United States | Life expectancy at birth, total (years)

Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life. Development relevance: Mortality rates for different age groups (infants, children, and adults) and overall mortality indicators (life expectancy at birth or survival to a given age) are important indicators of health status in a country. Because data on the incidence and prevalence of diseases are frequently unavailable, mortality rates are often used to identify vulnerable populations. And they are among the indicators most frequently used to compare socioeconomic development across countries. Limitations and exceptions: Annual data series from United Nations Population Division's World Population Prospects are interpolated data from 5-year period data. Therefore they may not reflect real events as much as observed data. Statistical concept and methodology: Life expectancy at birth used here is the average number of years a newborn is expected to live if mortality patterns at the time of its birth remain constant in the future. It reflects the overall mortality level of a population, and summarizes the mortality pattern that prevails across all age groups in a given year. It is calculated in a period life table which provides a snapshot of a population's mortality pattern at a given time. It therefore does not reflect the mortality pattern that a person actually experiences during his/her life, which can be calculated in a cohort life table. High mortality in young age groups significantly lowers the life expectancy at birth. But if a person survives his/her childhood of high mortality, he/she may live much longer. For example, in a population with a life expectancy at birth of 50, there may be few people dying at age 50. The life expectancy at birth may be low due to the high childhood mortality so that once a person survives his/her childhood, he/she may live much longer than 50 years.
Publisher
The World Bank
Origin
United States of America
Records
63
Source
United States | Life expectancy at birth, total (years)
1960 69.77073171
1961 70.27073171
1962 70.1195122
1963 69.91707317
1964 70.16585366
1965 70.21463415
1966 70.21219512
1967 70.56097561
1968 69.95121951
1969 70.50731707
1970 70.80731707
1971 71.10731707
1972 71.15609756
1973 71.35609756
1974 71.95609756
1975 72.60487805
1976 72.85609756
1977 73.25609756
1978 73.35609756
1979 73.80487805
1980 73.6097561
1981 74.0097561
1982 74.36097561
1983 74.46341463
1984 74.56341463
1985 74.56341463
1986 74.61463415
1987 74.76585366
1988 74.76585366
1989 75.01707317
1990 75.21463415
1991 75.36585366
1992 75.61707317
1993 75.4195122
1994 75.6195122
1995 75.62195122
1996 76.02682927
1997 76.42926829
1998 76.5804878
1999 76.58292683
2000 76.63658537
2001 76.83658537
2002 76.93658537
2003 77.03658537
2004 77.48780488
2005 77.48780488
2006 77.68780488
2007 77.98780488
2008 78.03902439
2009 78.3902439
2010 78.54146341
2011 78.64146341
2012 78.74146341
2013 78.74146341
2014 78.84146341
2015 78.6902439
2016 78.53902439
2017 78.53902439
2018 78.63902439
2019 78.78780488
2020 76.9804878
2021 76.32926829
2022

United States | Life expectancy at birth, total (years)

Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life. Development relevance: Mortality rates for different age groups (infants, children, and adults) and overall mortality indicators (life expectancy at birth or survival to a given age) are important indicators of health status in a country. Because data on the incidence and prevalence of diseases are frequently unavailable, mortality rates are often used to identify vulnerable populations. And they are among the indicators most frequently used to compare socioeconomic development across countries. Limitations and exceptions: Annual data series from United Nations Population Division's World Population Prospects are interpolated data from 5-year period data. Therefore they may not reflect real events as much as observed data. Statistical concept and methodology: Life expectancy at birth used here is the average number of years a newborn is expected to live if mortality patterns at the time of its birth remain constant in the future. It reflects the overall mortality level of a population, and summarizes the mortality pattern that prevails across all age groups in a given year. It is calculated in a period life table which provides a snapshot of a population's mortality pattern at a given time. It therefore does not reflect the mortality pattern that a person actually experiences during his/her life, which can be calculated in a cohort life table. High mortality in young age groups significantly lowers the life expectancy at birth. But if a person survives his/her childhood of high mortality, he/she may live much longer. For example, in a population with a life expectancy at birth of 50, there may be few people dying at age 50. The life expectancy at birth may be low due to the high childhood mortality so that once a person survives his/her childhood, he/she may live much longer than 50 years.
Publisher
The World Bank
Origin
United States of America
Records
63
Source