Health and life expectancies: Scotland

Life expectancy (LE)

For the full report on the latest estimates, please visit the Life expectancy page on the NRS website.

• Life expectancy increased from the early 1980s until 2010s, since this time estimates have plateaued and have fallen each year since 2018-2020 (see NRS website  or ScotPHO pages on stalling mortality trends for additional detail)
• Life expectancy in Scotland was 76.5 years for males and 80.7 years for females in 2020-2022, these figures are provisional and will be updated following publication of 2022 Census populations.

Healthy life expectancy (HLE)

For the full report on the latest estimates, please visit the Healthy life expectancy page on the NRS website. Note 2020-2022 HLE estimates will be published after the release of 2022 Census population and self-assessed health data. 

• The 2019/21 healthy life expectancy (HLE) at birth is 60.4 years for males and 61.1 years for females.
• In the last few years healthy life expectancy has decreased for both males and females. It is now lower in 2019-2021 than it was in 2009-2011 for both males and females.

Disability-free life expectancy (DFLE)

Disability-free life expectancy (DFLE) estimates the average number of years lived without limiting long-term illness or disability. These estimates are published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). For the latest estimates, please visit the Health state life expectancies page on the ONS website.

• DFLE at birth in Scotland for males born between 2018-2020 was 60.3 years. This was 1.1 years lower than the DFLE estimate for males born between 2015-2017 (61.4 years).
• DFLE at birth in Scotland for females born between 2018-2020 was 59.5 years. This was 1.7 years lower than the DFLE estimate for females born between 2015-2017 (61.2 years).
• On average, males and females born between 2018-2020 in Scotland live with limiting long-term illness or disability for significantly longer, compared to those born between 2015-2017.

Comparison of LE, HLE and DFLE for males and females

• LE and HLE are both higher in females compared to males, the opposite is true for DFLE where males have higher DLFE than females.
• The difference between female and male LE at birth has reduced gradually over time, for the period 2019-2021 it is 4.3 years higher for females compared to males. 
• The difference between female and male HLE at birth is smaller, 0.7 years for the period 2019-2021.
• Differences in LE and HLE suggest that on average females are expected to live longer on in ‘not healthy’ condition compared to males. On average females also live longer with limiting long term illness or disability.

Age specific estimates

LE, HLE and DFLE can be estimated for people at various ages, not just at birth. Age specific LE, HLE and DFLE measures can be used to assess whether improvements in the length of life are also comparable to extra years lives in ‘good’ health or without a long-term illness that limits daily activities.

• ONS estimates based on 2016-2018 data, suggest an average man aged 65 in Scotland could expect to live a further 17.6 years, 9.9 of them in ‘healthy’ health and 9.4 without long-term illness that limits daily activities. An average 65-year-old woman could expect to live a further 19.8 years, 10.8 of them in ‘healthy’ health and 9.5 years without long-term illness that limits daily activities. [March 2023: more recent data has not yet been published].

Further information

LE and HLE can be estimated for people at various ages, not just at birth. These show that, for example, an average man aged 65 could expect to live a further 17.5 years, 9.9 of them in ‘healthy’ health. An average 65-year-old woman could expect to live a further 19.8 years, 10.7 of them in ‘healthy’ health.