Demographics
Does a City’s Population Size Impact its Quality of Life?
Does a City’s Population Size Impact its Quality of Life?
City living isn’t everyone’s cup of tea—the world’s most populous cities especially can be hectic, noisy, and busy.
Yet, despite the chaos of urban life, cities offer inhabitants a number of comforts and conveniences that are harder to find in smaller towns. That’s why more people are moving into urban areas around the world.
But do these conveniences reflect in people’s quality of lives?
According to research compiled by Elaine Siu, bigger doesn’t always mean better—at least when it comes to population size. This interactive visualization takes a deep dive into this dataset.
Measuring Quality of Life
Siu uses data from Numbeo’s 2022 Quality of Life Index to compare the quality of life in nearly 200 different cities around the world. For the purposes of this research, Siu used cities with metropolitan area populations of over 500,000.
The index measures quality of life using eight different metrics:
- Cost of Living
- Purchasing Power
- Property Price to Income Ratio
- Pollution
- Traffic Commute Time
- Safety
- Healthcare
- Climate
A majority of the metrics (six of the eight) seemed to correlate with population size, suggesting that the bigger a city’s population is, the lower its quality of life in those metrics.
Here’s a look at the full list of cities included in the study, along with their overall quality of life scores and their metro area populations:
City | Quality of Life Index | Metro Area Population |
---|---|---|
Adelaide, Australia | 212.14 | 1,355,522 |
The Hague (Den Haag), Netherlands | 204.88 | 709,388 |
Perth, Australia | 198.37 | 2,092,649 |
Zurich, Switzerland | 198.14 | 1,419,621 |
Basel, Switzerland | 197.58 | 566,503 |
Brisbane, Australia | 196.06 | 2,472,222 |
Charlotte, NC, United States | 194.31 | 2,701,046 |
Seattle, WA, United States | 194.3 | 4,018,762 |
Oklahoma City, OK, United States | 192.79 | 1,441,647 |
Austin, TX, United States | 192.56 | 2,352,426 |
Geneva, Switzerland | 192.15 | 626,618 |
Quebec City, Canada | 192.11 | 837,814 |
Columbus, OH, United States | 191.34 | 2,151,017 |
San Diego, CA, United States | 188.18 | 3,286,069 |
San Antonio, TX, United States | 188.14 | 2,601,788 |
Copenhagen, Denmark | 187.89 | 1,370,131 |
San Jose, CA, United States | 187.16 | 1,952,185 |
Edinburgh, United Kingdom | 185.01 | 548,206 |
Sydney, Australia | 184.52 | 5,056,571 |
Melbourne, Australia | 183.06 | 5,150,766 |
Kansas City, MO, United States | 181.28 | 2,199,490 |
Albuquerque, NM, United States | 181.09 | 918,259 |
Helsinki, Finland | 180.21 | 1,327,762 |
Vienna, Austria | 180.01 | 1,960,023 |
Glasgow, United Kingdom | 179.79 | 1,688,907 |
Gothenburg, Sweden | 179.12 | 624,780 |
Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 178.96 | 2,964,382 |
Calgary, Canada | 178.34 | 1,611,475 |
Amsterdam, Netherlands | 178.17 | 1,165,898 |
Ottawa, Canada | 177.09 | 1,422,635 |
Portland, OR, United States | 176.92 | 2,511,612 |
Dallas, TX, United States | 175.71 | 7,759,615 |
Jacksonville, FL, United States | 175.25 | 1,637,666 |
Munich, Germany | 174.98 | 1,566,128 |
