The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) consistently has the highest life expectancy for both males and females, followed closely by Victoria and Western Australia, while the Northern Territory has the lowest. For the most recent 2021-2023 data, ACT males lived to 81.7 years, and ACT/Western Australia females lived to 85.7 years, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The Australian Capital Territory has the highest life expectancy for men at 82 years, and women at 85.8 years. The Northern Territory has the lowest life expectancy for both men (77 years) and women (80.7 years ). Find out more about Australian life expectancy at https://brnw.ch/21wXnjq.
States with high Life expectancy
According to the SRS-Based Abridged Life Tables (2019–2021) by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India, Kerala and the National Capital Territory of Delhi recorded the highest life expectancy, at 75.3 years.
Australia's top three causes of death are consistently Dementia (including Alzheimer's disease), Ischaemic Heart Disease, and Chronic Lower Respiratory Diseases, though their exact order and numbers shift slightly year to year, with dementia often leading for females and heart disease for males, and lung cancer and cerebrovascular diseases also prominent in the top five.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the life expectancy median for males born in 2022 was 81 years and for females, 85 years.
Certain lifestyle habits can negatively affect your physical and mental health, shortening your potential lifespan.
For example, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) groups people into population age cohorts, and differentiates between '15–64', '65 years and over' and '85 years and over'. People over 65 are generally classified as 'older' for ABS purposes.
Most deaths in Australia, like other developed countries, occur among older people (Figure 2.1). Sixty-eight per cent of deaths registered in Australia in 2023 were among people aged 75 or over (63% for males and 74% for females). The median age at death was 79.6 years for males and 84.6 years for females (Table S2.
Dementia is one of the most feared conditions among Australian health service consumers, second only to cancer.
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In 2021, Hawaii had the highest life expectancy at 79.9 years. Conversely, Mississippi had the lowest life expectancy at 70.9 years. Use the arrow keys ↑ ↓ ← → to navigate through the map regions.
The top 10 healthiest countries in the world
Top 10 Countries with the Highest Life Expectancy
Top 10 places to retire in Australia
The odds of living to 80 in Australia are very high, with life expectancy around 81 for males and 85 for females, meaning many people will pass 80, and data from the early 2020s shows around half of men will reach 80, while women generally exceed it, with recent statistics indicating about 30% of men (and more women) reach their 90s, showing strong longevity trends for older Australians.
Dementia has overtaken heart disease as the leading cause of death across Australia, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). There were more than 17,500 deaths from dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, in 2024 — making it the cause of 9.4 per cent of deaths nationwide.
Medical conditions that still remain incurable
No, Australia is not 90% white; while a large majority identify with European ancestry (around 76-80% in recent years), a significant and growing portion identifies as Asian, African, Middle Eastern, or Indigenous, making it a highly multicultural nation with diverse ethnic backgrounds, not overwhelmingly white. Recent census data shows European ancestry (English, Irish, etc.) makes up a large chunk, but Asian ancestries are also substantial, with over 17% Asian population and around 3.8% identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, per the 2021 census data from Wikipedia.
The most significant finding overall was that diets better aligned with current Australian Dietary Guidelines or with a Mediterranean-style diet had a 40 per cent lower risk of death compared to those with poorer diets; however, specific links between diet type and cardiovascular disease (CVD) and dementia were less ...
Everyone's genetics and lifestyles are vastly different, and those factors also play a role in determining a person's overall health. However, according to a Finnish study on the impact of chronic stress on life expectancy, stress can reduce a person's lifespan by about 2.8 years.
The average retirement age in Australia is around 57, being 59 ½ for men and 54 ½ for women. However, the age that people intend on retiring differs significantly, being age 65 ½. But while these might be the ages that Australians retire, what is the official retirement age in Australia? The truth is, there isn't one!
Science has determined the two ages when you're going to start feeling older to be 44 and 60.
Turning 60 in Australia primarily unlocks access to your superannuation (often tax-free if conditions met) and can make you eligible for a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC) for health cost help, but the Age Pension itself isn't available until age 67, though you might use super to ease into retirement with a Transition to Retirement pension.
“Most studies suggest that people who retire between the ages of 64 and 66 often strike a balance between good physical health and having the freedom to enjoy retirement,” she says. “This period generally comes before the sharp rise in health issues which people see in their late 70s.