The number of extra years a Quebecer can expect to live has risen by four years since 2000, reaching an average lifespan of 83.2 years in 2021. Along with British Columbia, Quebec has the highest life expectancy in North America.
This information is taken from the Indicateur de santé publique (public health index), a tool published on September 17 by the Institut national de santé publique (national health institute), which presents the most recent data on the state of health of Quebec's population. The 2024 overview is partial. New statistics will be added in the future to include some one hundred indicators on a variety of themes.
The authors point out that Quebec's data may vary from one chart to another, due to the use of different reference populations for the calculation of adjusted rates, which enable a fairer comparison between groups.
Life expectancy for men and women
From 2017 to 2021, life expectancy for women in Quebec averaged a record 84.5 years. That of men reached 80.9 years, according to figures, cited in the report, from Québec’s Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (Ministry of Health and Social Services) (MSSS).
Mens’ life expectancy has always been shorter than women. This gap amounted to almost eight years in Quebec in the early 1980s. It has narrowed considerably over time, and stood at just under 4 years at the end of the 2010s.
At the same time, between 1982-1986 and 2017-2021, Quebec women gained an average of five extra years of life. But this increase was most marked among men: their life expectancy rose by 10 years over these decades.
Life expectancy by region
The Institute report describes the differences in life expectancy from one region of Quebec to another, and they are appreciable. In 2017-2021, the gap was four years between the region with the longest and shortest life expectancy.
Northern Quebec had the shortest lifespan, at 79.8 years, followed by Côte-Nord, at 80.9 years. It was longest, at 83.9 years, in the Laval region, followed by Chaudière-Appalaches, at 83.5 years, and Capitale-Nationale, at 83.2 years. During this period, it was as follows, sexes combined, by territory:
Comparisons with other Canadian provinces
The Institute’s study used Statistics Canada figures to draw a comparison of life expectancy between different Canadian provinces. Taking both sexes together, Quebec had the highest life expectancy in the country in 2022, at 82.5 years, compared with 81.3 years for Canada as a whole. Saskatchewan had the lowest, a gap of four years with Quebec.
However, it was in British Columbia that life expectancy was longest for women, at 84.3 years, slightly ahead of Quebec, at 84.2 years, and Ontario, at 84.1 years.
For men, Quebec led the way with an average of 80.8 years. In British Columbia, the average was 78.8 years, behind Ontario with an average of 79.6 years.
Quebec does better than many American states
When it comes to average life expectancy, Quebec does much better than most American states, even those close to its borders. The Institute used figures from the National Vital Statistic Reports, U.S. State Life Tables 2021 as a reference.
They show that Quebecers can expect to live on average 11 years longer than residents of Alabama and 9 years longer than those of Ohio. Here are some examples, both sexes combined:
Comparing Quebec with other countries
Based on figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Quebecers rank 4th worldwide in terms of longevity for both sexes combined.