Boston, MA, United States | 174.52 | 4,899,932 |
Muscat, Oman | 174.07 | 1,622,620 |
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | 173.13 | 1,539,830 |
Frankfurt, Germany | 173.06 | 791,232 |
Vancouver, Canada | 172.66 | 2,631,690 |
Stuttgart, Germany | 172 | 634,740 |
Rotterdam, Netherlands | 171.72 | 1,014,675 |
Milwaukee, WI, United States | 171.44 | 1,566,487 |
Edmonton, Canada | 171.23 | 1,518,921 |
Indianapolis, IN, United States | 171.2 | 2,126,804 |
Houston, TX, United States | 170.9 | 7,206,841 |
Valencia, Spain | 170.88 | 836,857 |
Tucson, AZ, United States | 168.76 | 1,052,030 |
Denver, CO, United States | 167.36 | 2,972,566 |
Hamburg, Germany | 166.71 | 1,788,170 |
Vilnius, Lithuania | 165.74 | 540,775 |
Oslo, Norway | 164.94 | 1,071,062 |
Nashville, TN, United States | 164.87 | 2,012,476 |
Bristol, United Kingdom | 164.74 | 700,630 |
Atlanta, GA, United States | 163.99 | 6,144,050 |
Berlin, Germany | 163.74 | 3,570,750 |
Sacramento, CA, United States | 163.54 | 2,411,428 |
Washington, DC, United States | 162.88 | 6,356,434 |
Queretaro, Mexico | 162.06 | 1,389,302 |
Stockholm, Sweden | 161.54 | 1,679,050 |
Auckland, New Zealand | 161 | 1,652,341 |
Cologne, Germany | 160.82 | 1,136,992 |
Baltimore, MD, United States | 160.36 | 2,838,327 |
Tokyo, Japan | 160.27 | 37,274,000 |
Belfast, United Kingdom | 159.26 | 638,717 |
Prague, Czech Republic | 158.87 | 1,318,085 |
San Francisco, CA, United States | 157.57 | 4,623,264 |
Zagreb, Croatia | 157.5 | 684,254 |
Madrid, Spain | 157.33 | 6,713,557 |
Porto, Portugal | 157.26 | 1,320,347 |
Antwerp, Belgium | 155.3 | 1,052,622 |
Toronto, Canada | 155.02 | 6,312,974 |
Singapore, Singapore | 154.54 | 6,039,577 |
Philadelphia, PA, United States | 154.13 | 6,228,601 |
Montreal, Canada | 153.76 | 4,276,526 |
Doha, Qatar | 153.1 | 651,799 |
Phoenix, AZ, United States | 151.95 | 4,946,145 |
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | 150.72 | 7,538,200 |
Lisbon, Portugal | 150.09 | 2,986,162 |
Birmingham, United Kingdom | 149.32 | 2,645,598 |
Manama, Bahrain | 148.96 | 688,558 |
Lyon, France | 148.34 | 1,747,575 |
Las Vegas, NV, United States | 148.17 | 2,292,476 |
Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel | 147.84 | 4,343,584 |
Manchester, United Kingdom | 147.47 | 2,770,434 |
Riga, Latvia | 145.54 | 624,925 |
Bursa, Turkey | 145.27 | 2,054,748 |
Cape Town, South Africa | 145.05 | 4,800,954 |
Chicago, IL, United States | 144.81 | 9,509,934 |
Jeddah (Jiddah), Saudi Arabia | 144.4 | 4,780,740 |
Barcelona, Spain | 143.73 | 5,658,472 |
Brussels, Belgium | 143.12 | 2,109,631 |
Genoa, Italy | 142.82 | 675,464 |
Coimbatore, India | 142.77 | 2,934,621 |
Hamilton, Canada | 142.74 | 775,751 |
Bangalore, India | 141.67 | 13,193,035 |
Dublin, Ireland | 140.93 | 1,255,963 |
Curitiba, Brazil | 140.07 | 3,770,919 |
Los Angeles, CA, United States | 139.75 | 12,997,353 |
Nizhny Novgorod, Russia | 139.25 | 1,252,917 |
Durban, South Africa | 139.09 | 3,199,329 |
Islamabad, Pakistan | 139 | 1,198,035 |
Bologna, Italy | 139 | 811,707 |
Pune, India | 138.28 | 6,987,077 |
Taipei, Taiwan | 137.81 | 2,742,379 |
New York, NY, United States | 137.32 | 19,768,458 |
Brasilia, Brazil | 135.44 | 4,803,877 |
