What are life expectancy tables used for?

Life expectancy tables help retirees and financial planners estimate how long retirement savings need to last, calculate required minimum distributions (RMDs), and determine appropriate annuity payout rates. Insurance companies also use actuarial tables to set SPIA payout rates.

What is the average life expectancy at age 65?

According to the Social Security Administration's 2026 Period Life Table, a 65-year-old male has an average life expectancy of approximately 83 years; a 65-year-old female has an average life expectancy of approximately 86 years. One in four 65-year-olds will live past age 90.

What is the IRS single life expectancy table?

The IRS Single Life Expectancy Table is used to calculate required minimum distributions (RMDs) from inherited IRAs. It lists the distribution period for each age from 0 to 111. The table was updated in 2022 to reflect longer life expectancies.

How does life expectancy affect annuity income?

The longer your expected lifespan, the lower your initial monthly payment from a SPIA, because the insurance company expects to pay you for more years. A 65-year-old receives less per month than a 75-year-old who purchases the same amount of annuity income.

What is the difference between period and cohort life expectancy tables?

Period life expectancy tables reflect mortality rates in a single year, while cohort tables project future mortality improvements for people born in a specific year. Cohort tables generally show higher life expectancies because they account for expected medical advances.

Life Expectancy Tables By Age (2026)

Social Security Life Expectancy Tables

Life Expectancy Tables provide an estimate of your life expectancy, or an estimate of how many remaining years you have left to live.

Life expectancy, also referred to as longevity, is a critical component to consider when developing a retirement income plan. Longevity is one of the 5 Key Risks everyone experiences in retirement. Below you will find the current Annuity Life Expectancy Tables that may prove helpful when completing a retirement income plan.

In addition, the Social Security Administration has a life expectancy calculator on their website, ssa.gov, that provides the average number of additional years a person can expect to live, based only on the gender and date of birth you enter.

Many retirement experts, including Dr. Wade Pfau, suggest longevity is the most important risk in retirement because it can amplify all other risks.

The longer you live, the more opportunities to be impacted by:

Inflation Risk
The sequence of Returns Risk
Market Volatility

A recent actuarial study showed that Americans with 2012 as the year of birth 2012 born in the USA are expected to reach the age of 78.8 years – a record high.

That was an increase of 0.1 years from 2011, when it was 78.7 years, according to a new report on mortality in the USA from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics.

The news is a little better for women, and a little worse for men. Life expectancy for females is 81.2 years; for males, it’s 76.4 years. That difference of 4.8 years is the same as in 2011.

The Office of the Actuary of the Social Security Administration conducts actuarial studies to predict how long Americans will live based on sex and calendar year. There are two types of life expectancy tables:

Cohort Life Expectancy Tables
Period Life Expectancy Tables

Cohort Life Expectancy Tables

Calendar Year	Male	Female	Male	Female
1940	70.4	76.3	12.7	14.7
1941	70.8	76.6	12.8	14.9
1942	71.4	77.1	12.8	15
1943	71.7	77.4	12.9	15.1
1944	72	77.6	12.9	15.3
1945	72.2	77.9	13	15.4
1946	72.7	78.3	13	15.6
1947	73	78.7	13	15.7
1948	73.1	78.8	13.1	15.9
1949	73.3	79	13.1	16
1950	73.5	79.2	13.1	16.2
1951	73.6	79.4	13.1	16.3
1952	73.7	79.4	13.1	16.4
1953	73.9	79.6	13.1	16.5
1954	74.1	79.7	13.1	16.6
1955	74.2	79.8	13.1	16.7
1956	74.3	79.9	13.1	16.9
1957	74.5	80	13.2	17
1958	74.5	80	13.2	17.2
1959	74.7	80.1	13.2	17.3
1960	74.9	80.3	13.2	17.4
1961	75.1	80.4	13.3	17.5
1962	75.2	80.5	13.3	17.7
1963	75.4	80.6	13.4	17.8
1964	75.6	80.7	13.4	17.9
1965	75.7	80.8	13.5	18
1966	76	81	13.5	18.2
1967	76.2	81.1	13.6	18.3
1968	76.4	81.3	13.7	18.4
1969	76.7	81.4	13.7	18.5
1970	76.9	81.6	13.8	18.5
1971	77.1	81.7	13.9	18.6
1972	77.2	81.9	14	18.6
1973	77.4	82	14.1	18.7
1974	77.6	82.2	14.2	18.7
1975	77.8	82.3	14.2	18.7
1976	78	82.4	14.3	18.7
1977	78.2	82.6	14.4	18.7
1978	78.3	82.7	14.5	18.8
1979	78.5	82.9	14.6	18.8
1980	78.7	83	14.7	18.8
1981	78.8	83.1	14.9	18.8
1982	79	83.2	15	18.9
1983	79.1	83.3	15.1	18.9
1984	79.2	83.4	15.2	19
1985	79.3	83.5	15.4	19
1986	79.5	83.6	15.5	19.1
1987	79.6	83.7	15.6	19.1
1988	79.7	83.8	15.8	19.2
1989	79.8	83.9	15.9	19.2
1990	79.9	84	16	19.3
1991	80.1	84.2	16.1	19.3
1992	80.2	84.3	16.3	19.4
1993	80.3	84.4	16.4	19.4
1994	80.5	84.5	16.6	19.5
1995	80.6	84.6	16.7	19.6
1996	80.7	84.7	16.9	19.6
1997	80.8	84.8	17	19.7
1998	80.9	84.8	17.2	19.8
1999	81	84.9	17.3	19.8
2000	81.1	85	17.5	19.9
2001	81.2	85.1	17.6	20
2002	81.3	85.2	17.7	20.1
2003	81.4	85.2	17.9	20.2
2004	81.5	85.3	18	20.2
2005	81.6	85.4	18.1	20.3
2006	81.7	85.5	18.2	20.4
2007	81.8	85.5	18.3	20.5
2008	81.9	85.6	18.4	20.5
2009	82	85.7	18.5	20.6
2010	82.1	85.8	18.6	20.7
2011	82.2	85.8	18.7	20.7
2012	82.3	85.9	18.8	20.8
2013	82.4	86	18.9	20.9
2014	82.5	86.1	19	20.9
2015	82.5	86.1	19	21
2016	82.6	86.2	19.1	21.1
2017	82.7	86.3	19.2	21.1
2018	82.8	86.4	19.3	21.2
2019	82.9	86.4	19.3	21.3
2020	83	86.5	19.4	21.56306962

The cohort life expectancy at a given age for a given year is the average number of years of life remaining if a group of persons at that exact age, born on January 1, were to experience the mortality rates for the series of years in which they reach each succeeding age.

Life Expectancy Calculator

Longevity is one of the biggest risks in retirement—great news if you’re healthy and active, but it makes budgeting for lifetime income tricky. Use our research‑inspired Longevity Calculator to estimate your personal life expectancy and see survival probabilities over the next 10–30 years. It factors in age, sex, BMI, lifestyle, and other signals to provide an educational range you can pair with Social Security timing, annuity options, and your broader retirement plan.

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Current age

This tool is most relevant for ages 50–85.

Sex assigned at birth

Height

Weight (lbs)

Smoking status

Alcohol intake

Physical activity

Diet quality

Marital status

Education

Geography

Includes the NIH-AARP cohort states/metros for optional adjustment.

How is this calculated?

We estimate a baseline annual mortality hazard by age and sex, then adjust it using lifestyle and socioeconomic factors (e.g., BMI, smoking, activity, diet, marital status, education, and geography). We convert the hazard into survival probabilities and report the median life expectancy (age at 50% survival) and a range reflecting typical variability. This mimics a Cox-style proportional hazards approach without claiming identical coefficients to proprietary models.

Is this the same as the Wharton Longevity Tool?

No. It’s inspired by similar inputs and methodology, but we do not use the proprietary dataset or exact coefficients. As better calibration data becomes available, we can update the parameters to align more closely with validated studies.

How should I use this for retirement planning?

Consider pairing longevity estimates with guaranteed income products to hedge longevity risk. If you live longer than expected, lifetime income annuities can protect your budget. If you live shorter, certain annuity riders and beneficiaries can protect principal.

