World Bank Data · 212 countries
Countries With Highest Life Expectancy
Life expectancy is one of the most important indicators of a nation's overall health and development. Japan, Switzerland, and Singapore consistently lead the world, with residents living into their mid-80s on average. High life expectancy correlates strongly with healthcare access, nutrition, sanitation, education, and economic development. Japan's longevity is attributed to diet (rich in fish and vegetables), universal healthcare, strong social connections, and an active aging culture. The gap between the longest- and shortest-lived nations exceeds 30 years, a child born in Japan can expect to live more than three decades longer than one born in the Central African Republic. Life expectancy has risen dramatically worldwide over the past century due to vaccines, antibiotics, improved sanitation, and better nutrition, but progress has stalled or reversed in some countries due to HIV/AIDS, conflict, and the opioid crisis.
Key Findings
- 1Monaco leads with a life expectancy (years) of 86.4 years, followed by San Marino (85.7 years) and Liechtenstein (84.6 years).
- 2Nigeria ranks last at 54.5 years, while Monaco leads at 86.4 years.
- 3The national median across all states is 74.4 years (Azerbaijan at the midpoint).
- 4The top 10 states are: Monaco, San Marino, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, French Polynesia, Japan, Andorra, Spain, Korea, Rep., Malta.
Full Ranking: Countries With Highest Life Expectancy
Source: Census ACS 5-Year Estimates
| # | Country | Life Expectancy | GDP/Capita | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zimbabwe | 62.8 | $2,195 | 16,340,822 |
| 2 | Zambia | 66.3 | $1,331 | 20,723,965 |
| 3 | Yemen, Rep. | 69.3 | - | 39,390,799 |
| 4 | Virgin Islands (U.S.) | 80.5 | - | 104,917 |
| 5 | Viet Nam | 74.6 | $4,323 | 100,352,192 |
| 6 | Venezuela, RB | 72.5 | $3,617 | 28,300,854 |
| 7 | Vanuatu | 71.5 | $3,483 | 320,409 |
| 8 | Uzbekistan | 72.4 | $2,879 | 35,652,307 |
| 9 | Uruguay | 78.1 | $23,019 | 3,388,081 |
| 10 | United States | 78.4 | $81,032 | 336,806,231 |
| 11 | United Kingdom | 81.2 | $49,944 | 68,492,000 |
| 12 | United Arab Emirates | 82.9 | $49,851 | 10,483,751 |
| 13 | Ukraine | 73.4 | $5,140 | 37,732,836 |
| 14 | Uganda | 68.3 | $1,002 | 48,656,601 |
| 15 | Tuvalu | 67.1 | $6,345 | 9,816 |
| 16 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 78 | $35,470 | 46,198 |
| 17 | Turkmenistan | 70.1 | $6,232 | 7,364,438 |
| 18 | Turkiye | 77.2 | $13,375 | 85,325,965 |
| 19 | Tunisia | 76.5 | $3,951 | 12,200,431 |
| 20 | Trinidad and Tobago | 73.5 | $18,308 | 1,367,510 |
| 21 | Tonga | 72.9 | $5,652 | 104,597 |
| 22 | Togo | 62.7 | $1,055 | 9,304,337 |
| 23 | Timor-Leste | 67.7 | $1,502 | 1,384,286 |