Winnipeg, Canada | 133.69 | 832,944 |
Pretoria, South Africa | 133.25 | 2,739,768 |
Warsaw, Poland | 133.21 | 1,794,532 |
Detroit, MI, United States | 133.05 | 4,365,205 |
Johannesburg, South Africa | 132.58 | 6,065,354 |
Izmir, Turkey | 131.52 | 3,056,149 |
Turin, Italy | 131.35 | 1,798,471 |
Lviv, Ukraine | 129.85 | 721,383 |
Poznan, Poland | 129.38 | 525,919 |
Wroclaw, Poland | 128.45 | 642,497 |
Guadalajara, Mexico | 128.14 | 5,339,583 |
Chiang Mai, Thailand | 127.81 | 1,197,931 |
Sharjah, United Arab Emirates | 127.77 | 1,785,684 |
Budapest, Hungary | 127.23 | 1,775,207 |
Ankara, Turkey | 126.93 | 5,309,690 |
London, United Kingdom | 126.14 | 9,540,576 |
Monterrey, Mexico | 125.76 | 5,036,535 |
Campinas, Brazil | 125.75 | 3,384,564 |
Seoul, South Korea | 125.66 | 9,975,709 |
Lodz, Poland | 124 | 666,032 |
Krakow (Cracow), Poland | 123.44 | 769,595 |
Paris, France | 123.02 | 11,142,303 |
Sofia, Bulgaria | 122.03 | 1,286,789 |
Medellin, Colombia | 121.78 | 4,067,758 |
Montevideo, Uruguay | 119.58 | 1,767,243 |
Yerevan, Armenia | 119.46 | 1,092,028 |
San Juan, Puerto Rico | 118.97 | 2,442,512 |
Florianopolis, Brazil | 118.92 | 1,277,547 |
Milan, Italy | 118.57 | 3,149,223 |
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 117.7 | 8,419,566 |
Bucharest, Romania | 117.58 | 1,785,294 |
Kuwait City, Kuwait | 116.64 | 3,238,523 |
Athens, Greece | 115.69 | 3,153,781 |
Quito, Ecuador | 115.33 | 1,928,296 |
Thessaloniki, Greece | 115.32 | 813,793 |
San Jose, Costa Rica | 115.02 | 1,441,324 |
Chennai, India | 114.51 | 11,503,293 |
Amman, Jordan | 114.37 | 2,209,584 |
Ahmedabad, India | 113.04 | 8,450,228 |
Hyderabad, India | 112.53 | 10,534,418 |
Tbilisi, Georgia | 112.19 | 1,080,349 |
Panama City, Panama | 110.94 | 1,937,963 |
Rome, Italy | 109.98 | 4,297,877 |
Belgrade, Serbia | 109.82 | 1,405,192 |
Kharkiv, Ukraine | 109.51 | 1,423,343 |
Shenzhen, China | 109.11 | 12,831,330 |
Baku, Azerbaijan | 109.1 | 2,401,108 |
Moscow, Russia | 108.32 | 12,640,818 |
Minsk, Belarus | 107.79 | 2,048,574 |
Porto Alegre, Brazil | 107.74 | 4,185,488 |
Belo Horizonte, Brazil | 107.2 | 6,194,292 |
Kiev (Kyiv), Ukraine | 106.88 | 3,010,209 |
Odessa (Odesa), Ukraine | 106.41 | 1,007,989 |
Lahore, Pakistan | 106.01 | 13,541,764 |
Hong Kong, Hong Kong | 103.85 | 7,643,256 |
Santiago, Chile | 103.1 | 6,856,939 |
Skopje, North Macedonia | 101.02 | 605,996 |
Kolkata, India | 99.37 | 15,133,888 |
Buenos Aires, Argentina | 99.23 | 15,369,919 |
Saint Petersburg, Russia | 97.91 | 5,535,556 |
Dnipro, Ukraine | 97.76 | 946,574 |
Istanbul, Turkey | 96.13 | 15,636,243 |
Guatemala City, Guatemala | 95.46 | 3,036,405 |
Yekaterinburg, Russia | 94.29 | 1,521,136 |
Hanoi, Vietnam | 93.75 | 5,067,352 |
Mumbai, India | 89.39 | 20,961,472 |
Bogota, Colombia | 88.27 | 11,344,312 |
Tirana, Albania | 88.09 | 511,559 |
Mexico City, Mexico | 85.94 | 22,085,140 |
Almaty, Kazakhstan | 84.53 | 1,958,135 |
Recife, Brazil | 83.22 | 4,220,458 |
Nairobi, Kenya | 81.75 | 5,118,844 |
Novosibirsk, Russia | 81.71 | 1,686,236 |
Cairo, Egypt | 81.6 | 21,750,020 |
Karachi, Pakistan | 79.91 | 16,839,950 |
Bangkok, Thailand | 79.74 | 10,899,698 |
Sao Paulo, Brazil | 78.54 | 22,429,800 |
