According to the latest Eurostat data, in 2024 the life expectancy at birth in the European Union reached 81.5 years. This represents an increase of 0.1 years compared to 2023 (81.4 years) and a clear improvement over the pre-pandemic level – in 2019 it stood at 81.3 years.
The largest drop was recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic years: 80.4 years in 2020 and only 80.1 years in 2021. Since then, a steady recovery and return to the upward trend have been observed.
Significant gender gap persists Women in the EU can expect to live on average 84.1 years (+0.1 year compared to 2023), while men – 78.9 years (+0.2 year). This means women live on average 5.2 years longer than men.
The largest gender differences are found in the Baltic countries:
- Latvia – 9.8 years
- Lithuania – 8.6 years
- Estonia – 8.4 years
The smallest gaps were recorded in:
- Netherlands (2.8 years)
- Sweden (3.1 years)
- Ireland (3.4 years)
Longest life expectancy in selected regions of Western and Northern Europe At the NUTS 2 regional level, four areas reached or exceeded 85 years:
- Comunidad de Madrid (Spain) – 85.7 years
- Provincia Autonoma di Trento and Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano/Bozen (Italy) – 85.0 years each
- Stockholm (Sweden) – 85.0 years
Lowest life expectancy mainly concentrated in the east The five regions with the lowest figures are:
- Severozapaden (Bulgaria) – 73.9 years
- Mayotte (France) – 74.5 years
- Severen tsentralen (Bulgaria) – 74.9 years
- Észak-Magyarország (Hungary) – 75.1 years
- Severoiztochen (Bulgaria) – 75.4 years
The data come from Eurostat’s latest publication on mortality and life expectancy (13 March 2026). As of 2024, the methodology has been slightly updated – calculations now extend to age groups 95+, and historical data from 2014 onwards have been recalculated retrospectively.