| 24 | Thailand | 76.4 | $7,195 | 71,702,435 |
| 25 | Tanzania | 67 | $1,224 | 66,617,606 |
| 26 | Tajikistan | 71.8 | $1,178 | 10,389,799 |
| 27 | Taiwan | 80.9 | $34,430 | 23,400,000 |
| 28 | Syrian Arab Republic | 72.1 | - | 23,594,623 |
| 29 | Switzerland | 84.2 | $100,624 | 8,888,822 |
| 30 | Sweden | 83.3 | $54,950 | 10,536,632 |
| 31 | Suriname | 73.6 | $5,522 | 628,886 |
| 32 | Sudan | 66.3 | $797.28 | 50,042,791 |
| 33 | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | 71.2 | $10,582 | 101,323 |
| 34 | St. Martin (French part) | 80.2 | - | 27,515 |
| 35 | St. Lucia | 72.7 | $13,555 | 179,285 |
| 36 | St. Kitts and Nevis | 72.1 | $22,577 | 46,758 |
| 37 | Sri Lanka | 77.5 | $3,799 | 22,037,000 |
| 38 | Spain | 83.9 | $33,493 | 48,352,528 |
| 39 | South Sudan | 57.6 | - | 11,483,374 |
| 40 | South Africa | 66.1 | $6,034 | 63,212,384 |
| 41 | Somalia, Fed. Rep. | 58.8 | $596.89 | 18,358,615 |
| 42 | Solomon Islands | 70.5 | $1,883 | 800,005 |
| 43 | Slovenia | 81.9 | $32,660 | 2,120,461 |
| 44 | Slovak Republic | 78.1 | $24,615 | 5,426,740 |
| 45 | Sint Maarten (Dutch part) | 76.4 | $39,452 | 42,749 |
| 46 | Singapore | 83.1 | $85,412 | 5,917,648 |
| 47 | Sierra Leone | 61.8 | $758.33 | 8,460,512 |
| 48 | Seychelles | 75.4 | $18,263 | 119,773 |
| 49 | Serbia | 76.1 | $12,282 | 6,623,183 |
| 50 | Senegal | 68.7 | $1,698 | 18,077,573 |
| 51 | Saudi Arabia | 78.7 | $36,157 | 33,702,731 |
| 52 | Sao Tome and Principe | 69.7 | $2,991 | 230,871 |
| 53 | San Marino | 85.7 | $59,880 | 33,860 |
| 54 | Samoa | 71.7 | $4,823 | 216,663 |
| 55 | Rwanda | 67.8 | $1,027 | 13,954,471 |
| 56 | Russian Federation | 73.3 | $14,159 | 143,826,130 |
| 57 | Romania | 76.4 | $18,244 | 19,061,062 |
| 58 | Qatar | 82.4 | $81,817 | 2,656,032 |
| 59 | Puerto Rico (US) | 81.7 | $36,981 | 3,203,792 |
| 60 | Portugal | 82.3 | $27,635 | 10,578,174 |
| 61 | Poland | 78.3 | $22,145 | 36,687,353 |
| 62 | Philippines | 69.8 | $3,804 | 114,891,199 |
| 63 | Peru | 77.7 | $7,888 | 33,845,617 |
| 64 | Paraguay | 73.8 | $6,300 | 6,844,146 |
| 65 | Papua New Guinea | 66.1 | $2,966 | 10,389,635 |
| 66 | Panama | 79.6 | $18,797 | 4,458,759 |
| 67 | Palau | 69.3 | $15,611 | 17,727 |
| 68 | Pakistan | 67.6 | $1,360 | 247,504,495 |
| 69 | Oman | 80 | $21,028 | 5,049,269 |
| 70 | Norway | 83 | $87,497 | 5,519,601 |
| 71 | Northern Mariana Islands | 78.8 | - | 45,143 |
| 72 | North Macedonia | 75.3 | $8,674 | 1,827,816 |
| 73 | Nigeria | 54.5 | $2,139 | 227,882,945 |
| 74 | Niger | 61.2 | $638.34 | 26,159,867 |
| 75 | Nicaragua | 74.9 | $2,609 | 6,823,613 |
| 76 | New Zealand | 81.8 | $49,076 | 5,200,000 |
| 77 | New Caledonia | 78.8 | $33,702 | 289,870 |
| 78 | Netherlands | 81.9 | $63,516 | 17,877,117 |
| 79 | Nepal | 70.4 | $1,382 | 29,694,614 |
