The Grand Duchy ranks fifth among EU countries with the highest life expectancy at birth, ahead of its immediate neighbours, though the figures come with a caveat when it comes to healthy life expectancy.
Life expectancy remains one of the most telling indicators of a country’s health and living conditions. On this measure, Luxembourg stands out within the Greater Region. The latest figures published by Eurostat confirm that residents of the Grand Duchy live, on average, longer than their French, Belgian, and German neighbours, even if the gaps remain relatively narrow.
Above the European average
In 2024, life expectancy in Luxembourg reached around 83.2 years, placing the country above the EU average of 81.5 years.
That puts Luxembourg in Europe’s top five, behind Spain (84 years), Sweden (83.8), Italy (83.7), and Cyprus (83.5). The performance is part of a long-running trend, with life expectancy in the Grand Duchy having risen greatly in recent decades thanks to broader improvements in living conditions, the healthcare system and preventive care.
France comes in close behind at 83 years, while Belgium performs slightly less well but stays above the EU average. Germany, at 81.2 years, has the lowest figure of the four countries.
At a finer-grained level, the gaps become more pronounced when Luxembourg is compared with its neighbouring regions. Residents of the Grand Duchy live, on average, longer than those of nearby German, Belgian or French areas, sometimes by several years.
At the other end of the scale, life expectancy is lowest in the EU’s eastern member states, with averages of 75.8 years in Bulgaria, 76.4 years in Latvia and 76.5 years in Romania.
Differences between men and women
As elsewhere in Europe, life expectancy varies noticeably between the sexes. On average across Europe, a woman can expect to live 84.1 years against 78.9 for a man. In Luxembourg, women reach around 85.5 years and men around 81.2.
Several factors can help explain Luxembourg’s strong showing, namely a high-performing and widely accessible healthcare system, a high standard of living that enables better preventive care, an active and international population that is often in good health, and effective social and health policies.
The gender gap therefore still runs to several years, even if it is slightly narrower than in some other European countries.
A long life is not always a healthy one
While Luxembourg leads the Greater Region for life expectancy, the picture is more nuanced when it comes to healthy life expectancy.
At 60.2 years, healthy life expectancy in Luxembourg trails its neighbours, who post 63.9 years in Belgium, 63.6 in France, and 62.4 in Germany. All four Greater Region countries sit below the European average of 65.2 years.
In other words, Luxembourgers live long lives, but not necessarily more years in good health than their neighbours.
