Life expectancy in Bulgaria is the lowest in the European Union, though it has been rising in recent years, data from the bloc’s statistics office Eurostat showed on September 11.

In 2024, life expectancy at birth in Bulgaria stood at 75.9 years, well below the EU average of 81.7 years. Eurostat noted the figure had recovered from 71.2 years in 2021, the second year of the Covid-19 pandemic, and was up from 75.1 years in 2019.

The lowest life expectancy in the EU was recorded in Bulgaria (75.9 years), Romania (76.6 years) and Latvia (76.7 years). The highest was in Italy and Sweden (84.1 years each) and Spain (84.0 years).

Across the EU, life expectancy rose by 0.3 years in 2024 compared with 2023. Out of 26 member states with preliminary data, 24 reported an increase since 2019. The largest gains were in Lithuania (+1.1 years), Czechia, Latvia and Romania (+1.0 years each).

The Netherlands was the only member state to see a decline (-0.2 years), while Spain remained stable and France posted a marginal increase of 0.1 years, Eurostat said.