| 80 | Nauru | 62.1 | $12,752 | 11,875 |
| 81 | Namibia | 67.4 | $4,188 | 2,963,095 |
| 82 | Myanmar | 66.9 | $1,233 | 54,133,798 |
| 83 | Mozambique | 63.6 | $622.00 | 33,635,160 |
| 84 | Morocco | 75.3 | $3,814 | 37,712,505 |
| 85 | Montenegro | 77.6 | $12,260 | 623,529 |
| 86 | Mongolia | 72.1 | $5,839 | 3,481,145 |
| 87 | Monaco | 86.4 | $256,800 | 38,956 |
| 88 | Moldova | 71.2 | $6,800 | 2,457,783 |
| 89 | Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | 67.2 | $3,920 | 112,630 |
| 90 | Mexico | 75.1 | $13,861 | 129,739,759 |
| 91 | Mauritius | 73.4 | $11,270 | 1,248,647 |
| 92 | Mauritania | 68.5 | $2,136 | 5,022,441 |
| 93 | Marshall Islands | 66.9 | $6,793 | 38,827 |
| 94 | Malta | 83.4 | $40,906 | 552,747 |
| 95 | Mali | 60.4 | $1,044 | 23,769,127 |
| 96 | Maldives | 81 | $12,588 | 525,994 |
| 97 | Malaysia | 76.7 | $11,386 | 35,126,298 |
| 98 | Malawi | 67.4 | $633.21 | 21,104,482 |
| 99 | Madagascar | 63.6 | $508.72 | 31,195,932 |
| 100 | Luxembourg | 83.3 | $133,231 | 666,430 |
| 101 | Lithuania | 77.3 | $27,786 | 2,871,585 |
| 102 | Liechtenstein | 84.6 | $206,781 | 39,846 |
| 103 | Libya | 69.3 | $6,027 | 7,305,659 |
| 104 | Liberia | 62.2 | $799.19 | 5,493,031 |
| 105 | Lesotho | 57.4 | $916.28 | 2,311,472 |
| 106 | Lebanon | 77.8 | $3,478 | 5,773,493 |
| 107 | Latvia | 75.4 | $22,710 | 1,883,710 |
| 108 | Lao PDR | 69 | $2,067 | 7,664,993 |
| 109 | Kyrgyz Republic | 72.2 | $2,138 | 7,099,750 |
| 110 | Kuwait | 83.2 | $34,076 | 4,853,420 |
| 111 | Kosovo | 78 | $6,221 | 1,682,668 |
| 112 | Korea, Rep. | 83.4 | $35,674 | 51,712,619 |
| 113 | Korea, Dem. People's Rep. | 73.6 | - | 26,418,204 |
| 114 | Kiribati | 66.5 | $2,178 | 132,530 |
| 115 | Kenya | 63.6 | $1,943 | 55,339,003 |
| 116 | Kazakhstan | 74.4 | $12,879 | 20,330,104 |
| 117 | Jordan | 77.8 | $4,466 | 11,439,213 |
| 118 | Japan | 84 | $33,836 | 124,516,650 |
| 119 | Jamaica | 71.5 | $7,542 | 2,839,786 |
| 120 | Italy | 83.4 | $39,277 | 58,984,216 |
| 121 | Isle of Man | 81 | - | 84,165 |
| 122 | Ireland | 82.8 | $106,819 | 5,311,538 |
| 123 | Iraq | 72.3 | $5,965 | 45,074,049 |
| 124 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 77.7 | $5,049 | 90,608,707 |
| 125 | Indonesia | 71.1 | $4,876 | 281,190,067 |
| 126 | India | 72 | $2,530 | 1,438,069,596 |
| 127 | Iceland | 82.5 | $82,139 | 385,663 |
| 128 | Hungary | 76.6 | $22,231 | 9,592,186 |
| 129 | Honduras | 72.9 | $3,227 | 10,644,851 |
| 130 | Haiti | 64.9 | $1,706 | 11,637,398 |
| 131 | Guyana | 70.2 | $20,474 | 826,353 |
| 132 | Guinea-Bissau | 64.1 | $988.09 | 2,153,339 |
| 133 | Guinea | 60.7 | $1,555 | 14,405,468 |
| 134 | Guatemala | 72.6 | $5,758 | 18,124,838 |
| 135 | Guam | 77.2 | - | 166,506 |
| 136 | Grenada | 75.2 | $11,414 | 117,081 |