Questions? Call 855-583-1104 or email info@myannuitystore.com

Call Schedule Plan with Journey Guide

Your results are a starting point, not a diagnosis. If your profile suggests a longer‑than‑average lifespan, consider strategies that hedge longevity risk—like lifetime income annuities—so your paycheck doesn’t stop before you do.

If your estimate is shorter or uncertain, prioritizing liquidity, beneficiaries, and rider features can protect your family. When you’re ready, we’ll help you translate these estimates into a clear plan that aligns Social Security, savings, and guaranteed income for the decades ahead.

Do you want to see how much guaranteed lifetime income an annuity would pay you? You can use our income rider annuity calculator and get a live quote instantly, showing the top 10 lifetime payouts.

Period Life Expectancy Tables, 2017

Age	Death Probability	Number of Lives	Life Expectancy	Death Probability	Number of Lives	Life Expectancy
31	0.001911	97,048	46.74	0.000887	98,458	51.01
32	0.00196	96,862	45.83	0.000939	98,370	50.06
33	0.002014	96,672	44.92	0.000988	98,278	49.1
34	0.002071	96,478	44.01	0.001034	98,181	48.15
35	0.002138	96,278	43.1	0.001085	98,079	47.2
36	0.002211	96,072	42.19	0.001143	97,973	46.25
37	0.002279	95,860	41.28	0.001205	97,861	45.3
38	0.002342	95,641	40.37	0.001271	97,743	44.36
39	0.002405	95,417	39.47	0.001345	97,619	43.41
40	0.002482	95,188	38.56	0.001429	97,488	42.47
41	0.002583	94,951	37.65	0.001524	97,348	41.53
42	0.00271	94,706	36.75	0.001630	97,200	40.59
43	0.00287	94,450	35.85	0.001748	97,042	39.66
44	0.003064	94,178	34.95	0.001881	96,872	38.73
45	0.003285	93,890	34.06	0.002029	96,690	37.8
46	0.003538	93,581	33.17	0.002195	96,494	36.88
47	0.003834	93,250	32.28	0.002386	96,282	35.96
48	0.004178	92,893	31.41	0.002605	96,052	35.04
49	0.004569	92,505	30.54	0.002851	95,802	34.13
50	0.004997	92,082	29.67	0.003118	95,529	33.23
51	0.005462	91,622	28.82	0.003403	95,231	32.33
52	0.005971	91,122	27.98	0.003714	94,907	31.44
53	0.006526	90,577	27.14	0.004052	94,554	30.55
54	0.007125	89,986	26.32	0.004415	94,171	29.68
55	0.007766	89,345	25.5	0.004813	93,755	28.81
56	0.008445	88,651	24.7	0.005233	93,304	27.94
57	0.009156	87,903	23.9	0.005647	92,816	27.09
58	0.009897	87,098	23.12	0.006043	92,292	26.24
59	0.010671	86,236	22.34	0.006441	91,734	25.39
60	0.011519	85,316	21.58	0.006886	91,143	24.56
61	0.012419	84,333	20.83	0.007391	90,515	23.72
62	0.013307	83,286	20.08	0.007931	89,846	22.9