Kathmandu, Nepal | 78.08 | 1,521,057 |
Lima, Peru | 77.67 | 11,044,607 |
Delhi, India | 77.27 | 32,065,760 |
Shanghai, China | 76.62 | 28,516,904 |
Jakarta, Indonesia | 74.13 | 11,074,811 |
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 70.28 | 13,634,274 |
Caracas, Venezuela | 69.32 | 2,956,813 |
Colombo, Sri Lanka | 66.85 | 625,637 |
Beirut, Lebanon | 66.54 | 2,433,155 |
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | 66.41 | 9,077,158 |
Beijing, China | 58.96 | 21,333,332 |
Tehran, Iran | 56.28 | 9,381,546 |
Dhaka, Bangladesh | 56.18 | 22,478,116 |
Lagos, Nigeria | 48.22 | 15,387,639 |
Manila, Philippines | 46.08 | 14,406,059 |
It’s worth noting that the negative correlation between the quality of life and population size only appeared in cities above the median population of 2.4 million people, indicating that the size of a city doesn’t appear to impact quality of life until a certain tipping point. Then, above the median, there’s a blatant downward trend.
However, Tokyo is an anomaly—its quality of life is much higher than it’s metropolitan population would predict.
Zooming in on Tokyo
Despite being the world’s largest urban area, Tokyo compares favorably compared to other top megacities across the index. When ranked among the top five megacities, it places in first for Purchasing Power, Safety, Traffic Commute Time, Cost of Living, Healthcare, and Pollution.
What’s so special about Tokyo? One major thing going for the Japanese city is its immaculate public transport system. The city’s transport is so efficient, the city’s rail service once issued a public apology after a train left the station 25 seconds earlier than its scheduled departure.
Another factor that makes Tokyo so livable is its relatively affordable housing, at least compared to other big cities like New York and Hong Kong. This is partly because of the city’s flexible land zoning system, which makes it relatively easy for developers to build housing and mix-use communities.
As our world becomes increasingly more urbanized, and cities around the world continue to increase in size, will they be able to emulate Tokyo’s growth? And if not, what other city design trends and innovations can cities utilize to raise quality of live?

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.
Healthcare
Charted: Average Years Left to Live by Age
Visualizing the number of years left to live for Americans at every age, reveals the broader trends in American life expectancy.

How Many Years Do You Have Left to Live?
At the start of the 19th century, when there fewer than 1 billion humans on the earth, global life expectancy at birth stood at roughly 29 years.
This is a startlingly low figure—because life expectancy is a statistical projection of how many more years a person can expect to live, based on the mortality rates at the time. And since the infant mortality rate in particular was so high, life expectancies accurately summarized the low likelihood of many babies living to adulthood.
However, since the 1920s, life expectancy across all ages has improved leaps and bounds, thanks to rapid advancements in nutrition, healthcare, and sanitation.
