Life Expectancy Gap Between Women and Men in 2026

2026 medium projection

Women outlive men almost everywhere, but the size of the gap varies widely. It explains why the female side of most pyramids is wider at the top.

Countries and areas: 237
Highest-ranked: Russia11.6
Rank 10: Latvia8.8
End of table: Togo0.6

Estimate or projection?

The UN series provides historical estimates through 2023. Figures from 2024 onward—including 2026—are medium-scenario projections, not counts or predictions guaranteed to occur.

Complete life expectancy gap between women and men in 2026 ranking

Select any country to inspect its full age-by-sex structure and projections.

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Life Expectancy Gap Between Women and Men in 2026
Rank	Country or area	Region	Gap (years)	Women / men
1	Russia	Europe	11.6	79.5 / 67.9
2	United States Virgin Islands	Latin America and the Caribbean	10.5	81.7 / 71.2
3	Ukraine	Europe	9.5	79.7 / 70.2
4	Belarus	Europe	9.4	79.5 / 70.1
4	Georgia	Asia	9.4	79.5 / 70.1
6	Lithuania	Europe	9.3	81.1 / 71.8
7	Vietnam	Asia	9.2	79.6 / 70.4
8	Mongolia	Asia	9.1	77.1 / 68.0
9	Moldova	Europe	8.9	75.9 / 67.0
10	Latvia	Europe	8.8	80.9 / 72.1
11	El Salvador	Latin America and the Caribbean	8.7	76.9 / 68.2
12	Saint Pierre and Miquelon	Northern America	8.6	81.9 / 73.3
13	Thailand	Asia	8.5	81.4 / 72.9
14	Kazakhstan	Asia	8.2	78.8 / 70.6
15	Curaçao	Latin America and the Caribbean	8.1	81.2 / 73.1
15	Namibia	Africa	8.1	71.8 / 63.7
17	Armenia	Asia	7.9	79.9 / 72.0
18	Estonia	Europe	7.8	83.4 / 75.6
18	Guam	Oceania	7.8	81.9 / 74.1
18	Venezuela	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.8	77.0 / 69.2
21	Micronesia	Oceania	7.7	71.6 / 63.9
22	Guyana	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.6	74.4 / 66.8
22	Sao Tome and Principe	Africa	7.6	74.3 / 66.7
24	Uruguay	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.5	82.3 / 74.8
25	Saint Kitts and Nevis	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.4	76.4 / 69.0
26	Guadeloupe	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.2	85.9 / 78.7
26	Poland	Europe	7.2	82.7 / 75.5
26	Bahamas	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.2	78.6 / 71.4
29	Kyrgyzstan	Asia	7.1	75.7 / 68.6
29	South Africa	Africa	7.1	70.2 / 63.1
29	Cook Islands	Oceania	7.1	79.5 / 72.4
32	Bulgaria	Europe	7.0	79.7 / 72.7
32	Romania	Europe	7.0	79.9 / 72.9
32	Saint Lucia	Latin America and the Caribbean	7.0	76.7 / 69.7
32	Tonga	Oceania	7.0	76.8 / 69.8
32	Tuvalu	Oceania	7.0	71.2 / 64.2
37	Puerto Rico	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.9	85.6 / 78.7
38	Saint Martin (French part)	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.8	84.2 / 77.4
39	Bermuda	Northern America	6.7	86.1 / 79.4
39	Ethiopia	Africa	6.7	71.6 / 64.9
41	Haiti	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.6	68.8 / 62.2
41	Saint Helena	Africa	6.6	81.0 / 74.4
41	Seychelles	Africa	6.6	77.0 / 70.4
44	Dominica	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.5	75.1 / 68.6
44	Dominican Republic	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.5	77.4 / 70.9
44	Malawi	Africa	6.5	71.1 / 64.6
47	Montenegro	Europe	6.4	80.7 / 74.3
47	Serbia	Europe	6.4	80.5 / 74.1
47	Slovakia	Europe	6.4	82.0 / 75.6
47	Sudan	Africa	6.4	70.2 / 63.8
47	Anguilla	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.4	83.1 / 76.7
47	Myanmar	Asia	6.4	70.8 / 64.4
47	Suriname	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.4	77.3 / 70.9
54	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Europe	6.3	81.4 / 75.1
54	Cabo Verde	Africa	6.3	79.7 / 73.4
54	Hungary	Europe	6.3	80.6 / 74.3
54	Mozambique	Africa	6.3	67.1 / 60.8
54	Trinidad and Tobago	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.3	77.1 / 70.8
59	Brazil	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.2	79.5 / 73.3
59	Martinique	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.2	86.0 / 79.8