63	0.014164	82,177	19.35	0.008508	89,134	22.07
64	0.015032	81,013	18.62	0.009142	88,375	21.26
65	0.016013	79,795	17.89	0.009874	87,568	20.45
66	0.017138	78,518	17.18	0.010717	86,703	19.65
67	0.018362	77,172	16.47	0.011660	85,774	18.86
68	0.019693	75,755	15.77	0.012711	84,774	18.07
69	0.021174	74,263	15.07	0.013894	83,696	17.3
70	0.022889	72,691	14.39	0.015285	82,533	16.54
71	0.024869	71,027	13.71	0.016878	81,272	15.79
72	0.027095	69,261	13.05	0.018607	79,900	15.05
73	0.029587	67,384	12.4	0.020466	78,413	14.32
74	0.032394	65,390	11.76	0.022522	76,809	13.61
75	0.035668	63,272	11.14	0.024929	75,079	12.92
76	0.039396	61,015	10.53	0.027729	73,207	12.23
77	0.043453	58,611	9.94	0.030855	71,177	11.57
78	0.047826	56,065	9.37	0.034321	68,981	10.92
79	0.052649	53,383	8.82	0.038211	66,613	10.29
80	0.058206	50,573	8.28	0.042771	64,068	9.68
81	0.064581	47,629	7.76	0.047992	61,328	9.09
82	0.071657	44,553	7.26	0.053678	58,385	8.52
83	0.079465	41,361	6.79	0.059810	55,251	7.98
84	0.088141	38,074	6.33	0.066584	51,946	7.45
85	0.097854	34,718	5.89	0.074258	48,487	6.95
86	0.108747	31,321	5.48	0.083053	44,887	6.47
87	0.120919	27,915	5.08	0.093123	41,159	6.01
88	0.134425	24,539	4.71	0.104540	37,326	5.57
89	0.149273	21,241	4.37	0.117305	33,424	5.16
90	0.165452	18,070	4.05	0.131392	29,503	4.78
91	0.182935	15,080	3.75	0.146753	25,627	4.43
92	0.201679	12,322	3.48	0.163331	21,866	4.11
93	0.221637	9,837	3.23	0.181064	18,294	3.81
94	0.242747	7,656	3.01	0.199886	14,982	3.55
95	0.263672	5,798	2.81	0.218908	11,987	3.31
96	0.284014	4,269	2.64	0.237815	9,363	3.09
97	0.303355	3,057	2.49	0.256265	7,136	2.9
98	0.321268	2,129	2.36	0.273894	5,308	2.73
99	0.337332	1,445	2.24	0.290328	3,854	2.58
100	0.354198	958	2.12	0.307747	2,735	2.42
101	0.371908	619	2.01	0.326212	1,893	2.28
102	0.390503	388	1.9	0.345785	1,276	2.14
103	0.410029	237	1.8	0.366532	835	2.01
104	0.43053	140	1.7	0.388524	529	1.88
105	0.452057	80	1.6	0.411835	323	1.76
106	0.474659	44	1.51	0.436546	190	1.65
107	0.498392	23	1.42	0.462738	107	1.54
108	0.523312	11	1.34	0.490503	58	1.44
109	0.549478	5	1.26	0.519933	29	1.34
110	0.576951	2	1.18	0.551129	14	1.24
111	0.605799	1	1.1	0.584196	6	1.15
112	0.636089	0	1.03	0.619248	3	1.06
113	0.667893	0	0.96	0.656403	1	0.98
114	0.701288	0	0.9	0.695787	0	0.91
115	0.736353	0	0.84	0.736353	0	0.84
116	0.77317	0	0.78	0.773170	0	0.78
117	0.811829	0	0.72	0.811829	0	0.72
118	0.85242	0	0.66	0.852420	0	0.66
119	0.895041	0	0.61	0.895041	0	0.61

