Life expectancy by sex in Rwanda
Rwanda: Life expectancy by sex was 69.89 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
69.89 years
Change on year
up 0.4%
World rank
193rd
of 236 countries
All-time high
69.89 years
in 2023
All-time low
13.32 years
in 1994
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Life expectancy by sex in Rwanda, 1950–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Rwanda recorded 69.89 years for life expectancy by sex in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 5.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy by sex in Rwanda peaked at 69.89 years in 2023 and was at its lowest, 13.32 years, in 1994.
Rwanda ranks 193rd of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Life expectancy by sex in Rwanda, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 43.72 years | — |
| 1951 | 44.01 years | +0.7% |
| 1952 | 44.29 years | +0.6% |
| 1953 | 44.58 years | +0.7% |
| 1954 | 44.91 years | +0.7% |
| 1955 | 45.27 years | +0.8% |
| 1956 | 45.65 years | +0.8% |
| 1957 | 46.09 years | +1.0% |
| 1958 | 46.56 years | +1.0% |
| 1959 | 47.06 years | +1.1% |
| 1960 | 47.54 years | +1.0% |
| 1961 | 47.98 years | +0.9% |
| 1962 | 48.33 years | +0.7% |
| 1963 | 45.09 years | -6.7% |
| 1964 | 48.69 years | +8.0% |
| 1965 | 48.73 years | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 48.62 years | -0.2% |
| 1967 | 48.49 years | -0.3% |
| 1968 | 48.27 years | -0.5% |
| 1969 | 47.98 years | -0.6% |
| 1970 | 47.61 years | -0.8% |
| 1971 | 47.2 years | -0.9% |
| 1972 | 46.75 years | -0.9% |
| 1973 | 46.28 years | -1.0% |
| 1974 | 45.87 years | -0.9% |
| 1975 | 45.64 years | -0.5% |
| 1976 | 45.71 years | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 46.08 years | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 46.81 years | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 47.89 years | +2.3% |
| 1980 | 49.07 years | +2.5% |
| 1981 | 50.32 years | +2.5% |
| 1982 | 51.42 years | +2.2% |
| 1983 | 52.29 years | +1.7% |
| 1984 | 52.89 years | +1.1% |
| 1985 | 53.21 years | +0.6% |
| 1986 | 53.25 years | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 53.02 years | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 52.44 years | -1.1% |
| 1989 | 51.57 years | -1.7% |
| 1990 | 50.34 years | -2.4% |
| 1991 | 49.05 years | -2.6% |
| 1992 | 47.25 years | -3.7% |
| 1993 | 45.53 years | -3.7% |
| 1994 | 13.32 years | -70.7% |
| 1995 | 43.73 years | +228.2% |
| 1996 | 44.24 years | +1.2% |
| 1997 | 44.27 years | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 45.37 years | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 47.09 years | +3.8% |
| 2000 | 49 years | +4.1% |
| 2001 | 50.89 years | +3.9% |
| 2002 | 52.47 years | +3.1% |
| 2003 | 54.66 years | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 56.79 years | +3.9% |
| 2005 | 58.44 years | +2.9% |
| 2006 | 59.98 years | +2.6% |
| 2007 | 61.27 years | +2.2% |
| 2008 | 62.59 years | +2.1% |
| 2009 | 63.73 years | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 64.48 years | +1.2% |
| 2011 | 65.26 years | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 65.94 years | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 66.51 years | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 67.03 years | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 67.39 years | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 67.76 years | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 68.25 years | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 68.42 years | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 68.81 years | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 69.06 years | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 68.92 years | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 69.63 years | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 69.89 years | +0.4% |
Rwanda compared with similar countries
- Rwanda's 69.89 years is above the median for low income countries, which is 66.36 years, 1.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Rwanda's 69.89 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 66.75 years, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Life expectancy by sex in Rwanda changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | +228.2% | 13.32 years | 43.73 years |
| 1994 | -70.7% | 45.53 years | 13.32 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 45.21 years | 43.72 years | 47.06 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 47.97 years | 45.09 years | 48.73 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 46.58 years | 45.64 years | 47.89 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 51.95 years | 49.07 years | 53.25 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 43.02 years | 13.32 years | 50.34 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 56.98 years | 49 years | 63.73 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 66.98 years | 64.48 years | 68.81 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 69.37 years | 68.92 years | 69.89 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Rwanda
More population data for Rwanda
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.2755 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.2673 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -0.5502 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.2673 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.2% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 2.01 million people (2100)
- Population density 1,329 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.2% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.4596 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 2.06 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy by sex in Rwanda?
- Life expectancy by sex in Rwanda was 69.89 years in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy by sex recorded in Rwanda?
- The highest recorded value was 69.89 years in 2023.
- What is the lowest life expectancy by sex recorded in Rwanda?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.32 years in 1994.
- How does Rwanda rank for life expectancy by sex?
- Rwanda ranks 193rd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectancy by sex rising or falling in Rwanda?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Rwanda data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectancy by sex. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Period life expectancy at birth among females, in a given year.