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Home / Health / Articles / Do women live longer than men in the US?

In the United States, men’s lives are an average of 5.8 years shorter than women’s, according to 2021 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This difference in life expectancy is called the longevity gap, and it’s increased from a two-year gap in 1900 to a gap of nearly six years in 2021.

Life expectancy refers to the average number of years a person can expect to live, based on their birth year, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The Social Security Administration has a calculator that forecasts how much longer a person can expect to live based on their birth year and gender.

What is the average lifespan for men versus women?

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Men born in the United States in 2021 were expected to live, on average, to age 73.5. Meanwhile, women born in 2021 were expected to live 5.8 years longer to an average age of 79.3.

The lifespans for both genders had been rising for decades — in 1900, the average life expectancy for men was 46.3 and 48.3 for women. Life expectancy for both genders recently peaked in 2019, when men were expected to live to age 76.3, on average, and women to age 81.4. COVID-19 then became a leading cause of death, contributing to men losing 2.8 years and women losing 2.1 years from their average lifespans by 2021.

What are the nation’s leading causes of death?

Heart disease, cancer, and COVID-19 were the three leading causes of death for both men and women in 2021. However, they impacted men at higher rates than women: 940,166 men died from the top three causes of death in 2021 — 162,679 more than women who died from the same causes.

While many of the top 15 causes of death for men and women are the same, each top cause occurs at a higher rate in men than women.

Leading cause of death in men

Beyond the top three causes of death, accidents (149,602 deaths), stroke (70,852), and chronic lower respiratory diseases (67,528) were the most common causes of death for men in 2021.

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Leading cause of death in women

For women, stroke was the fourth-most common cause of death (92,038 deaths), Alzheimer’s disease was fifth (82,424), and accidents were sixth (75,333).

What is the leading cause of death for women?

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While most causes of death are the same for each gender but occurring at different rates, some are unique. Hypertension and nutritional deficiencies account for two of the top 15 causes of death for women, but neither appears in the top 15 causes for men. Meanwhile, homicide and suicide are among the top 15 causes of death for men, but not for women.

See the data: leading causes of death

Top 15 leading causes of death for males by total deaths, 2021
Cause of death Deaths
Heart disease 384,886
Cancer 318,670
COVID-19 236,610
Accidents (unintentional injuries) 149,602
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases) 70,852
Chronic lower respiratory diseases 67,528
Diabetes 58,628
Suicide 38,358
Alzheimer's disease 36,975
Chronic liver disease 35,707
Kidney disease 28,589
Parkinson's disease 23,567
Influenza and Pneumonia 22,373
Homicide 21,084
Septicemia 20,529
Top 15 leading causes of death for females by total deaths, 2021
Cause of death Deaths
Heart disease 310,661
Cancer 286,543
COVID-19 180,283
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases) 92,038
Alzheimer's disease 82,424
Accidents (unintentional injuries) 75,333
Chronic lower respiratory diseases 74,814
Diabetes 44,666
Kidney disease 25,769
Hypertension 22,730
Chronic liver disease 20,878
Septicemia 20,752
Influenza and Pneumonia 19,544
Parkinson's disease 14,969
Nutritional deficiencies 10,900

Where this data came from

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics collects population data on life expectancy categorized by gender and race. The trend tables also track numerous other health data, from fertility and birth rates, to how frequently health care services are used or offices frequented over time.

Learn more about how the government defines "life expectancy," how it varies by state, and the recent drop in life expectancy, and get the data directly in your inbox by signing up for our email newsletter.

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