What Is the Average Life Expectancy in the UK?
UK life expectancy at birth is approximately 78.8 years for men and 82.8 years for women, according to the latest ONS National Life Tables (2021-2023). Healthy life expectancy is significantly lower at around 62 years for both sexes.
About These Statistics
UK life expectancy at birth stands at approximately 78.8 years for men and 82.8 years for women, according to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) National Life Tables covering 2021–2023, published in October 2024. These figures represent the average number of years a newborn could expect to live if current age-specific mortality rates remained constant throughout their life. The female-male gap of around 4 years has narrowed steadily over the past four decades.
Healthy life expectancy — the number of years a person can expect to live in good health — is substantially lower at approximately 62.4 years for men and 62.7 years for women in England. This means the average UK adult spends roughly 16 years in poor health towards the end of life. Healthy life expectancy varies more dramatically by region than overall life expectancy: in the most deprived 10% of areas it is around 52 years, compared to 71 years in the least deprived 10%.
Life expectancy varies significantly across the UK nations. England has the highest at approximately 79.1 years (M) and 83.0 (F). Wales sits at 78.1 (M) / 82.0 (F). Northern Ireland at 78.6 (M) / 82.2 (F). Scotland has the lowest at 76.7 (M) / 80.7 (F) — a gap of around 2.4 years between Scottish and English men. The most deprived areas of Glasgow and Blackpool have life expectancy below 74 years for men.
A person who has already reached age 65 can expect to live considerably longer than the headline at-birth figures suggest. Life expectancy at 65 is approximately 18.5 further years for men and 21.0 further years for women — meaning an average 65-year-old man will live to about 83.5 and a woman to about 86. This figure matters more for State Pension and end-of-life policy planning than the at-birth headline.
UK life expectancy improved steadily for almost a century, gaining approximately 2.5 years per decade between 1980 and 2010. Since 2011, however, improvements have stalled, with overall life expectancy showing little or no gain — and falling sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021-2023 figures remain below the pre-pandemic 2017-2019 peak. Causes of the stall include austerity, slowed cardiovascular gains, rising deaths of despair (alcohol, drugs, suicide) and persistent regional inequality.
Frequently Asked Questions
Based on official UK government data
What is the average life expectancy in the UK in 2026?
UK life expectancy at birth is approximately 78.8 years for men and 82.8 years for women, according to ONS National Life Tables for 2021–2023 (the most recent published figures). This is around 0.3 years below the pre-pandemic peak. England has the highest figures and Scotland the lowest, with a gap of about 2.4 years between Scottish and English men.
What is healthy life expectancy in the UK?
Healthy life expectancy in England is approximately 62.4 years for men and 62.7 years for women — the number of years lived in self-assessed good health. This means the average UK adult spends around 16 years in poor health towards the end of life. Healthy life expectancy varies sharply by deprivation: roughly 52 years in the most deprived areas versus 71 years in the least deprived.
How long can a 65-year-old expect to live in the UK?
A 65-year-old man in the UK can expect to live approximately 18.5 further years on average (to age 83.5), and a 65-year-old woman approximately 21.0 further years (to age 86). These figures are higher than the at-birth life expectancy implies because anyone reaching 65 has already survived childhood and middle-age mortality risks.