New mortality data suggests that life expectancy in the United States likely reached another record high in 2025, as death rates have continued to decline since the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, reports BritPanorama.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were approximately 689 deaths for every 100,000 people in 2025, marking the lowest rate recorded in over a century. This age-adjusted rate has decreased by 22% since 2021, and is about 4% lower than the figures reported just prior to the pandemic in 2019.
While the complete mortality report is provisional and subject to future revisions, experts anticipate that a record-low death rate would indicate a corresponding record-high life expectancy. Life expectancy serves as a snapshot of death rates within a specific year.
The leading causes of death in the US in 2025 followed established trends, with heart disease accounting for nearly 695,000 deaths and cancer resulting in almost 623,000 fatalities. Unintentional injuries, including drug overdoses, ranked as the third leading cause of death. Preliminary data indicates that around 70,000 people died from overdoses in 2025, yet experts believe that significant reductions in overdose deaths contributed to the overall decrease in the age-adjusted death rate.
Mark Mather, an associate vice president at the Population Reference Bureau, remarked, “Life expectancy is going to be affected a lot by what’s happening at younger age groups more than at older age groups. As we see a dramatic decline in drug overdose among younger adults, that will have a more measurable impact on life expectancy at older ages and the overall life expectancy of the population.”
A focus on longevity
A growing longevity movement, particularly among higher socioeconomic groups, seeks to utilize advancements in artificial intelligence, supplements, and medical treatments to maximize lifespan. Nevertheless, research suggests that adopting basic habits can significantly contribute to a longer, healthier life, helping to prevent leading causes of death.
“I have a mom who’s up there in years, and the advice I give her is to keep walking,” said Mather. “Mobility is a pretty strong indicator of life expectancy and health in old age.” Staying physically active encourages social connections that are crucial to maintaining biological youth.
Mather elaborated, “These kinds of social connections get under your skin and affect how your body is aging, basically at the cellular level, which is tied into all of these other major causes of death.” A 2023 study found that getting seven to nine hours of sleep each night was associated with improved longevity outcomes by 18%, while a plant-based diet heightened longevity odds by 21%. Daily stress management and positive social interactions also correlated with further improvements.
However, Dr. Steven Woolf, director emeritus from the Virginia Commonwealth University Center of Society and Health, cautioned that individual efforts to enhance longevity are limited without broader societal and policy support. He stated, “A lot of the reasons why Americans die at higher rates from these diseases than people in other countries is the conditions they’re living in, and those are shaped by public policy.” Policies greatly influence the health threats that different demographics encounter and their access to improvement resources, contributing to disparities in death rates particularly among racial and ethnic groups.
According to the latest data, death rates among Black and American Indian populations exceed those of Asian individuals by more than twice.
More progress to be made
For Woolf, a record-high life expectancy in the US would be “encouraging” but not entirely satisfactory. He emphasized that “the systemic issues affecting the health of Americans are still claiming lives.”
Woolf noted that while advancements in public health and medicine have contributed to declining death rates in the US and other affluent countries over the past century, the mortality rate plateaued around 2010 in the US while continuing to drop in peer nations. He remarked, “We saw an alarming increase in deaths from young and middle-aged Americans that was not experienced in other high-income countries, and that basically offset the progress that was being made in lowering death rates for older Americans.”
The 2025 CDC report indicates that death rates have decreased across all age groups compared to 2024, though the smallest decline was among those aged 45 to 54. Woolf added, “Children are less likely to survive to adulthood, and young adults are less likely to reach middle age than they were in the past.” Although declines in overdose deaths may contribute positively, challenges such as fatalities from firearms, suicide, alcohol-related diseases, diabetes, and heart disease persist among these demographics.
The report also highlights striking disparities between men and women, revealing an age-adjusted mortality rate of 811 deaths per 100,000 men compared to 583 per 100,000 women. While genetics influence some of this difference, Mather suggested that risk-taking behaviors among younger men could further elevate mortality rates.
Experts agree that minimizing risk and maintaining healthier lifestyles not only enhances longevity but also improves the quality of life. “Mortality rates are a good starting point for getting a snapshot of what our health situation looks like,” Woolf stated, adding, “I’ll hasten to emphasize that there’s more to health than mortality. It’s not just how long we live, it’s the quality of our life.”
