How Recent U.S. Presidents Stack Up Against Past Presidents and Contemporary World Leaders in Age

The 2024 presidential race has finally ended with Donald Trump being voted the 47th U.S. President. The 2 most recent Presidents were among the oldest Presidents the United States has seen, but how do they compare to past Presidents and current world leaders in age? LandGate provided visualizations for age vs the average lifespan for historical and contemporary figures.

The Age Factor 

One of the most discussed aspects of both Biden and Trump's presidencies is their age and there is currently no age limit to serve as President in the U.S. Here's a detailed look:

How old is Donald Trump?

• Current Age: 78 (born June 14, 1946)

• Oldest Presidents List: Since Trump became the 47th President of the United States, he is now the oldest person to assume the U.S. presidency, with an age of 78 years and 6 months at the time of his inauguration.

• Global Ranking: Since his re-election, Trump is now among the nine oldest national leaders in the world, according to the Pew Research Center.

How old is Joe Biden?

• Current Age: 81 (born November 20, 1942)

• Oldest U.S. President: Biden became the 2nd oldest American president when he assumed office at the age of 78 years and two months.

• Global Ranking: According to the Pew Research Center, Biden is the ninth oldest national leader in the world.

List of Oldest US Presidents by Age at Inauguration Date

President	Age at Inauguration	Birth Date	Inauguration Date	Average Lifespan at Inauguration*	Date of Death (if applicable)
Donald Trump	78 years	June 14, 1946	January 20, 2025	~78.8 years (2025)	-
Joe Biden	78 years	November 20, 1942	January 20, 2021	~78.4 years (2021)	-
Donald Trump	70 years	June 14, 1946	January 20, 2017	~70.8 years (2017)	-
Ronald Reagan	69 years	February 6, 1911	January 20, 1981	~73.7 years (1981)	June 5, 2004 (aged 93)
William Henry Harrison	68 years	February 9, 1773	March 4, 1841	~67.7 years (1841)	April 4, 1841 (aged 68)
James Buchanan	65 years	April 23, 1791	March 4, 1857	~68.2 years (1857)	June 1, 1868 (aged 77)
George H. W. Bush	64 years	June 12, 1924	January 20, 1989	~74.9 years (1989)	November 30, 2018 (aged 94)
Zachary Taylor	64 years	November 24, 1784	March 4, 1849	~67.7 years (1849)	July 9, 1850 (aged 65)
Dwight D. Eisenhower	62 years	October 14, 1890	January 20, 1953	~68.2 years (1953)	March 28, 1969 (aged 78)
Andrew Jackson	61 years	March 15, 1767	March 4, 1829	~62.6 years (1829)	June 8, 1845 (aged 78)

*Sources

National Center for Health Statistics. Life expectancy.

1. Harvard Health. Why is life expectancy in the US declining?

2. Goldman L. Three stages of health encounters over 8000 human generations and how they inform future public health. Am J Public Health. 2018 January;108(1):60–62. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2017.304164

3. Beltrán-Sáncheza H, Crimmins E, Finch C. Early cohort mortality predicts the rate of aging in the cohort: a historical analysis. J Dev Orig Health Dis. 2012;3(5):380–386. doi:10.1017/S2040174412000281

4. Caspari R, Lee SH. Is human longevity a consequence of cultural change or modern biology? Am J Phys Anthropol. 2006;129(4):512–517. doi:10.1002/ajpa.20360

5. Scientific American. The evolution of grandparents.

6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. History of smallpox.

7. Tulchinsky TH, Varakova EA. A history of public health. New Publ Health. 2014:1–42. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-415766-8.00001-X

8. Hogan DP, Kertzer DI. The social bases of declining infant mortality: lessons from a nineteenth-century Italian town. Eur J Popul. 1987 May;2(3-4):361-85. doi:10.1007/BF01796597

9. Hollingsworth TH. Demographic study of the British Ducal families. In: Population in Industrialisation. London: Methuen & Co; 1969.