| 137 | Greenland | 71 | $58,499 | 56,865 |
| 138 | Greece | 81.7 | $23,344 | 10,407,351 |
| 139 | Ghana | 65.5 | $2,384 | 33,787,914 |
| 140 | Germany | 81 | $54,777 | 83,287,273 |
| 141 | Georgia | 74.5 | $8,284 | 3,715,483 |
| 142 | Gambia, The | 65.9 | $883.02 | 2,697,845 |
| 143 | Gabon | 68.3 | $7,803 | 2,484,789 |
| 144 | French Polynesia | 84.1 | $21,832 | 281,118 |
| 145 | France | 82.8 | $44,700 | 68,372,286 |
| 146 | Finland | 81.6 | $52,834 | 5,583,911 |
| 147 | Fiji | 67.3 | $5,926 | 924,145 |
| 148 | Faroe Islands | 83 | $72,465 | 54,414 |
| 149 | Ethiopia | 67.3 | $1,056 | 128,691,692 |
| 150 | Eswatini | 64.1 | $3,756 | 1,230,506 |
| 151 | Estonia | 78.8 | $30,264 | 1,370,286 |
| 152 | Eritrea | 68.6 | - | 3,470,390 |
| 153 | Equatorial Guinea | 63.7 | $6,678 | 1,847,549 |
| 154 | El Salvador | 72.1 | $5,365 | 6,309,624 |
| 155 | Egypt, Arab Rep. | 71.6 | $3,457 | 114,535,772 |
| 156 | Ecuador | 77.4 | $6,738 | 17,980,083 |
| 157 | Dominican Republic | 73.7 | $10,630 | 11,331,265 |
| 158 | Dominica | 71.1 | $9,913 | 66,510 |
| 159 | Djibouti | 66 | $3,381 | 1,152,944 |
| 160 | Denmark | 81.8 | $68,044 | 5,946,952 |
| 161 | Czechia | 79.8 | $31,762 | 10,864,042 |
| 162 | Cyprus | 81.6 | $36,624 | 1,344,976 |
| 163 | Curacao | 76.8 | $21,218 | 154,654 |
| 164 | Cuba | 78.1 | - | 11,019,931 |
| 165 | Croatia | 78.5 | $22,184 | 3,859,686 |
| 166 | Cote d'Ivoire | 61.9 | $2,592 | 31,165,654 |
| 167 | Costa Rica | 80.8 | $16,942 | 5,105,525 |
| 168 | Congo, Rep. | 65.8 | $2,478 | 6,182,885 |
| 169 | Congo, Dem. Rep. | 61.9 | $660.21 | 105,789,731 |
| 170 | Comoros | 66.8 | $1,560 | 850,387 |
| 171 | Colombia | 77.7 | $7,001 | 52,321,152 |
| 172 | China | 78 | $12,951 | 1,410,710,000 |
| 173 | Chile | 81.2 | $17,067 | 19,658,835 |
| 174 | Chad | 55.1 | $949.33 | 19,319,064 |
| 175 | Central African Republic | 57.4 | $495.98 | 5,152,421 |
| 176 | Cayman Islands | 80.4 | $99,144 | 73,038 |
| 177 | Canada | 81.6 | $54,220 | 40,083,484 |
| 178 | Cameroon | 63.7 | $1,720 | 28,372,687 |
| 179 | Cambodia | 70.7 | $2,430 | 17,423,880 |
| 180 | Cabo Verde | 76.1 | $4,795 | 522,331 |
| 181 | Burundi | 63.7 | $250.63 | 13,689,450 |
| 182 | Burkina Faso | 61.1 | $873.48 | 23,025,776 |
| 183 | Bulgaria | 75.8 | $15,853 | 6,446,596 |
| 184 | Brunei Darussalam | 75.3 | $32,891 | 458,949 |
| 185 | British Virgin Islands | 77.3 | - | 38,985 |
| 186 | Brazil | 75.8 | $10,378 | 211,140,729 |
| 187 | Botswana | 69.2 | $7,826 | 2,480,244 |
| 188 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 77.9 | $8,663 | 3,185,073 |
| 189 | Bolivia | 68.6 | $4,275 | 12,244,159 |
| 190 | Bhutan | 73 | $3,831 | 786,385 |
| 191 | Bermuda | 82.3 | $132,604 | 64,698 |
| 192 | Benin | 60.8 | $1,394 | 14,111,034 |
| 193 | Belize | 73.6 | $7,425 | 411,106 |