61	Japan	Asia	6.1	88.2 / 82.1
61	Paraguay	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.1	77.4 / 71.3
61	Croatia	Europe	6.1	82.1 / 76.0
61	Mauritius	Africa	6.1	78.6 / 72.5
61	Sri Lanka	Asia	6.1	81.0 / 74.9
61	Turkmenistan	Asia	6.1	73.3 / 67.2
67	Grenada	Latin America and the Caribbean	6.0	78.8 / 72.8
67	Philippines	Asia	6.0	73.2 / 67.2
67	South Sudan	Africa	6.0	61.0 / 55.0
67	Uzbekistan	Asia	6.0	75.8 / 69.8
71	South Korea	Asia	5.9	87.5 / 81.6
71	Uganda	Africa	5.9	71.8 / 65.9
73	Eswatini	Africa	5.8	67.4 / 61.6
73	American Samoa	Oceania	5.8	76.3 / 70.5
73	Réunion	Africa	5.8	86.7 / 80.9
73	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.8	74.8 / 69.0
73	Turkey	Asia	5.8	81.3 / 75.5
78	French Guiana	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.7	80.4 / 74.7
78	Panama	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.7	83.0 / 77.3
78	Sint Maarten (Dutch part)	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.7	79.9 / 74.2
78	Taiwan	Asia	5.7	84.0 / 78.3
82	Antigua and Barbuda	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.6	80.7 / 75.1
82	Mexico	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.6	78.4 / 72.8
82	Tanzania	Africa	5.6	70.4 / 64.8
82	Azerbaijan	Asia	5.6	77.6 / 72.0
82	Belize	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.6	77.0 / 71.4
87	British Virgin Islands	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.5	80.5 / 75.0
87	Czechia	Europe	5.5	83.0 / 77.5
87	France	Europe	5.5	86.4 / 80.9
87	Lesotho	Africa	5.5	61.3 / 55.8
87	Papua New Guinea	Oceania	5.5	69.5 / 64.0
92	Niue	Oceania	5.4	73.2 / 67.8
92	Portugal	Europe	5.4	85.5 / 80.1
92	China	Asia	5.4	81.8 / 76.4
95	Colombia	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.3	80.9 / 75.6
95	Cambodia	Asia	5.3	73.7 / 68.4
95	Ecuador	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.3	80.6 / 75.3
95	Hong Kong	Asia	5.3	88.5 / 83.2
95	Saint Barthélemy	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.3	87.1 / 81.8
95	Spain	Europe	5.3	86.7 / 81.4
101	Botswana	Africa	5.2	72.2 / 67.0
101	Finland	Europe	5.2	85.0 / 79.8
101	Honduras	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.2	76.0 / 70.8
101	Slovenia	Europe	5.2	84.7 / 79.5
101	Gabon	Africa	5.2	71.6 / 66.4
106	Aruba	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.1	79.2 / 74.1
106	Bolivia	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.1	71.7 / 66.6
106	Costa Rica	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.1	83.9 / 78.8
106	Djibouti	Africa	5.1	69.2 / 64.1
106	Gibraltar	Europe	5.1	86.4 / 81.3
106	Jamaica	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.1	74.4 / 69.3
106	Nicaragua	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.1	77.9 / 72.8
106	Tunisia	Africa	5.1	79.7 / 74.6
106	Angola	Africa	5.1	67.7 / 62.6
106	Somalia	Africa	5.1	61.9 / 56.8
106	Libya	Africa	5.1	77.8 / 72.7
117	Argentina	Latin America and the Caribbean	5.0	80.3 / 75.3
117	Malaysia	Asia	5.0	79.8 / 74.8
119	Barbados	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.9	79.0 / 74.1
119	New Caledonia	Oceania	4.9	81.7 / 76.8
119	Syria	Asia	4.9	75.9 / 71.0
119	Zimbabwe	Africa	4.9	65.9 / 61.0
119	Ghana	Africa	4.9	68.6 / 63.7
119	Pakistan	Asia	4.9	70.6 / 65.7
119	Singapore	Asia	4.9	86.6 / 81.7
119	Zambia	Africa	4.9	69.3 / 64.4
127	Guinea-Bissau	Africa	4.8	66.9 / 62.1
127	Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.8	80.6 / 75.8
127	Greece	Europe	4.8	84.7 / 79.9
127	Palau	Oceania	4.8	72.2 / 67.4
127	State of Palestine	Asia	4.8	79.8 / 75.0
127	United States	Northern America	4.8	82.2 / 77.4
133	Cayman Islands	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.7	83.3 / 78.6
133	Cuba	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.7	81.0 / 76.3
133	French Polynesia	Oceania	4.7	86.9 / 82.2
133	Guatemala	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.7	75.4 / 70.7