10. Central Intelligence Agency. Country comparison: life expectancy at birth.

11. National Center for Health Statistics. Life expectancy in the U.S. dropped for the second year in a row in 2021.

12. Olshansky SJ, Carnes BA. The future of human longevity. Int Handbook Population Aging. 2009:731-45. doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-8356-3_33

13. Lichtenberg K. Reversing the decreasing life expectancy: a national health priority. Mo Med. 2022 Jul-Aug;119(4):321-23, 333.

List of Contemporary World Leaders and Their Ages

(Older and Prominent)

World Leader	Age (as of June 2024) or Age at Time of Death	Birth Date	Date of Death (if applicable)	Average Life Expectancy*
Queen Elizabeth II (UK)	96 years	April 21, 1926	September 8, 2022	80.70 years (2021)
Paul Biya (Cameroon)	91 years	February 13, 1933	-	60.33 years (2021)
Fidel Castro (Cuba)	90 years	August 13, 1926	25 November, 2016	73.68 years (2021)
Mahmoud Abbas (Palestine)	88 years	1935	-	73.47 years (2021)
Salman of Saudi Arabia	88 years	December 31, 1935	-	76.94 years (2021)
Pope Francis (Rome)	87 years	December 17, 1936	-	83.71 years (2021)
Harald V of Norway	87 years	February 21, 1937	-	83.16 years (2021)
Ali Khamenei (Iran)	85 years	April 19, 1939	-	73.88 years (2021)
Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (Kuwait)	83 years	September 27, 1940	-	78.67 years (2021)

*Sources

Murphy SL, Kochanek KD, Xu JQ, Arias E. Deaths: Final data for 2021. National Vital Statistics Reports. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2024. [Forthcoming].

1. Xu JQ, Murphy SL, Kochanek KD, Arias E. Mortality in the United States, 2021. NCHS Data Brief, no 456. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2022. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.15620/cdc:122516.

2. World Health Organization. International statistical classification of Diseases and related health problems, 10th revision (ICD–10). 5th ed. 2016.

3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC WONDER. Single-race population estimates, 2010–2022.

4. Curtin SC, Tejada-Vera B, Bastian BA, Berruti AA. Deaths: Leading causes for 2021. National Vital Statistics Reports. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2024. [Forthcoming].

5. Arias E. United States life tables, 2008. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 61 no 3. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2012.

6. Arias E, Heron M, Hakes JK. The validity of race and Hispanic-origin reporting on death certificates in the United States: An update. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Stat 2(172). 2016.

7. Arias E, Xu JQ, Curtin S, Bastian B, Tejada-Vera B. Mortality profile of the non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native population, 2019. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 70 no 12. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2021. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.15620/cdc:110370.

8. Arias E, Xu JQ, Kochanek KD. United States life tables, 2021. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 72 no 12. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2023. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.15620/cdc:132418.

Age Vs. Average Lifespan for U.S. Presidents

While age provides an interesting metric, it's also insightful to consider how that relates to the average lifespan of the served term. Since the average lifetime has increased over the decades, we can compare the average lifespan of past U.S. presidents with their period of average lifespan. Doing this we can create a figurative visual for each. For example, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the average lifespan of a U.S. citizen is approximately 77 years as of 2021. However, in Andrew Jackson's time period of his presidential term, the estimated average lifespan was more like 62 years.

According to that comparison, one can see that relative to the average life span, all of the oldest U.S. presidents were serving at a very ripe age even for their time period. Leaders inherently receive better care, have more power, and will therefore live longer than an average citizen. When comparing US leaders to world leaders, U.S. contenders are significantly less elderly.

Conclusion of the Recent Presidents

Trump and Biden, both in their later years, stand out as some of the oldest recent presidents in U.S. history. Now that Trump has been re-elected, he has become the oldest President at the time of inauguration. Their age brings experience but also raises questions about energy and longevity. Comparing them to past U.S. presidents and current world leaders provides valuable context for understanding their potential impacts if elected.

LandGate is not politically affiliated and does not promote any candidate or party. LandGate is a free data intelligence and property marketplace for the home of the brave and the land of the free!

Curious to see how above relativity scores, but for property? Find your property on our map and get a free value and risk index score for a diverse set of resources.

Create a Free Property Report Here