| 194 | Belgium | 82.4 | $55,291 | 11,779,946 |
| 195 | Belarus | 74.2 | $7,897 | 9,178,298 |
| 196 | Barbados | 76.2 | $25,584 | 282,336 |
| 197 | Bangladesh | 74.7 | $2,551 | 171,466,990 |
| 198 | Bahrain | 81.3 | $29,290 | 1,577,059 |
| 199 | Bahamas, The | 74.6 | $38,232 | 399,440 |
| 200 | Azerbaijan | 74.4 | $7,133 | 10,153,958 |
| 201 | Austria | 81.8 | $56,580 | 9,131,761 |
| 202 | Australia | 83.1 | $65,058 | 26,659,922 |
| 203 | Aruba | 76.4 | $35,719 | 107,359 |
| 204 | Armenia | 77.5 | $8,159 | 2,964,300 |
| 205 | Argentina | 77.4 | $14,262 | 45,538,401 |
| 206 | Antigua and Barbuda | 77.6 | $21,495 | 93,316 |
| 207 | Angola | 64.6 | $2,916 | 36,749,906 |
| 208 | Andorra | 84 | $46,812 | 80,856 |
| 209 | American Samoa | 72.9 | - | 47,521 |
| 210 | Algeria | 76.3 | $5,370 | 46,164,219 |
| 211 | Albania | 79.6 | $9,731 | 2,414,095 |
| 212 | Afghanistan | 66 | $413.76 | 41,454,761 |
Methodology
Rankings are based on American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates from the US Census Bureau. All 50 states and the District of Columbia are included. The ACS surveys approximately 3.5 million households annually and provides detailed demographic, social, economic, and housing data. 5-Year estimates offer the most reliable data for state-level comparisons by averaging responses over a 60-month period. Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Monaco has the highest life expectancy (years) at 86.4 years, according to latest Census ACS data. San Marino and Liechtenstein round out the top three.
Nigeria has the lowest life expectancy (years) at 54.5 years. Chad is second-lowest at 55.1 years.
The median across all 212 states is 74.4 years. Note that the national median and the state-level median are calculated differently, the state median represents the midpoint when all states are ranked.
This data comes from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates published by the US Census Bureau. The ACS surveys approximately 3.5 million households annually and provides the most comprehensive demographic data available between decennial censuses.
Rankings are based on the latest available Census ACS 5-Year estimates. The Census Bureau releases new ACS data annually. Our data was last updated on April 12, 2026.
Rankings are based on American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates from the US Census Bureau. All 50 states and the District of Columbia are included. The ACS surveys approximately 3.5 million households annually and provides detailed demographic, social, economic, and housing data. 5-Year estimates offer the most reliable data for state-level comparisons by averaging responses over a 60-month period. Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS, 2026.