137	Montserrat	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.6	79.2 / 74.6
137	Marshall Islands	Oceania	4.6	69.8 / 65.2
137	Peru	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.6	80.6 / 76.0
137	Tajikistan	Asia	4.6	74.5 / 69.9
137	Vanuatu	Oceania	4.6	74.5 / 69.9
142	Austria	Europe	4.5	84.7 / 80.2
142	Cameroon	Africa	4.5	66.8 / 62.3
142	Germany	Europe	4.5	84.1 / 79.6
142	Greenland	Northern America	4.5	72.9 / 68.4
142	Kenya	Africa	4.5	66.5 / 62.0
142	Laos	Asia	4.5	72.0 / 67.5
142	Rwanda	Africa	4.5	70.6 / 66.1
149	Egypt	Africa	4.4	74.4 / 70.0
149	Guernsey	Europe	4.4	85.9 / 81.5
149	North Korea	Asia	4.4	76.2 / 71.8
149	North Macedonia	Europe	4.4	80.0 / 75.6
149	Burkina Faso	Africa	4.4	63.8 / 59.4
149	Democratic Republic of the Congo	Africa	4.4	64.6 / 60.2
149	Indonesia	Asia	4.4	73.8 / 69.4
149	Jordan	Asia	4.4	80.6 / 76.2
149	Morocco	Africa	4.4	78.1 / 73.7
158	Mayotte	Africa	4.3	78.9 / 74.6
158	Yemen	Asia	4.3	71.9 / 67.6
158	Brunei	Asia	4.3	78.1 / 73.8
158	Canada	Northern America	4.3	85.2 / 80.9
158	Comoros	Africa	4.3	69.7 / 65.4
158	Eritrea	Africa	4.3	71.5 / 67.2
158	Turks and Caicos Islands	Latin America and the Caribbean	4.3	80.7 / 76.4
165	Belgium	Europe	4.2	84.7 / 80.5
165	Burundi	Africa	4.2	66.2 / 62.0
165	Fiji	Oceania	4.2	69.9 / 65.7
165	Ivory Coast	Africa	4.2	64.7 / 60.5
165	Kosovo	Europe	4.2	80.6 / 76.4
170	Israel	Asia	4.1	84.9 / 80.8
170	Mauritania	Africa	4.1	71.2 / 67.1
170	Vatican City	Europe	4.1	85.4 / 81.3
170	Central African Republic	Africa	4.1	60.1 / 56.0
170	Faroe Islands	Europe	4.1	83.0 / 78.9
170	Macao	Asia	4.1	85.6 / 81.5
170	Senegal	Africa	4.1	71.5 / 67.4
177	Isle of Man	Europe	4.0	83.4 / 79.4
177	Italy	Europe	4.0	86.1 / 82.1
177	Monaco	Europe	4.0	88.8 / 84.8
177	Tokelau	Oceania	4.0	79.3 / 75.3
177	Western Sahara	Africa	4.0	74.2 / 70.2
182	Andorra	Europe	3.9	86.5 / 82.6
182	Falkland Islands (Malvinas)	Latin America and the Caribbean	3.9	81.7 / 77.8
182	Ireland	Europe	3.9	84.9 / 81.0
182	Saudi Arabia	Asia	3.9	81.7 / 77.8
182	Chad	Africa	3.9	57.6 / 53.7
182	Cyprus	Asia	3.9	84.1 / 80.2
182	Jersey	Europe	3.9	82.1 / 78.2
182	Lebanon	Asia	3.9	80.1 / 76.2
182	Nauru	Oceania	3.9	64.6 / 60.7
182	Samoa	Oceania	3.9	74.1 / 70.2
192	Iran	Asia	3.8	80.2 / 76.4
193	Bhutan	Asia	3.7	75.8 / 72.1
193	Iraq	Asia	3.7	74.4 / 70.7
193	Switzerland	Europe	3.7	86.2 / 82.5
193	Equatorial Guinea	Africa	3.7	66.3 / 62.6
193	Kiribati	Oceania	3.7	68.6 / 64.9
193	Malta	Europe	3.7	85.6 / 81.9
193	United Kingdom	Europe	3.7	83.6 / 79.9
200	Albania	Europe	3.6	81.9 / 78.3
200	Denmark	Europe	3.6	84.2 / 80.6
200	Chile	Latin America and the Caribbean	3.6	83.5 / 79.9
200	Madagascar	Africa	3.6	66.1 / 62.5
204	Australia	Oceania	3.5	86.1 / 82.6
204	Gambia	Africa	3.5	68.2 / 64.7
204	Northern Mariana Islands	Oceania	3.5	81.1 / 77.6
204	Republic of the Congo	Africa	3.5	68.2 / 64.7
204	Sweden	Europe	3.5	85.5 / 82.0
204	Sierra Leone	Africa	3.5	64.1 / 60.6
210	Bangladesh	Asia	3.4	77.2 / 73.8
210	Timor-Leste	Asia	3.4	70.1 / 66.7
212	India	Asia	3.2	74.4 / 71.2
212	Oman	Asia	3.2	82.4 / 79.2
212	Liechtenstein	Europe	3.2	85.6 / 82.4
212	New Zealand	Oceania	3.2	84.1 / 80.9
216	Luxembourg	Europe	3.1	84.2 / 81.1
216	Nepal	Asia	3.1	72.7 / 69.6
216	Afghanistan	Asia	3.1	68.3 / 65.2
219	Benin	Africa	3.0	62.8 / 59.8
219	Netherlands	Europe	3.0	84.1 / 81.1
221	Norway	Europe	2.9	85.2 / 82.3
221	San Marino	Europe	2.9	87.4 / 84.5
221	Solomon Islands	Oceania	2.9	72.5 / 69.6
221	Mali	Africa	2.9	62.6 / 59.7
221	Maldives	Asia	2.9	83.3 / 80.4
226	Algeria	Africa	2.8	78.3 / 75.5
227	Iceland	Europe	2.7	84.7 / 82.0
227	Liberia	Africa	2.7	64.0 / 61.3
229	Guinea	Africa	2.5	62.4 / 59.9
229	Kuwait	Asia	2.5	82.3 / 79.8
231	Niger	Africa	2.0	62.9 / 60.9
231	United Arab Emirates	Asia	2.0	84.6 / 82.6
233	Wallis and Futuna Islands	Oceania	1.9	80.0 / 78.1
234	Qatar	Asia	1.6	83.7 / 82.1
235	Bahrain	Asia	1.2	82.4 / 81.2
236	Nigeria	Africa	0.7	55.3 / 54.6
237	Togo	Africa	0.6	63.6 / 63.0

