Share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America

United States of America: Share of low birthweight babies born was 8.26 in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
8.26
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
102nd
of 157 countries
All-time high
8.26
in 2020
All-time low
7.85
in 2000
Years of data
21
2000–2020

Share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America, 2000–2020

024682000201020202000: 7.92001: 7.92002: 7.92003: 7.92004: 7.92005: 82006: 82007: 82008: 8.12009: 8.12010: 8.12011: 8.12012: 8.22013: 8.22014: 8.22015: 8.22016: 8.22017: 8.22018: 8.22019: 8.22020: 8.3

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2020, share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America stood at 8.26. That is the highest value across all 21 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America peaked at 8.26 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 7.85, in 2000.

United States of America ranks 102nd of 157 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.

Share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America, year by year

Annual values for Share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America, 2000 to 2020.
Year Value Change
2000 7.85
2001 7.87 +0.2%
2002 7.89 +0.3%
2003 7.92 +0.3%
2004 7.94 +0.3%
2005 7.96 +0.3%
2006 7.99 +0.4%
2007 8.02 +0.4%
2008 8.06 +0.4%
2009 8.09 +0.4%
2010 8.12 +0.3%
2011 8.14 +0.3%
2012 8.15 +0.2%
2013 8.17 +0.2%
2014 8.18 +0.1%
2015 8.18 +0.1%
2016 8.19 +0.1%
2017 8.2 +0.1%
2018 8.22 +0.2%
2019 8.24 +0.2%
2020 8.26 +0.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 7.96 7.85 8.09 10
2010s 8.18 8.12 8.24 10
2020s 8.26 8.26 8.26 1

Countries ranked near United States of America

  1. 99 Hungary 8.32 compare
  2. 100 North Macedonia 8.29 compare
  3. 101 Armenia 8.27 compare
  4. 103 Tunisia 8.24 compare
  5. 104 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 7.93 compare
  6. 105 Slovakia 7.82 compare

See the full ranking of 157 places →

More population data for United States of America

All data for United States of America →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America?
Share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America was 8.26 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of low birthweight babies born recorded in United States of America?
The highest recorded value was 8.26 in 2020.
What is the lowest share of low birthweight babies born recorded in United States of America?
The lowest recorded value was 7.85 in 2000.
How does United States of America rank for share of low birthweight babies born?
United States of America ranks 102nd out of 157 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of low birthweight babies born rising or falling in United States of America?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United States of America data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share of low birthweight babies born. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of low birthweight babies born in United States of America. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 26 August 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-low-birthweight-babies-born/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of low birthweight babies born
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
157 places, 3,297 data points, 2000–2020
Last refreshed