Insee Focus · June 2023 · n° 301

Since 2015, infant mortality in France has been higher than the European average

In 2021, 2,700 children under the age of one died in France, representing 3.7 deaths per 1,000 live births. Although this rate is historically low, it has not decreased since 2005. It even rose slightly between 2014 and 2017, particularly for deaths in the first days of life. Half of the children dying before their first birthday in 2021 lived less than a week.

Since 2015, infant mortality has been higher in France than the European average, whereas it was one of the lowest in Europe at the end of the twentieth century. In fact, unlike France, infant mortality in Europe continues to fall on average, albeit moderately in recent years. The fall in neonatal mortality (deaths before 28 days) has been particularly slow in France over the last 20 years; this is also the case in Germany.