Life expectancy in Jamaica
Jamaica: Life expectancy was 71.48 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Life expectancy in Jamaica, 1881–2023
Source: Riley (2005); Zijdeman et al. (2015); HMD (2025); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for life expectancy in Jamaica is 71.48 years, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 1.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy in Jamaica peaked at 72.44 years in 2013 and was at its lowest, 26.4 years, in 1918.
That places Jamaica 158th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 143 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 37.33 years | 34.2 years | 40.1 years | 9 |
| 1890s | 37.71 years | 34.3 years | 39.2 years | 10 |
| 1900s | 35.81 years | 29.5 years | 40.4 years | 10 |
| 1910s | 35.2 years | 26.4 years | 38.2 years | 10 |
| 1920s | 38.33 years | 30.7 years | 43 years | 10 |
| 1930s | 44.82 years | 41.6 years | 48.5 years | 10 |
| 1940s | 50.27 years | 47.6 years | 53.9 years | 10 |
| 1950s | 59.97 years | 56.56 years | 63.25 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 65.36 years | 63.83 years | 66.52 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 67.93 years | 66.73 years | 68.81 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 70.08 years | 68.99 years | 71.51 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 71.51 years | 71.17 years | 71.82 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 71.47 years | 71.28 years | 71.72 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 72.07 years | 71.53 years | 72.44 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 70.87 years | 69.08 years | 71.48 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
- 155 Samoa 71.7 years compare
- 156 Kyrgyzstan 71.68 years compare
- 157 Egypt 71.63 years compare
- 159 Vanuatu 71.48 years compare
- 160 Western Sahara 71.39 years compare
- 161 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 71.23 years compare
More health data for Jamaica
- Age population, age 12, male, interpolated 19,130 (2025)
- Age dependency ratio 36.7% (2025)
- Age population, age 15, female, interpolated 20,258 (2025)
- Age population, age 14, male, interpolated 20,323 (2025)
- Age population, age 14, female, interpolated 19,600 (2025)
- Age population, age 13, male, interpolated 19,671 (2025)
- Age population, age 13, female, interpolated 18,975 (2025)
- Age population, age 11, female, interpolated 18,023 (2025)
- Age population, age 10, male, interpolated 18,313 (2025)
- Age dependency ratio, old 11.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy in Jamaica?
- Life expectancy in Jamaica was 71.48 years in 2023, according to Riley (2005); Zijdeman et al. (2015); HMD (2025); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 72.44 years in 2013.
- What is the lowest life expectancy recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 26.4 years in 1918.
- How does Jamaica rank for life expectancy?
- Jamaica ranks 158th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectancy rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Jamaica data come from?
- The figures come from Riley (2005); Zijdeman et al. (2015); HMD (2025); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectancy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 143 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Period life expectancy is the number of years the average person born in a certain year would live if they experienced the same chances of dying at each age as people did that year.