Life expectancy in Iraq
Iraq: Life expectancy was 72.32 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Life expectancy in Iraq, 1950–2023
Source: Riley (2005); Zijdeman et al. (2015); HMD (2025); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for life expectancy in Iraq is 72.32 years, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 4.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy in Iraq peaked at 72.32 years in 2023 and was at its lowest, 37.4 years, in 1950.
Iraq ranks 148th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 44.03 years | 37.4 years | 49.72 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 55.76 years | 51.46 years | 59.64 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 62.45 years | 60.53 years | 64.42 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 59.17 years | 56.69 years | 60.92 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 63.72 years | 57.59 years | 65.34 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 65.3 years | 64.03 years | 67.83 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 69.49 years | 68.09 years | 71.25 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 71.18 years | 69.65 years | 72.32 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
- 145 Guatemala 72.6 years compare
- 146 Venezuela 72.51 years compare
- 147 Uzbekistan 72.39 years compare
- 149 Saint Kitts and Nevis 72.14 years compare
- 150 Syria 72.12 years compare
- 151 El Salvador 72.1 years compare
More health data for Iraq
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 898.9 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 5,830 deaths (2100)
- Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 2 deaths (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 2 deaths (2026)
- Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 419,499 (2025)
- Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 404,017 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 426,321 (2025)
- Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 409,679 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 432,275 (2025)
- Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 414,521 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy in Iraq?
- Life expectancy in Iraq was 72.32 years in 2023, according to Riley (2005); Zijdeman et al. (2015); HMD (2025); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 72.32 years in 2023.
- What is the lowest life expectancy recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.4 years in 1950.
- How does Iraq rank for life expectancy?
- Iraq ranks 148th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectancy rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iraq data come from?
- The figures come from Riley (2005); Zijdeman et al. (2015); HMD (2025); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectancy. 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
Period life expectancy is the number of years the average person born in a certain year would live if they experienced the same chances of dying at each age as people did that year.