In the EU, people are living longer than ever, but the years spent in good health vary widely from country to country. New 2023 data from Eurostat reveals that while the average European can expect around 63 healthy years at birth, the picture changes dramatically depending on gender and where you live.
Across the EU, women live longer than men — 84.0 years compared to 78.7 years — yet spend a smaller share of their lives free from activity limitations.
Healthy life years represent about 75% of women’s total life expectancy, compared with 80% for men. This means that although men live shorter lives, they spend proportionally more of those years in good health.
At the national level, Malta stands out. Men born there in 2023 can expect 71.7 healthy years, the highest in the EU, followed by Italy (68.5 years) and Sweden (67.2 years).
Women in Malta also lead the rankings with 71.1 healthy years, just ahead of Bulgaria (71.0 years) and Italy (69.6 years).
On the other end of the scale, Latvia records the shortest healthy life expectancy for both genders — 51.2 years for men and 54.3 years for women.
Estonia and Slovakia also report low figures for men (56.5 and 56.8 years, respectively), while Denmark and Finland join Latvia at the bottom of the list for women.
Notably, men enjoy more healthy life years than women in only nine EU countries, underscoring how health and longevity are shaped by both biological and social factors.
These figures highlight a key challenge for European health systems: it is not only about extending life, but ensuring those extra years are lived in good health.
14.08.2025.
