South Africa vs Tanzania, United Republic of: Life expectancy by sex

South Africa
69.6 years
in 2023
Tanzania, United Republic of
69.78 years
in 2023
South Africa rank
196th
Tanzania, United Republic of rank
194th

Life expectancy by sex over time

  • South Africa
  • Tanzania, United Republic of
0204060195019862023

How they compare

Tanzania, United Republic of currently reports 69.78 years against 69.6 years in South Africa, a difference of 0.18 years.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 74 shared years of data; in 1950 it was South Africa ahead.

South Africa ranks 196th and Tanzania, United Republic of ranks 194th of 236 countries.

Across the 8 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 6 and Tanzania, United Republic of in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade South Africa Tanzania, United Republic of Difference Ahead
1950s 49.08 years 43.18 years 5.91 years South Africa
1960s 56.39 years 45.58 years 10.81 years South Africa
1970s 59.87 years 50.54 years 9.34 years South Africa
1980s 65.01 years 54.21 years 10.8 years South Africa
1990s 65.14 years 52.92 years 12.21 years South Africa
2000s 57.64 years 58.51 years 0.8665 years Tanzania, United Republic of
2010s 66.19 years 65.87 years 0.3127 years South Africa
2020s 67.84 years 69.61 years 1.77 years Tanzania, United Republic of

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher life expectancy by sex, South Africa or Tanzania, United Republic of?
Tanzania, United Republic of, at 69.78 years against 69.6 years in South Africa as of 2023.
What is the difference in life expectancy by sex between South Africa and Tanzania, United Republic of?
0.18 years, with Tanzania, United Republic of ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Tanzania, United Republic of?
74 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2023.
How do South Africa and Tanzania, United Republic of rank globally for life expectancy by sex?
South Africa ranks 196th and Tanzania, United Republic of ranks 194th of 236 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Life expectancy by sex. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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South Africa vs Tanzania, United Republic of: Life expectancy by sex. Statizoid, drawing on Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 12 September 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/compare/life-expectation-at-birth-by-sex/south-africa/tanzania/

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About this data

Indicator
Life expectancy by sex
Unit
years
Source
Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 18,722 data points, 1751–2023
Last refreshed

Period life expectancy at birth among females, in a given year.