We visualized the current American life expectancy by age and gender, using data from the Office of Social Security, which bases their current projections on 2020 mortality rates.
American Life Expectancy at Every Age
A key takeaway with life expectancy is that it increases as one gets older. This is easily seen in the table below, which lists the remaining years left to live at a given age for an American male and the projected life expectancy.
Age | Years Remaining (Men) | Life Expectancy (Men) |
---|---|---|
0 | 74.12 | 74.12 |
1 | 73.55 | 74.55 |
2 | 72.58 | 74.58 |
3 | 71.60 | 74.60 |
4 | 70.62 | 74.62 |
5 | 69.63 | 74.63 |
6 | 68.64 | 74.64 |
7 | 67.65 | 74.65 |
8 | 66.65 | 74.65 |
9 | 65.66 | 74.66 |
10 | 64.67 | 74.67 |
11 | 63.68 | 74.68 |
12 | 62.69 | 74.69 |
13 | 61.70 | 74.70 |
14 | 60.71 | 74.71 |
15 | 59.73 | 74.73 |
16 | 58.76 | 74.76 |
17 | 57.79 | 74.79 |
18 | 56.84 | 74.84 |
19 | 55.90 | 74.90 |
20 | 54.97 | 74.97 |
21 | 54.04 | 75.04 |
22 | 53.12 | 75.12 |
23 | 52.21 | 75.21 |
24 | 51.30 | 75.30 |
25 | 50.39 | 75.39 |
26 | 49.48 | 75.48 |
27 | 48.57 | 75.57 |
28 | 47.66 | 75.66 |
29 | 46.76 | 75.76 |
30 | 45.86 | 75.86 |
31 | 44.97 | 75.97 |
32 | 44.07 | 76.07 |
33 | 43.18 | 76.18 |
34 | 42.29 | 76.29 |
35 | 41.39 | 76.39 |
36 | 40.50 | 76.50 |
37 | 39.62 | 76.62 |
38 | 38.73 | 76.73 |
39 | 37.85 | 76.85 |
40 | 36.97 | 76.97 |
41 | 36.09 | 77.09 |
42 | 35.21 | 77.21 |
43 | 34.34 | 77.34 |
44 | 33.46 | 77.46 |
45 | 32.59 | 77.59 |
46 | 31.73 | 77.73 |
47 | 30.87 | 77.87 |
48 | 30.01 | 78.01 |
49 | 29.17 | 78.17 |
50 | 28.33 | 78.33 |
51 | 27.50 | 78.50 |
52 | 26.67 | 78.67 |
53 | 25.86 | 78.86 |
54 | 25.06 | 79.06 |
55 | 24.27 | 79.27 |
56 | 23.48 | 79.48 |
57 | 22.71 | 79.71 |
58 | 21.95 | 79.95 |
59 | 21.21 | 80.21 |
60 | 20.47 | 80.47 |
61 | 19.74 | 80.74 |
62 | 19.03 | 81.03 |
63 | 18.32 | 81.32 |
64 | 17.63 | 81.63 |
65 | 16.94 | 81.94 |
66 | 16.26 | 82.26 |
67 | 15.58 | 82.58 |
68 | 14.91 | 82.91 |
69 | 14.24 | 83.24 |
70 | 13.59 | 83.59 |
71 | 12.94 | 83.94 |
72 | 12.30 | 84.30 |
73 | 11.67 | 84.67 |
74 | 11.05 | 85.05 |
75 | 10.46 | 85.46 |
76 | 9.88 | 85.88 |
77 | 9.32 | 86.32 |
78 | 8.77 | 86.77 |
79 | 8.25 | 87.25 |
80 | 7.74 | 87.74 |
81 | 7.25 | 88.25 |
82 | 6.77 | 88.77 |
83 | 6.31 | 89.31 |
84 | 5.88 | 89.88 |
85 | 5.47 | 90.47 |
86 | 5.07 | 91.07 |
87 | 4.70 | 91.70 |
88 | 4.35 | 92.35 |
89 | 4.02 | 93.02 |
90 | 3.72 | 93.72 |
91 | 3.44 | 94.44 |
92 | 3.18 | 95.18 |
93 | 2.96 | 95.96 |
94 | 2.75 | 96.75 |
95 | 2.57 | 97.57 |
96 | 2.42 | 98.42 |
97 | 2.28 | 99.28 |
98 | 2.15 | 100.15 |
99 | 2.04 | 101.04 |
