deaths per 100 live births compare
  4. 158 Cyprus 0.3777 deaths per 100 live births compare
  5. 159 Croatia 0.3751 deaths per 100 live births compare
  6. 160 New Zealand 0.3703 deaths per 100 live births compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More health data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is infant mortality rate by sex in China?
Infant mortality rate by sex in China was 0.3863 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest infant mortality rate by sex recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 8.44 deaths per 100 live births in 1969.
What is the lowest infant mortality rate by sex recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 0.3863 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.
How does China rank for infant mortality rate by sex?
China ranks 157th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is infant mortality rate by sex rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is down 53.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this China data come from?
The figures come from United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Infant mortality rate by sex. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Infant mortality rate by sex
Unit
deaths per 100 live births
Source
United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 12,987 data points, 1950–2024
Last refreshed

The estimated number of deaths of female children aged under one year, per 100 live births .