What is infant mortality rate in China?

Infant mortality rate in China was 0.4079 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 recorded in China?

The highest recorded value was 8.88 deaths per 100 live births in 1969.

What is the lowest infant mortality rate recorded in China?

The lowest recorded value was 0.4079 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.

How does China rank for infant mortality rate?

China ranks 161st out of 199 countries with data for 2024.

Is infant mortality rate rising or falling in China?

Over the last ten years it is down 54.2%. 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. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Infant mortality rate in China

Name: Infant mortality rate in China
Creator: United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

China: Infant mortality rate was 0.4079 deaths per 100 live births in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)

0.4079 deaths per 100 live births

Change on year

down 7.3%

World rank

161st

of 199 countries

All-time high

8.88 deaths per 100 live births

in 1969

All-time low

0.4079 deaths per 100 live births

in 2024

Years of data

1969–2024

Infant mortality rate in China, 1969–2024

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

China recorded 0.4079 deaths per 100 live births for infant mortality rate in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 56 years on record.

The figure is down 7.3% on the previous year and down 54.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, infant mortality rate in China peaked at 8.88 deaths per 100 live births in 1969 and was at its lowest, 0.4079 deaths per 100 live births, in 2024.

That places China 161st 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

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	8.88 deaths per 100 live births	8.88 deaths per 100 live births	8.88 deaths per 100 live births	1
1970s	6.71 deaths per 100 live births	5.13 deaths per 100 live births	8.46 deaths per 100 live births	10
1980s	4.44 deaths per 100 live births	4.3 deaths per 100 live births	4.88 deaths per 100 live births	10
1990s	3.87 deaths per 100 live births	3.19 deaths per 100 live births	4.33 deaths per 100 live births	10
2000s	2.1 deaths per 100 live births	1.35 deaths per 100 live births	2.99 deaths per 100 live births	10
2010s	0.8818 deaths per 100 live births	0.5966 deaths per 100 live births	1.24 deaths per 100 live births	10
2020s	0.4776 deaths per 100 live births	0.4079 deaths per 100 live births	0.5526 deaths per 100 live births	5

Countries ranked near China

158 Russia 0.4132 deaths per 100 live births compare
159 Croatia 0.4121 deaths per 100 live births compare
160 Cyprus 0.4106 deaths per 100 live births compare
162 New Zealand 0.4022 deaths per 100 live births compare
163 United Arab Emirates 0.3781 deaths per 100 live births compare
164 Poland 0.3612 deaths per 100 live births compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More health data for China

Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 2,029 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
Number of infants who die before age 1 4,642 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 8.74 million (2025)
Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 7.51 million (2025)
Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 8.70 million (2025)
Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 7.46 million (2025)
Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 8.44 million (2025)
Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 7.21 million (2025)

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is infant mortality rate in China?: Infant mortality rate in China was 0.4079 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 recorded in China?: The highest recorded value was 8.88 deaths per 100 live births in 1969.
What is the lowest infant mortality rate recorded in China?: The lowest recorded value was 0.4079 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.
How does China rank for infant mortality rate?: China ranks 161st out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is infant mortality rate rising or falling in China?: Over the last ten years it is down 54.2%. 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. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Infant mortality rate
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, 13,185 data points, 1931–2024
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

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