100 | 1.93 | 101.93 |
101 | 1.83 | 102.83 |
102 | 1.73 | 103.73 |
103 | 1.63 | 104.63 |
104 | 1.54 | 105.54 |
105 | 1.45 | 106.45 |
106 | 1.36 | 107.36 |
107 | 1.27 | 108.27 |
108 | 1.18 | 109.18 |
109 | 1.10 | 110.10 |
110 | 1.02 | 111.02 |
111 | 0.95 | 111.95 |
112 | 0.88 | 112.88 |
113 | 0.82 | 113.82 |
114 | 0.76 | 114.76 |
115 | 0.70 | 115.70 |
116 | 0.65 | 116.65 |
117 | 0.60 | 117.60 |
118 | 0.56 | 118.56 |
119 | 0.52 | 119.52 |
120 | 0.48 | 120.48 |
At birth, an average American baby boy can expect to live till just past 74. But if the boy reaches adulthood, then at 21 he might live to a full year more, past 75. This trend persists even towards the end of life when the years we have left drop rapidly, influenced by the higher likelihood of death.
American women, on the other hand, have a higher life expectancy than men. At birth the gap is close to six years, narrowing steadily to around one year by 85.
Age | Years Remaining (Women) | Life Expectancy (Women) |
---|---|---|
0 | 79.78 | 79.78 |
1 | 79.17 | 80.17 |
2 | 78.19 | 80.19 |
3 | 77.21 | 80.21 |
4 | 76.22 | 80.22 |
5 | 75.23 | 80.23 |
6 | 74.24 | 80.24 |
7 | 73.25 | 80.25 |
8 | 72.25 | 80.25 |
9 | 71.26 | 80.26 |
10 | 70.27 | 80.27 |
11 | 69.27 | 80.27 |
12 | 68.28 | 80.28 |
13 | 67.29 | 80.29 |
14 | 66.30 | 80.30 |
15 | 65.31 | 80.31 |
16 | 64.32 | 80.32 |
17 | 63.34 | 80.34 |
18 | 62.36 | 80.36 |
19 | 61.38 | 80.38 |
20 | 60.41 | 80.41 |
21 | 59.44 | 80.44 |
22 | 58.47 | 80.47 |
23 | 57.50 | 80.50 |
24 | 56.54 | 80.54 |
25 | 55.58 | 80.58 |
26 | 54.61 | 80.61 |
27 | 53.66 | 80.66 |
28 | 52.70 | 80.70 |
29 | 51.74 | 80.74 |
30 | 50.79 | 80.79 |
31 | 49.84 | 80.84 |
32 | 48.89 | 80.89 |
33 | 47.94 | 80.94 |
34 | 47.00 | 81.00 |
35 | 46.06 | 81.06 |
36 | 45.12 | 81.12 |
37 | 44.18 | 81.18 |
38 | 43.24 | 81.24 |
39 | 42.31 | 81.31 |
40 | 41.38 | 81.38 |
41 | 40.45 | 81.45 |
42 | 39.52 | 81.52 |
43 | 38.60 | 81.60 |
44 | 37.68 | 81.68 |
45 | 36.76 | 81.76 |
46 | 35.85 | 81.85 |
47 | 34.94 | 81.94 |
48 | 34.04 | 82.04 |
49 | 33.14 | 82.14 |
50 | 32.24 | 82.24 |
51 | 31.35 | 82.35 |
52 | 30.47 | 82.47 |
53 | 29.59 | 82.59 |
54 | 28.72 | 82.72 |
55 | 27.86 | 82.86 |
56 | 27.01 | 83.01 |
57 | 26.16 | 83.16 |
58 | 25.32 | 83.32 |
59 | 24.49 | 83.49 |
60 | 23.67 | 83.67 |
61 | 22.85 | 83.85 |
62 | 22.04 | 84.04 |
63 | 21.24 | 84.24 |
64 | 20.45 | 84.45 |
65 | 19.66 | 84.66 |
66 | 18.88 | 84.88 |
67 | 18.10 | 85.10 |
68 | 17.34 | 85.34 |
69 | 16.58 | 85.58 |
70 | 15.82 | 85.82 |
71 | 15.08 | 86.08 |
72 | 14.36 | 86.36 |
73 | 13.64 | 86.64 |
74 | 12.94 | 86.94 |
75 | 12.26 | 87.26 |
76 | 11.60 | 87.60 |
