Infant mortality rate in Malawi
Malawi: Infant mortality rate was 3.0% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Infant mortality rate in Malawi, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of infants.
Analysis
In 2023, infant mortality rate in Malawi stood at 3.0%. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of down 3.5% on the previous year and down 38.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, infant mortality rate in Malawi peaked at 18.3% in 1950 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 2023.
Malawi ranks 45th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 18.0% | 17.7% | 18.3% | 10 |
| 1960s | 17.4% | 17.1% | 17.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 15.9% | 14.7% | 17.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.1% | 13.8% | 14.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.4% | 11.0% | 13.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.1% | 6.1% | 10.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.5% | 3.4% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.1% | 3.0% | 3.3% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More health data for Malawi
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 856.3 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 6,399 deaths (2100)
- Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 0 deaths (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 0 deaths (2026)
- Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 193,780 (2025)
- Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 198,476 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 200,046 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 204,753 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 207,829 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 212,512 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is infant mortality rate in Malawi?
- Infant mortality rate in Malawi was 3.0% in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest infant mortality rate recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 18.3% in 1950.
- What is the lowest infant mortality rate recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 2023.
- How does Malawi rank for infant mortality rate?
- Malawi ranks 45th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is infant mortality rate rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Infant mortality rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The share of newborns who die before reaching the age of one.