What is the average lifespan in the Netherlands?
In 2020, Dutch men had an average life expectancy at birth of 79.7 years. For women, this was 83.1 years. These ages were still 70.3 and 72.6 years in 1950. In 1961/65, life expectancy had already climbed to 71.2 years for men and 75.9 years for women.
Women’s life expectancy spiked from the 1950s onwards. Women gained 6.6 years between 1950 and 1980, men no more than 2.2 years. In the 1960s, male life expectancy even dropped. Since the 1980s, however, life expectancy for men started rising more rapidly than for women. The reason: the lifestyle gap between men and women has grown smaller. For example, significantly more women started smoking in the 1970s and 1980s. This affects women’s life expectancy for several decades.
Life expectancy declined in 2020 owing to the coronavirus pandemic. Dutch men gained 0.8 years in life expectancy compared to 2019. For Dutch women, this was 0.5 years. The decline brought life expectancy back to the 2015 level.
| Men | Women | |
|---|---|---|
| 1950-1960 | 1.1 | 2.7 |
| 1960-1970 | -0.7 | 1.1 |
| 1970-1980 | 1.7 | 2.7 |
| 1980-1990 | 1.3 | 0.9 |
| 1990-2000 | 1.7 | 0.5 |
| 2000-2010 | 3.3 | 2.1 |
| 2010-2020 | 0.9 | 0.4 |
Climb continues, though with fluctuations
It is not unusual to observe fluctuations in life expectancy gains. Improved hygiene and medical care (e.g. antibiotics) as well as the growth in prosperity boosted life expectancy throughout the 19th and 20th century. Some periods saw faster growth than others. In the 20th century, smoking was the main cause of slower gains in life expectancy; first among men, later among women. Mortality due to cardiovascular diseases, for example, has been reduced with the aid of modern medical technology and prevention (e.g. smoking bans in public places).
| Men | Women | |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 70.4 | 72.7 |
| 1951 | 70.4 | 72.8 |
| 1952 | 71.1 | 73.4 |
| 1953 | 70.5 | 73.1 |
| 1954 | 71.1 | 73.9 |
| 1955 | 71.1 | 74.2 |
| 1956 | 71.1 | 74.2 |
| 1957 | 71.5 | 74.7 |
| 1958 | 71.6 | 74.9 |
| 1959 | 71.3 | 75.2 |
| 1960 | 71.5 | 75.4 |
| 1961 | 71.6 | 75.9 |
| 1962 | 71.1 | 75.7 |
| 1963 | 71.0 | 75.8 |
| 1964 | 71.3 | 76.3 |
| 1965 | 71.1 | 76.1 |
| 1966 | 71.0 | 76.1 |
| 1967 | 71.2 | 76.6 |
| 1968 | 70.9 | 76.4 |
| 1969 | 70.9 | 76.3 |
| 1970 | 70.8 | 76.5 |
| 1971 | 71.0 | 76.8 |
| 1972 | 70.8 | 76.8 |
| 1973 | 71.3 | 77.1 |
| 1974 | 71.6 | 77.6 |
| 1975 | 71.5 | 77.7 |
| 1976 | 71.5 | 77.9 |
| 1977 | 72.1 | 78.5 |
| 1978 | 72.0 | 78.5 |
| 1979 | 72.5 | 78.9 |
| 1980 | 72.5 | 79.2 |
| 1981 | 72.7 | 79.3 |
| 1982 | 72.7 | 79.4 |
| 1983 | 72.9 | 79.6 |
| 1984 | 73.0 | 79.7 |
| 1985 | 73.1 | 79.7 |
| 1986 | 73.1 | 79.6 |
| 1987 | 73.5 | 80.1 |
| 1988 | 73.7 | 80.2 |
| 1989 | 73.7 | 79.9 |
| 1990 | 73.8 | 80.1 |
| 1991 | 74.1 | 80.2 |
| 1992 | 74.3 | 80.3 |
| 1993 | 74.0 | 80.0 |
| 1994 | 74.6 | 80.3 |
| 1995 | 74.6 | 80.4 |
| 1996 | 74.7 | 80.4 |
| 1997 | 75.2 | 80.6 |
| 1998 | 75.2 | 80.7 |
| 1999 | 75.3 | 80.5 |
| 2000 | 75.5 | 80.6 |
| 2001 | 75.8 | 80.7 |
| 2002 | 76.0 | 80.7 |
| 2003 | 76.2 | 80.9 |
| 2004 | 76.9 | 81.4 |
| 2005 | 77.2 | 81.6 |
| 2006 | 77.6 | 81.9 |
| 2007 | 78.0 | 82.3 |
| 2008 | 78.3 | 82.3 |
| 2009 | 78.5 | 82.7 |
| 2010 | 78.8 | 82.7 |
| 2011 | 79.2 | 82.9 |
| 2012 | 79.1 | 82.8 |
| 2013 | 79.4 | 83 |
| 2014 | 79.9 | 83.3 |
| 2015 | 79.7 | 83.1 |
| 2016 | 79.9 | 83.1 |
| 2017 | 80.1 | 83.3 |
| 2018 | 80.2 | 83.3 |
| 2019 | 80.5 | 83.6 |
| 2020 | 79.7 | 83.1 |
The questions
- How does CBS collect data?
- How much do we cycle per week on average?
- Who are most likely to work part-time?
- How many people visited Bonaire by cruise ship?
- Are people happy with the house they live in?
- How many young women encounter street harassment?
- What do the over-65s do online?
- How many wind turbines in the Netherlands?
- How far is school by bike?
- How many museums are there?
- How much electricity in the Caribbean Netherlands is renewable?
- How many adults are overweight?
- How many cargo ships dock at Dutch seaports?
- What did we listen to on the radio in 1953?
- What is the average lifespan in the Netherlands?
- Where did we go for a holiday in 1947?
- How much fish is landed?
- Where were people in the Netherlands born?
- What do we spend money on?
- How old are Dutch first-time mothers on average?
- How much cheese do we produce?
- How are goods transported through the Netherlands?
- How many people fall victim to cybercrime?
- What is the most spoken language or dialect at home?
- How many shops are there?
- What is the value of Dutch beer exports?
- How often do we have a goosebump moment?
- How many cows graze in fields?
- What are the most popular majors?
- How tall are Dutch people?
- How is the urban bird population doing?
- Where do most people work?
- What colour is our car?
- How does CBS handle your privacy?