Note: The period life expectancy at a given age for 2017 represents the average number of years of life remaining if a group of persons at that age were to experience the mortality rates for 2017 over the course of their remaining life. Death Probability = Probability of dying within 1 year. Number of Lives = the number of survivors out of 100,000 born alive.

Source: Period Life Table, 2017 | Last Updated: June 9th, 2020.

Life Expectancy at Birth by State

State	Rank	Total	Male	Female
Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . California . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Minnesota . . . . . . . . . . . . . Connecticut . . . . . . . . . . . . Massachusetts . . . . . . . . . . Washington . . . . . . . . . . . . Colorado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Jersey . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhode Island . . . . . . . . . . .	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10	81.0 80.8 80.5 80.5 80.4 80.1 80.0 80.0 79.8 79.8	78.0 78.4 78.1 78.4 77.9 77.7 77.9 77.7 77.3 77.2	84.0 83.1 82.8 82.6 82.9 82.5 82.1 82.3 82.3 82.2
Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . North Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . . . . . Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Hampshire . . . . . . . . . Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20	79.7 79.6 79.3 79.3 79.3 79.2 79.1 79.1 79.0 79.0	77.5 77.7 77.0 77.0 76.9 76.8 76.7 76.8 76.8 76.6	81.9 81.5 81.7 81.7 81.6 81.6 81.5 81.4 81.3 81.3
South Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . United States . . . . . . . . . . . Montana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Maryland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pennsylvania . . . . . . . . . . . Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30	78.9 78.9 78.8 78.7 78.7 78.7 78.6 78.5 78.4 78.1 78.1	76.5 76.2 76.2 76.2 76.5 76.0 75.9 75.8 76.0 75.5 76.1	81.4 81.6 81.3 81.2 81.1 81.5 81.2 81.1 80.8 80.8 80.3
Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Delaware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . District of Columbia . . . . . . North Carolina . . . . . . . . . . Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41	78.0 78.0 77.9 77.8 77.7 77.7 77.6 77.2 77.2 76.8 76.8	75.7 76.0 75.4 74.8 75.4 74.6 74.9 74.7 74.2 74.4 74.2	80.3 80.2 80.5 80.6 80.1 80.5 80.2 79.7 80.4 79.3 79.3
Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . South Carolina . . . . . . . . . . Arkansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tennessee . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alabama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mississippi . . . . . . . . . . . . . West Virginia . . . . . . . . . . .	42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51	76.6 76.5 75.6 75.6 75.6 75.5 75.3 75.1 74.6 74.4	73.9 73.7 73.0 73.1 72.7 73.0 72.6 72.1 71.7 71.7	79.3 79.3 78.2 78.2 78.5 78.1 77.9 78.0 77.5 77.3

SOURCE: National Vital Statistics Reports, Vol. 70, No. 1, March 11, 2021

Cohort Life Expectancy Tables

Cohort life expectancy tables show the probability of a person from a given cohort, or group of people, dying at each age over the course of their lifetime. The cohort life table is based on age-specific probabilities of death, which are calculated using observed death (mortality) data from the cohort.

A cohort life table uses a combination of observed mortality rates for past years and projections about mortality rates for the cohort in future years. For example, cohort life expectancy at age 65 in 2016 was worked out using the mortality rate for age 65 years in 2016. So if you’ve made it to age 65, your life expectancy in a total number of years would be greater than it was at birth.

The cohort life table takes into account observed and projected improvements in mortality for the cohort throughout its lifetime. Cohort figures are therefore regarded as a more appropriate measure of how long a person of a given age would be expected to live on average than the alternative measure, known as period life expectancy, which is calculated using mortality rates for a fixed period in time.

Period Life Expectancy Tables

Period life expectancy tables are based on the mortality experience of a population during a relatively short period of time.

For example, a period life table would show someone at age 65 years in 2020 and would use the mortality rates for 2020 for ages 65, 66, and 67 years and so on. Period life expectancy would match cohort life expectancy only if there were no changes in age-specific mortality rates over time; this is an extremely unlikely scenario, as these change from year to year.

It is important to understand that these are projections and not forecasts. As we do not know what the future will hold, we make assumptions about how mortality rates will change in the future. Information on how mortality rates have changed in the past is used to estimate the current rate of mortality improvement by sex and calendar year to make assumptions about improvements in mortality in the future.

Data and Methods

The data used to prepare the 2017 tables are the final numbers of deaths for the year 2017. July 1, 2017, population estimates based on the 2010 decennial census, and age-specific death and population counts for Medicare beneficiaries aged 66–99 for the year 2017 from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Data from the Medicare program are used to supplement vital statistics and census data for ages 66 and over. The U.S. life expectancy tables by Hispanic origin are based on death rates that have been adjusted for race and ethnicity misclassification on death certificates using classification ratios (or correction factors) generated from an updated evaluation of race and Hispanic origin misclassification on death certificates in the United States.

SOURCE: National Vital Statistics Report, Volume 68, Number 7. “United States Life Tables, 2017. by Elizabeth Arias, Ph.D., and Jiaquan Xu, M.D., Division of Vital Statistics. June 24, 2019,

1Life tables by Hispanic origin are based on death rates that have been adjusted for race and ethnicity misclassification on death certificates. Updated classification ratios were applied; see Technical Notes.
SOURCE: NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, Mortality.

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