U.S. life expectancy reached new high in 2024: Here are the leading causes of death

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FILE - Life expectancy in the U.S. rose to its highest in American history in 2024 (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Life expectancy in the U.S. rose to its highest in American history in 2024 as the COVID-19 pandemic dissipated and lower death rates were reported for all the nation’s top killers, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report found. 

Life expectancy in the U.S. was 79 years in 2024, up from 78.4 in 2023. The overall death rate was down 3.8% year-over-year. 

What they're saying:

"It’s pretty much good news all the way around, Robert Anderson, of the National Center for Health Statistics at the CDC, said. 

What is U.S. life expectancy? 

The backstory:

Life expectancy, a fundamental measure of a population’s health, is an estimate of the average number of years a baby born in a given year might expect to live, given death rates at that time.

RELATED: US population growth slowest since COVID-19 pandemic

U.S. life expectancy rose at least a little bit almost every year, thanks to medical advances and public health measures. It peaked in 2014, just shy of 79 years.

It was relatively flat for several years before plunging as the COVID-19 pandemic killed more than 1.2 million Americans. In 2021, life expectancy fell to just under 76 1/2 years, but it’s been going up ever since. 

For women, life expectancy increased from 81.1 in 2023 to 81.4 in 2024, the CDC report found. For men, life expectancy increased from 75.8 in 2023 to 76.5 in 2024. In 2024, the difference in life expectancy between females and males was 4.9 years. 

Fewer drug overdoses

Dig deeper:

The new numbers show notable improvement in the drug overdose epidemic, Andrew Stokes, a researcher at Boston University, told The Associated Press. Deaths from unintentional injuries, including overdoses, fell the most, dropping more than 14% in 2024. 

RELATED: Nearly 90% of US adults show signs of heart-related syndrome, study finds

Still, the U.S. ranks below dozens of other countries when it comes to drug overdose deaths. 

"There’s a lot more to be done," Stokes said.

Leading causes of death

By the numbers:

Roughly 3.07 million U.S. residents died in 2024, about 18,000 fewer than the year before. Death rates declined across all racial and ethnic groups, and in both men and women.

Heart disease remained the nation’s No. 1 cause of death, but the rate dropped by about 3% for the second year in a row. A combination of factors are likely at play, including advances in medical treatments and weight management, experts say. 

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COVID-19 dropped out of the top 10 in 2024. A few years ago it was the nation’s third leading cause of death. COVID-19’s fall meant suicide moved into the top 10, even though suicides in 2024 declined. Homicides fell that year, too, this week’s report said.

What's next:

Deaths statistics for 2025 are not finalized, but preliminary data suggest around 3.05 million deaths have been recorded. That number may grow as more death certificates are rounded up and analyzed, but experts predict last year will end up at least a slight improvement over 2024.