What this ranking measures—and what it does not

Definition

Female life expectancy at birth minus male life expectancy at birth, in years, for the reference year. Life expectancy at birth is the average number of years a newborn would live if current death rates by age persisted.

Why it matters

A large gap produces a strong female majority at older ages, with consequences for widowhood, living arrangements, pensions, and care.

Read with care

Life expectancy summarises current death rates; it is not a forecast of how long a particular cohort will live. Small territories can have volatile values.

What stands out in this comparison

Russia leads with 11.6, while Latvia is at rank 10 with 8.8. At the other end of the complete table, Togo has 0.6.

Those positions describe this particular indicator, definition, and reference period. They do not imply that every country near the top has the same population pyramid or demographic path. Open the profiles to compare the underlying cohorts.

First five

Russia — rank 1, 11.6; women / men 79.5 / 67.9.
United States Virgin Islands — rank 2, 10.5; women / men 81.7 / 71.2.
Ukraine — rank 3, 9.5; women / men 79.7 / 70.2.
Belarus — rank 4, 9.4; women / men 79.5 / 70.1.
Georgia — rank 4, 9.4; women / men 79.5 / 70.1.

Other end of the table

Togo — rank 237, 0.6; women / men 63.6 / 63.0.
Nigeria — rank 236, 0.7; women / men 55.3 / 54.6.
Bahrain — rank 235, 1.2; women / men 82.4 / 81.2.
Qatar — rank 234, 1.6; women / men 83.7 / 82.1.
Wallis and Futuna Islands — rank 233, 1.9; women / men 80.0 / 78.1.

Questions about this ranking

Which country or area ranks first for gap (years)?

Russia ranks first in this comparison with 11.6. The table uses 2026 medium projection from UN World Population Prospects 2024.

Which values are estimates and which are projections?

In World Population Prospects 2024, historical estimates run through 2023 and values from 2024 onward are projections. The peak-year table labels historical and projected results separately.

Why might another source show a different rank?

Sources can use different reference dates, revisions, country definitions, estimation methods, or projection scenarios. Close ranks can also change after revisions.