Life Expectancy at Birth in China
China: Life Expectancy at Birth was 78.02 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Life Expectancy at Birth in China, 1960–2024
Source: International Monetary Fund.
Analysis
China recorded 78.02 for life expectancy at birth in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy at birth in China peaked at 78.2 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 33.42, in 1960.
That places China 69th out of 216 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.
Life Expectancy at Birth in China, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 33.42 | — |
| 1961 | 40.16 | +20.2% |
| 1962 | 50.96 | +26.9% |
| 1963 | 51.67 | +1.4% |
| 1964 | 52.34 | +1.3% |
| 1965 | 53 | +1.3% |
| 1966 | 53.66 | +1.2% |
| 1967 | 54.4 | +1.4% |
| 1968 | 55.19 | +1.5% |
| 1969 | 55.99 | +1.4% |
| 1970 | 56.82 | +1.5% |
| 1971 | 57.73 | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 58.58 | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 59.5 | +1.6% |
| 1974 | 60.24 | +1.3% |
| 1975 | 60.95 | +1.2% |
| 1976 | 61.23 | +0.4% |
| 1977 | 62.46 | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 63.1 | +1.0% |
| 1979 | 63.7 | +1.0% |
| 1980 | 64.24 | +0.8% |
| 1981 | 64.78 | +0.8% |
| 1982 | 65.25 | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 65.73 | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 66.15 | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 66.53 | +0.6% |
| 1986 | 66.89 | +0.5% |
| 1987 | 67.26 | +0.6% |
| 1988 | 67.61 | +0.5% |
| 1989 | 67.93 | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 68.16 | +0.3% |
| 1991 | 68.61 | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 69.06 | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 69.49 | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 69.83 | +0.5% |
| 1995 | 70.36 | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 70.82 | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 71.23 | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 71.6 | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 71.95 | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 72.29 | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 72.67 | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 73.03 | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 73.39 | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 73.73 | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 74.08 | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 74.4 | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 74.79 | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 74.83 | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 75.32 | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 75.67 | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 75.89 | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 76.2 | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 76.45 | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 76.71 | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 76.97 | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 77.21 | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 77.23 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 77.71 | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 77.94 | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 78.02 | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 78.12 | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 78.2 | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 77.95 | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 78.02 | +0.1% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 78.02 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 74.45, 1.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- China's 78.02 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 72.99, 1.1× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Life Expectancy at Birth in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | +26.9% | 40.16 | 50.96 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 50.08 | 33.42 | 55.99 | 10 |
| 1970s | 60.43 | 56.82 | 63.7 | 10 |
| 1980s | 66.24 | 64.24 | 67.93 | 10 |
| 1990s | 70.11 | 68.16 | 71.95 | 10 |
| 2000s | 73.85 | 72.29 | 75.32 | 10 |
| 2010s | 76.8 | 75.67 | 77.94 | 10 |
| 2020s | 78.06 | 77.95 | 78.2 | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More gender data for China
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 169,741 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -5.36 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 1.23 million (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 1.23 million (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 0.4481 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 4.15 million (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 4.56 million (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 4.18 million (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 4.62 million (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 4.32 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy at birth in China?
- Life expectancy at birth in China was 78.02 in 2024, according to International Monetary Fund.
- What is the highest life expectancy at birth recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 78.2 in 2022.
- What is the lowest life expectancy at birth recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 33.42 in 1960.
- How does China rank for life expectancy at birth?
- China ranks 69th out of 216 countries with data for 2024.
- Is life expectancy at birth rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund, published as part of Life Expectancy at Birth. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under IMF Terms and Conditions (attribution required).
About this data
Gender-disaggregated data on health outcomes.