Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada
Canada: Probability that a man will outlive a woman was 39.9% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
39.9%
Change on year
up 5.6%
World rank
106th
of 236 countries
All-time high
47.9%
in 1921
All-time low
35.0%
in 1978
Years of data
103
1921–2023
Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada, 1921–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024); Bergeron-Boucher et al. (2022) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada is 39.9%, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 5.6% on the previous year and down 0.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada peaked at 47.9% in 1921 and was at its lowest, 35.0%, in 1978.
That places Canada 106th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 103 years of available data.
Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1921 | 47.9% | — |
| 1922 | 47.8% | -0.3% |
| 1923 | 47.9% | +0.1% |
| 1924 | 47.7% | -0.4% |
| 1925 | 47.5% | -0.4% |
| 1926 | 47.5% | -0.0% |
| 1927 | 47.1% | -0.8% |
| 1928 | 47.0% | -0.1% |
| 1929 | 47.2% | +0.4% |
| 1930 | 46.9% | -0.6% |
| 1931 | 47.0% | +0.3% |
| 1932 | 47.3% | +0.5% |
| 1933 | 47.5% | +0.4% |
| 1934 | 46.6% | -1.7% |
| 1935 | 46.7% | +0.2% |
| 1936 | 47.0% | +0.4% |
| 1937 | 46.1% | -1.7% |
| 1938 | 45.6% | -1.1% |
| 1939 | 45.6% | -0.1% |
| 1940 | 45.1% | -1.1% |
| 1941 | 44.7% | -0.9% |
| 1942 | 44.6% | -0.2% |
| 1943 | 44.7% | +0.2% |
| 1944 | 44.8% | +0.3% |
| 1945 | 44.3% | -1.2% |
| 1946 | 44.2% | -0.3% |
| 1947 | 43.4% | -1.7% |
| 1948 | 43.2% | -0.5% |
| 1949 | 42.9% | -0.8% |
| 1950 | 42.4% | -1.1% |
| 1951 | 42.3% | -0.1% |
| 1952 | 41.4% | -2.3% |
| 1953 | 41.3% | -0.2% |
| 1954 | 40.8% | -1.1% |
| 1955 | 40.2% | -1.5% |
| 1956 | 40.3% | +0.2% |
| 1957 | 39.6% | -1.6% |
| 1958 | 39.3% | -0.9% |
| 1959 | 39.4% | +0.2% |
| 1960 | 38.8% | -1.3% |
| 1961 | 38.5% | -0.9% |
| 1962 | 38.5% | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 38.3% | -0.5% |
| 1964 | 37.7% | -1.7% |
| 1965 | 37.5% | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 37.1% | -0.9% |
| 1967 | 36.9% | -0.7% |
| 1968 | 36.7% | -0.4% |
| 1969 | 36.5% | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 36.3% | -0.6% |
| 1971 | 36.0% | -0.7% |
| 1972 | 36.0% | -0.1% |
| 1973 | 35.7% | -0.8% |
| 1974 | 35.7% | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 35.6% | -0.3% |
| 1976 | 35.2% | -1.2% |
| 1977 | 35.1% | -0.1% |
| 1978 | 35.0% | -0.3% |
| 1979 | 35.2% | +0.5% |
| 1980 | 35.3% | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 35.3% | -0.1% |
| 1982 | 35.4% | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 35.4% | +0.1% |
| 1984 | 35.4% | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 35.5% | +0.2% |
| 1986 | 35.7% | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 35.7% | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 35.5% | -0.7% |
| 1989 | 35.7% | +0.6% |
| 1990 | 35.9% | +0.7% |
| 1991 | 36.0% | +0.3% |
| 1992 | 36.0% | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 36.3% | +0.7% |
| 1994 | 36.6% | +0.8% |
| 1995 | 36.6% | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 36.9% | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 37.1% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 37.1% | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 37.1% | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 37.8% | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 38.0% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 38.4% | +1.0% |
| 2003 | 38.4% | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 38.7% | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 38.9% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 39.0% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 39.1% | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 39.2% | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 39.3% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 39.7% | +0.8% |
| 2011 | 39.9% | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 39.9% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 40.2% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 40.1% | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 40.4% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 40.5% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 40.2% | -0.7% |
| 2018 | 40.4% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 40.4% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 40.0% | -0.9% |
| 2021 | 39.3% | -1.7% |
| 2022 | 37.8% | -3.9% |
| 2023 | 39.9% | +5.6% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 39.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 38.1%, 1.0× the median. (85 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 47.5% | 47.0% | 47.9% | 9 |
| 1930s | 46.6% | 45.6% | 47.5% | 10 |
| 1940s | 44.2% | 42.9% | 45.1% | 10 |
| 1950s | 40.7% | 39.3% | 42.4% | 10 |
| 1960s | 37.6% | 36.5% | 38.8% | 10 |
| 1970s | 35.6% | 35.0% | 36.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 35.5% | 35.3% | 35.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.6% | 35.9% | 37.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 38.7% | 37.8% | 39.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 40.2% | 39.7% | 40.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 39.3% | 37.8% | 40.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More gender data for Canada
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 5,985 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -0.1285 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 35,670 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 35,670 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 0.8111 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 179,464 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 188,972 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 181,929 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 191,273 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 183,113 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada?
- Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Canada was 39.9% in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024); Bergeron-Boucher et al. (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest probability that a man will outlive a woman recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 47.9% in 1921.
- What is the lowest probability that a man will outlive a woman recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 35.0% in 1978.
- How does Canada rank for probability that a man will outlive a woman?
- Canada ranks 106th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is probability that a man will outlive a woman rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024); Bergeron-Boucher et al. (2022) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Probability that a man will outlive a woman. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Probability that a male will live longer than a female if both are randomly selected from the population at birth.