What is median age in Sierra Leone?

Median age in Sierra Leone was 19.27 years in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest median age recorded in Sierra Leone?

The highest recorded value was 20.06 years in 1960.

What is the lowest median age recorded in Sierra Leone?

The lowest recorded value was 16.82 years in 2003.

How does Sierra Leone rank for median age?

Sierra Leone ranks 200th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.

Is median age rising or falling in Sierra Leone?

Over the last ten years it is up 10.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?

The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Median age. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Median age in Sierra Leone

Name: Median age in Sierra Leone
Creator: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Sierra Leone: Median age was 19.27 years in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)

19.27 years

Change on year

up 1.2%

World rank

200th

of 236 countries

All-time high

20.06 years

in 1960

All-time low

16.82 years

in 2003

Years of data

1950–2023

Median age in Sierra Leone, 1950–2023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.

Analysis

Sierra Leone recorded 19.27 years for median age in 2023.

That represents a change of up 1.2% on the previous year and up 10.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, median age in Sierra Leone peaked at 20.06 years in 1960 and was at its lowest, 16.82 years, in 2003.

Sierra Leone ranks 200th of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1950s	19.81 years	19.4 years	20.05 years	10
1960s	19.88 years	19.57 years	20.06 years	10
1970s	18.71 years	18.16 years	19.37 years	10
1980s	17.76 years	17.48 years	18.07 years	10
1990s	17.18 years	16.93 years	17.43 years	10
2000s	16.9 years	16.82 years	17.05 years	10
2010s	17.66 years	17.11 years	18.4 years	10
2020s	18.93 years	18.61 years	19.27 years	4

Countries ranked near Sierra Leone

197 Palestine 19.76 years compare
198 Kenya 19.53 years compare
199 Rwanda 19.44 years compare
201 Senegal 19.13 years compare
202 Sao Tome and Principe 19.05 years compare
203 Guinea-Bissau 18.94 years compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Sierra Leone

Number of child deaths per woman 0.3376 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 3.79 live births per woman (2023)
Fertility rate: births per woman 3.79 live births per woman (2023)
Fertility rate: births per woman 3.79 live births per woman (2023)
Human Development Index 0.467 (2023)
Rule of Law - Governance estimate -0.8386 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
Rule of Law - Governance score 42.53 0-100 (2024)
Voice and Accountability - Governance score 47.87 0-100 (2024)
Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate -0.5129 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
Political Stability - Governance estimate -0.4502 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)

All data for Sierra Leone →

Frequently asked questions

What is median age in Sierra Leone?: Median age in Sierra Leone was 19.27 years in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest median age recorded in Sierra Leone?: The highest recorded value was 20.06 years in 1960.
What is the lowest median age recorded in Sierra Leone?: The lowest recorded value was 16.82 years in 2003.
How does Sierra Leone rank for median age?: Sierra Leone ranks 200th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is median age rising or falling in Sierra Leone?: Over the last ten years it is up 10.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?: The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Median age. 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

Indicator: Median age
Unit: years
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed: 06 August 2026

The age that divides the population into two halves of equal size — half are younger and half are older.