Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Malawi
Malawi: Probability that a man will outlive a woman was 38.9% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
38.9%
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
127th
of 236 countries
All-time high
47.5%
in 1995
All-time low
37.9%
in 2020
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Malawi, 1950–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024); Bergeron-Boucher et al. (2022) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 38.9% for probability that a man will outlive a woman in 2023.
That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and down 7.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, probability that a man will outlive a woman in Malawi peaked at 47.5% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 37.9%, in 2020.
Malawi ranks 127th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 46.6% | — |
| 1951 | 46.7% | +0.1% |
| 1952 | 46.7% | -0.0% |
| 1953 | 46.7% | +0.1% |
| 1954 | 46.7% | -0.1% |
| 1955 | 46.7% | +0.2% |
| 1956 | 46.8% | +0.1% |
| 1957 | 46.8% | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 46.9% | +0.2% |
| 1959 | 47.0% | +0.2% |
| 1960 | 46.9% | -0.2% |
| 1961 | 47.0% | +0.1% |
| 1962 | 47.0% | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 47.0% | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 47.0% | -0.1% |
| 1965 | 47.0% | -0.0% |
| 1966 | 47.0% | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 46.9% | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 47.0% | +0.2% |
| 1969 | 47.0% | +0.1% |
| 1970 | 47.0% | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 47.3% | +0.5% |
| 1972 | 47.2% | -0.2% |
| 1973 | 47.1% | -0.2% |
| 1974 | 47.1% | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 46.8% | -0.5% |
| 1976 | 46.5% | -0.6% |
| 1977 | 46.2% | -0.6% |
| 1978 | 45.9% | -0.7% |
| 1979 | 45.8% | -0.2% |
| 1980 | 45.7% | -0.3% |
| 1981 | 45.6% | -0.0% |
| 1982 | 45.8% | +0.3% |
| 1983 | 45.8% | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 45.8% | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 45.9% | +0.2% |
| 1986 | 46.0% | +0.3% |
| 1987 | 46.2% | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 46.6% | +0.7% |
| 1989 | 46.7% | +0.3% |
| 1990 | 46.9% | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 47.0% | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 47.2% | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 47.3% | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 47.4% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 47.5% | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 47.3% | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 47.0% | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 46.8% | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 46.6% | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 46.5% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 46.6% | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 46.4% | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 45.9% | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 45.9% | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 45.5% | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 45.4% | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 45.7% | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 45.5% | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 44.9% | -1.1% |
| 2010 | 44.1% | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 43.4% | -1.6% |
| 2012 | 42.8% | -1.5% |
| 2013 | 42.0% | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 41.5% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 41.2% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 40.6% | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 40.0% | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 39.0% | -2.5% |
| 2019 | 38.8% | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 37.9% | -2.2% |
| 2021 | 38.7% | +2.0% |
| 2022 | 38.8% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 38.9% | +0.3% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 38.9% is below the median for low income countries, which is 43.7%, 89% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 38.9% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 42.6%, 91% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 46.7% | 46.6% | 47.0% | 10 |
| 1960s | 47.0% | 46.9% | 47.0% | 10 |
| 1970s | 46.7% | 45.8% | 47.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 46.0% | 45.6% | 46.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 47.1% | 46.6% | 47.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 45.8% | 44.9% | 46.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 41.3% | 38.8% | 44.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 38.6% | 37.9% | 38.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More gender data for Malawi
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 9,494 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth 1.4 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 15,667 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 15,667 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 3.13 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 330,369 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 332,767 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 322,764 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 324,764 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 316,113 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is probability that a man will outlive a woman in Malawi?
- Probability that a man will outlive a woman in Malawi was 38.9% 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 47.5% in 1995.
- What is the lowest probability that a man will outlive a woman recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.9% in 2020.
- How does Malawi rank for probability that a man will outlive a woman?
- Malawi ranks 127th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is probability that a man will outlive a woman rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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.