Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China
China: Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling was 1.01 live births per woman in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
1.01 live births per woman
Change on year
up 1.4%
World rank
227th
of 236 countries
All-time high
7.51 live births per woman
in 1963
All-time low
0.999 live births per woman
in 2023
Years of data
75
1950–2024
Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China, 1950–2024
Source: Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
The most recent figure for fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China is 1.01 live births per woman, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and down 42.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China peaked at 7.51 live births per woman in 1963 and was at its lowest, 0.999 live births per woman, in 2023.
That places China 227th out of 236 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 5.81 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 5.7 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 1952 | 6.47 live births per woman | +13.6% |
| 1953 | 6.04 live births per woman | -6.6% |
| 1954 | 6.28 live births per woman | +3.9% |
| 1955 | 6.26 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1956 | 5.85 live births per woman | -6.5% |
| 1957 | 6.42 live births per woman | +9.8% |
| 1958 | 5.7 live births per woman | -11.3% |
| 1959 | 4.72 live births per woman | -17.2% |
| 1960 | 4.45 live births per woman | -5.7% |
| 1961 | 3.86 live births per woman | -13.2% |
| 1962 | 6.08 live births per woman | +57.5% |
| 1963 | 7.51 live births per woman | +23.5% |
| 1964 | 6.67 live births per woman | -11.2% |
| 1965 | 6.61 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1966 | 6.31 live births per woman | -4.5% |
| 1967 | 5.81 live births per woman | -7.9% |
| 1968 | 6.51 live births per woman | +12.1% |
| 1969 | 6.17 live births per woman | -5.1% |
| 1970 | 6.08 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1971 | 5.52 live births per woman | -9.2% |
| 1972 | 5.11 live births per woman | -7.4% |
| 1973 | 4.73 live births per woman | -7.6% |
| 1974 | 4.17 live births per woman | -11.8% |
| 1975 | 3.57 live births per woman | -14.4% |
| 1976 | 3.23 live births per woman | -9.4% |
| 1977 | 2.84 live births per woman | -12.1% |
| 1978 | 2.72 live births per woman | -4.5% |
| 1979 | 2.75 live births per woman | +1.1% |
| 1980 | 2.74 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 2.79 live births per woman | +1.9% |
| 1982 | 2.97 live births per woman | +6.4% |
| 1983 | 2.56 live births per woman | -13.9% |
| 1984 | 2.61 live births per woman | +1.9% |
| 1985 | 2.63 live births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1986 | 2.72 live births per woman | +3.3% |
| 1987 | 2.76 live births per woman | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 2.54 live births per woman | -8.0% |
| 1989 | 2.52 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 2.51 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1991 | 1.93 live births per woman | -23.1% |
| 1992 | 1.78 live births per woman | -8.2% |
| 1993 | 1.69 live births per woman | -4.8% |
| 1994 | 1.63 live births per woman | -3.7% |
| 1995 | 1.59 live births per woman | -2.5% |
| 1996 | 1.55 live births per woman | -2.1% |
| 1997 | 1.53 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 1.52 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 1.53 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 1.63 live births per woman | +6.4% |
| 2001 | 1.56 live births per woman | -4.0% |
| 2002 | 1.57 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 1.57 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 1.6 live births per woman | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 1.62 live births per woman | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 1.64 live births per woman | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 1.67 live births per woman | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 1.7 live births per woman | +2.1% |
| 2009 | 1.71 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 1.69 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 1.67 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 2012 | 1.8 live births per woman | +7.8% |
| 2013 | 1.71 live births per woman | -4.7% |
| 2014 | 1.77 live births per woman | +3.2% |
| 2015 | 1.67 live births per woman | -5.6% |
| 2016 | 1.77 live births per woman | +6.1% |
| 2017 | 1.79 live births per woman | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 1.54 live births per woman | -14.3% |
| 2019 | 1.5 live births per woman | -2.8% |
| 2020 | 1.24 live births per woman | -17.4% |
| 2021 | 1.12 live births per woman | -9.6% |
| 2022 | 1.03 live births per woman | -7.4% |
| 2023 | 0.999 live births per woman | -3.4% |
| 2024 | 1.01 live births per woman | +1.4% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 1.01 live births per woman is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.8 live births per woman, 56% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- China's 1.01 live births per woman is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.12 live births per woman, 48% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | +57.5% | 3.86 live births per woman | 6.08 live births per woman |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5.93 live births per woman | 4.72 live births per woman | 6.47 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 6 live births per woman | 3.86 live births per woman | 7.51 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 4.07 live births per woman | 2.72 live births per woman | 6.08 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.68 live births per woman | 2.52 live births per woman | 2.97 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.73 live births per woman | 1.52 live births per woman | 2.51 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.63 live births per woman | 1.56 live births per woman | 1.71 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.69 live births per woman | 1.5 live births per woman | 1.8 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.08 live births per woman | 0.999 live births per woman | 1.24 live births per woman | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More education data for China
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.41 million (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 7,020 (2021)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 21.58 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 19.36 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 97.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 108.57 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.9587 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0771 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China?
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in China was 1.01 live births per woman in 2024, according to Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fertility rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 7.51 live births per woman in 1963.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.999 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does China rank for fertility rate vs. average years of schooling?
- China ranks 227th out of 236 countries with data for 2024.
- Is fertility rate vs. average years of schooling rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 42.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 75 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Average number of live births a hypothetical cohort of women would have at the end of their reproductive period if they were subject during their whole lives to the fertility rates of a given period and if they were not subject to mortality.