77 | 10.95 | 87.95 |
78 | 10.31 | 88.31 |
79 | 9.70 | 88.70 |
80 | 9.10 | 89.10 |
81 | 8.53 | 89.53 |
82 | 7.98 | 89.98 |
83 | 7.44 | 90.44 |
84 | 6.93 | 90.93 |
85 | 6.44 | 91.44 |
86 | 5.99 | 91.99 |
87 | 5.55 | 92.55 |
88 | 5.15 | 93.15 |
89 | 4.76 | 93.76 |
90 | 4.41 | 94.41 |
91 | 4.08 | 95.08 |
92 | 3.78 | 95.78 |
93 | 3.51 | 96.51 |
94 | 3.27 | 97.27 |
95 | 3.05 | 98.05 |
96 | 2.85 | 98.85 |
97 | 2.68 | 99.68 |
98 | 2.52 | 100.52 |
99 | 2.37 | 101.37 |
100 | 2.23 | 102.23 |
101 | 2.09 | 103.09 |
102 | 1.96 | 103.96 |
103 | 1.84 | 104.84 |
104 | 1.72 | 105.72 |
105 | 1.61 | 106.61 |
106 | 1.51 | 107.51 |
107 | 1.41 | 108.41 |
108 | 1.32 | 109.32 |
109 | 1.24 | 110.24 |
110 | 1.16 | 111.16 |
111 | 1.09 | 112.09 |
112 | 1.02 | 113.02 |
113 | 0.96 | 113.96 |
114 | 0.90 | 114.90 |
115 | 0.85 | 115.85 |
116 | 0.80 | 116.80 |
117 | 0.75 | 117.75 |
118 | 0.70 | 118.70 |
119 | 0.66 | 119.66 |
120 | 0.62 | 120.62 |
Interestingly, women outlive men in nearly every country in the world, due to a mix of sociological, behavioral, and biological reasons.
COVID-19: Reversing A Decade of Increasing American Life Expectancy
While the current American life expectancy at birth seems reasonably high, it is nearly two years lower than the 2022 figure which used the 2019 mortality rate. It is also lower than the life expectancy at birth in 2009, which used 2005 mortality rate.
Year | Life Expectancy at Birth (Men) | Life Expectancy at Birth (Women) |
---|---|---|
2009 | 74.12 | 79.95 |
2014 | 76.10 | 80.94 |
2019 | 76.04 | 80.99 |
2023 | 74.12 | 79.78 |
American mortality rates went up 17% between 2019–2020, in part because of COVID-19, in turn affecting life expectancy. The U.S. also had a higher COVID-19 mortality rate compared to its peers two years after the pandemic first struck.
Thus, American life expectancy may not improve immediately to 2019 levels, which can affect insurance premiums, pension benefits, and plans.
Where Does This Data Come From?
Source: Office of Social Security, U.S. Government.
Note: The life expectancy at a given age is the average remaining number of years expected prior to death for a person at that exact age, born on January 1, using the mortality rates for 2020 over the course of their remaining life.
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Mapped: Which Countries Recognize Israel or Palestine, or Both?
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Ranked: America’s Best Universities
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Countries1 week ago
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