Global life expectancy was 73.3 years in 2023, just a tenth of a year below the 2019 level.
COVID-19 killed about 900,000 people in 2023, compared with 9.4 million in 2021.
In low-income countries, communicable diseases caused less than half of all deaths in 2023 for the first time.
Global life expectancy in 2023 was nearly back to where it was before COVID-19. The latest Global Health Estimates from WHO show this. They describe how life expectancy, causes of death and disease burden changed in the world's countries and regions between 2000 and 2023. Countries use the figures to track how public health is changing and to see where action is needed.
Recovery in two years
Global life expectancy was 73.3 years in 2023. That is just a tenth of a year shorter than in 2019, when it was 73.4 years. During the pandemic, it fell to 71.5 years in 2021. So in two years, it rose by 1.8 years.
Healthy life expectancy, the number of years people live in good health, was also close to its pre-pandemic level. It was 62.8 years in 2023, which is 0.4 years below 2019.
Alain Labrique is Director of WHO's Department of Data, Digital Health, Analytics and AI. He says that living longer is one of the great achievements of public health.
This matches the findings of the Global Burden of Disease research project. According to its figures, life expectancy in 2023 was above the pre-pandemic level in nearly two-thirds of the world's countries, something we have written about before.
COVID-19 drops out of the top ten
COVID-19 directly caused 5.3 million deaths in 2020 and 9.4 million in 2021. That year, COVID-19 was the world's leading cause of death. In 2023, about 900,000 people died of the disease. COVID-19 then ranked fourteenth and fell out of the top ten causes of death for the first time since the pandemic began. In upper-middle-income countries, COVID-19 deaths were 85 percent lower in 2023 than at the peak in 2021.
Fewer deaths from several infections
In total, 61 million people died worldwide in 2023. Noncommunicable diseases, such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes, accounted for 74 percent of deaths. In 2000, the share was 58 percent. Eight of the ten leading causes of death in 2023 were noncommunicable.
At the same time, fewer and fewer people are dying of several communicable diseases. Deaths from HIV and AIDS have fallen by 62 percent since 2000. The disease was the world's seventh leading cause of death in 2000 and ranked 22nd in 2023. Deaths from preterm birth complications fell by 30 percent between 2000 and 2021.
Low-income countries cross a threshold
In low-income countries, communicable diseases accounted for less than half of all deaths in 2023. According to WHO, this is the first time that has happened.
Malaria, tuberculosis and HIV are still among the ten leading causes of death in these countries. But deaths from all three have fallen sharply, according to WHO's fact sheet on the leading causes of death. Diarrheal diseases were the leading cause of death in low-income countries in 2000. In 2023, they ranked fifth, and the number of deaths had roughly halved.
In lower-middle-income countries, deaths from tuberculosis and diarrheal diseases have more than halved since 2000. Deaths from HIV and AIDS have fallen by about 70 percent. The disease has dropped from sixth to twentieth place among causes of death.
Fewer heart deaths in rich countries
In high-income countries, deaths from ischemic heart disease have fallen by 18 percent since 2000. Deaths from stroke have fallen by 26 percent and deaths from stomach cancer by 27 percent.
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