Life expectancy at birth, total in North America
North America: Life expectancy at birth, total was 79.24 years in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
79.24 years
Change on year
up 0.6%
Rank
4th
of 45 groups
All-time high
79.24 years
in 2024
All-time low
69.89 years
in 1960
Years of data
65
1960–2024
Life expectancy at birth, total in North America, 1960–2024
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in years.
Analysis
North America recorded 79.24 years for life expectancy at birth, total in 2024. That is the highest value across all 65 years on record.
The figure is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy at birth, total in North America peaked at 79.24 years in 2024 and was at its lowest, 69.89 years, in 1960.
That places North America 4th out of 45 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.
Life expectancy at birth, total in North America, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 69.89 years | — |
| 1961 | 70.37 years | +0.7% |
| 1962 | 70.23 years | -0.2% |
| 1963 | 70.05 years | -0.3% |
| 1964 | 70.31 years | +0.4% |
| 1965 | 70.37 years | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 70.38 years | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 70.71 years | +0.5% |
| 1968 | 70.18 years | -0.8% |
| 1969 | 70.69 years | +0.7% |
| 1970 | 70.99 years | +0.4% |
| 1971 | 71.29 years | +0.4% |
| 1972 | 71.33 years | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 71.53 years | +0.3% |
| 1974 | 72.08 years | +0.8% |
| 1975 | 72.69 years | +0.9% |
| 1976 | 72.95 years | +0.4% |
| 1977 | 73.35 years | +0.5% |
| 1978 | 73.47 years | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 73.91 years | +0.6% |
| 1980 | 73.75 years | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 74.15 years | +0.5% |
| 1982 | 74.49 years | +0.5% |
| 1983 | 74.62 years | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 74.74 years | +0.2% |
| 1985 | 74.74 years | -0.0% |
| 1986 | 74.8 years | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 74.96 years | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 74.97 years | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 75.23 years | +0.3% |
| 1990 | 75.44 years | +0.3% |
| 1991 | 75.59 years | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 75.84 years | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 75.65 years | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 75.84 years | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 75.86 years | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 76.24 years | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 76.63 years | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 76.78 years | +0.2% |
| 1999 | 76.8 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 76.89 years | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 77.09 years | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 77.19 years | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 77.3 years | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 77.73 years | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 77.75 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 77.97 years | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 78.24 years | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 78.3 years | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 78.65 years | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 78.82 years | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 78.92 years | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 79.03 years | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 79.04 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 79.14 years | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 79 years | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 78.88 years | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 78.87 years | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 78.96 years | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 79.13 years | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 77.45 years | -2.1% |
| 2021 | 76.86 years | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 77.82 years | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 78.73 years | +1.2% |
| 2024 | 79.24 years | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 70.32 years | 69.89 years | 70.71 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 72.36 years | 70.99 years | 73.91 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 74.65 years | 73.75 years | 75.23 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 76.07 years | 75.44 years | 76.8 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 77.71 years | 76.89 years | 78.65 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 78.98 years | 78.82 years | 79.14 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 78.02 years | 76.86 years | 79.24 years | 5 |
Countries ranked near North America
- 1 Monaco 86.5 years compare
- 2 San Marino 85.82 years compare
- 3 Hong Kong, China 85.39 years compare
- 4 Kuwait 84.58 years compare
- 5 Switzerland 84.41 years compare
- 6 Liechtenstein 84.2 years compare
- 7 French Polynesia 84.19 years compare
More health data for North America
- Population ages 65 and above, total, annual growth rate 3.12 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, female, per capita 0.4982 units per person (2025)
- Population, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population, female, annual growth rate 0.5622 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, total, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, total, per capita 0.1859 units per person (2025)
- Age dependency ratio, old 28.8% (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, female 38.52 million (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, female 20.2% (2025)
- Population ages 65 and above, male 32.78 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy at birth, total in North America?
- Life expectancy at birth, total in North America was 79.24 years in 2024, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest life expectancy at birth, total recorded in North America?
- The highest recorded value was 79.24 years in 2024.
- What is the lowest life expectancy at birth, total recorded in North America?
- The lowest recorded value was 69.89 years in 1960.
- How does North America rank for life expectancy at birth, total?
- North America ranks 4th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is life expectancy at birth, total rising or falling in North America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North America data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Life expectancy at birth, total (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.