Old-age dependency ratio in Mexico

Mexico: Old-age dependency ratio was 11.9% in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
11.9%
Change on year
up 2.9%
World rank
124th
of 236 countries
All-time high
11.9%
in 2023
All-time low
5.3%
in 1964
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Old-age dependency ratio in Mexico, 1950–2023

02.557.51012.5195019862023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Mexico recorded 11.9% for old-age dependency ratio in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.9% on the previous year and up 20.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, old-age dependency ratio in Mexico peaked at 11.9% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 5.3%, in 1964.

Mexico ranks 124th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.

Old-age dependency ratio in Mexico, year by year

Annual values for Old-age dependency ratio in Mexico, 1950 to 2023.
Year % Change
1950 5.7%
1951 5.7% +0.2%
1952 5.7% -0.0%
1953 5.7% -0.2%
1954 5.7% -0.3%
1955 5.6% -0.3%
1956 5.6% -0.3%
1957 5.6% -0.4%
1958 5.6% -0.3%
1959 5.6% -0.2%
1960 5.5% -1.0%
1961 5.4% -1.5%
1962 5.4% -0.9%
1963 5.3% -0.6%
1964 5.3% -0.4%
1965 5.3% +0.0%
1966 5.4% +0.4%
1967 5.4% +0.5%
1968 5.4% +0.6%
1969 5.4% +0.5%
1970 5.5% +0.4%
1971 5.5% +0.4%
1972 5.5% +0.5%
1973 5.5% +0.6%
1974 5.6% +0.7%
1975 5.6% +0.7%
1976 5.7% +0.7%
1977 5.7% +0.6%
1978 5.7% +0.5%
1979 5.7% +0.4%
1980 5.8% +0.3%
1981 5.8% +1.3%
1982 6.0% +2.3%
1983 6.1% +2.3%
1984 6.3% +2.3%
1985 6.4% +2.4%
1986 6.6% +2.5%
1987 6.7% +2.6%
1988 6.9% +2.6%
1989 7.1% +2.5%
1990 7.2% +1.5%
1991 7.2% +0.5%
1992 7.3% +0.6%
1993 7.3% +1.0%
1994 7.4% +1.2%
1995 7.5% +1.4%
1996 7.7% +1.6%
1997 7.8% +1.8%
1998 7.9% +1.9%
1999 8.1% +1.9%
2000 8.2% +1.9%
2001 8.4% +2.0%
2002 8.6% +2.2%
2003 8.8% +2.1%
2004 9.0% +2.0%
2005 9.1% +1.7%
2006 9.2% +1.4%
2007 9.3% +0.9%
2008 9.4% +0.6%
2009 9.4% +0.6%
2010 9.5% +0.7%
2011 9.6% +0.9%
2012 9.7% +1.2%
2013 9.8% +1.4%
2014 10.0% +1.6%
2015 10.2% +1.7%
2016 10.4% +1.9%
2017 10.6% +2.0%
2018 10.8% +2.2%
2019 11.1% +2.3%
2020 11.2% +1.7%
2021 11.4% +1.0%
2022 11.6% +1.8%
2023 11.9% +2.9%

Mexico compared with similar countries

  • Mexico's 11.9% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 11.7%, 1.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • Mexico's 11.9% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 14.7%, 81% of the median. (42 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 5.6% 5.6% 5.7% 10
1960s 5.4% 5.3% 5.5% 10
1970s 5.6% 5.5% 5.7% 10
1980s 6.4% 5.8% 7.1% 10
1990s 7.5% 7.2% 8.1% 10
2000s 8.9% 8.2% 9.4% 10
2010s 10.2% 9.5% 11.1% 10
2020s 11.5% 11.2% 11.9% 4

Countries ranked near Mexico

  1. 121 Ecuador 12.1% compare
  2. 122 Tokelau 12.1% compare
  3. 123 El Salvador 12.0% compare
  4. 125 Morocco 11.8% compare
  5. 126 Seychelles 11.6% compare
  6. 127 American Samoa 11.6% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Mexico

All data for Mexico →

Frequently asked questions

What is old-age dependency ratio in Mexico?
Old-age dependency ratio in Mexico was 11.9% in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest old-age dependency ratio recorded in Mexico?
The highest recorded value was 11.9% in 2023.
What is the lowest old-age dependency ratio recorded in Mexico?
The lowest recorded value was 5.3% in 1964.
How does Mexico rank for old-age dependency ratio?
Mexico ranks 124th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is old-age dependency ratio rising or falling in Mexico?
Over the last ten years it is up 20.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Mexico data come from?
The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Old-age dependency ratio. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Old-age dependency ratio in Mexico. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/age-dependency-ratio-old/mexico/

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About this data

Indicator
Old-age dependency ratio
Unit
%
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

Number of people aged 65 and over per 100 working-age people (aged 15 to 64).