In 2025, the average life expectancy at birth in Germany reached 83.6 years for women and 79.1 years for men, according to data released by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Tuesday. Both genders achieved new record highs, with women seeing an increase of nearly two months and men seeing an increase of approximately three months compared to the previous year.
Compared to 2022, the values for both men and women show a significant recovery following the downturns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Women have statistically gained about nine months since that time, while men have gained over a year-nearly 13 months.
Life expectancy also improved for older individuals. Compared to 2024 figures, women gained roughly one additional month, and men gained about two additional months. Consequently, in 2025, the remaining life expectancy for women aged 65 was 21.2 years, and for men aged 65, it was statistically 18.2 additional years. This translates to an average reachable life expectancy of 86.2 years for women and 83.2 years for men. Notably, men also achieved a new highest average reachable age in this demographic group in 2025. It is worth noting that the remaining life expectancy for women aged 65 was slightly higher before the COVID pandemic began (21.3 years, corresponding to an average reachable age of 86.3 years in 2019).
When looking at the life expectancy across the federal states over three-year periods, Baden-Württemberg registered the highest life expectancy at birth for both women (84.4 years) and men (80.3 years) in the current period (2023/2025). Baden-Württemberg has maintained this status as the state with the highest life expectancy for some time. Conversely, the lowest values are recorded by women in Saarland (82.0 years), and men in Saxony-Anhalt (76.4 years). The largest gender difference in life expectancy favoring women is found in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, with a margin of over six years. The smallest difference, at just over four years, is observed in Baden-Württemberg and Saarland.
