Median age in Kenya
Kenya: Median age was 19.53 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
19.53
Change on year
up 1.3%
World rank
198th
of 236 countries
All-time high
19.53
in 2023
All-time low
13.19
in 1974
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Median age in Kenya, 1950–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Kenya recorded 19.53 for median age in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.3% on the previous year and up 13.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, median age in Kenya peaked at 19.53 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 13.19, in 1974.
Kenya ranks 198th of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Median age in Kenya, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 15.99 | — |
| 1951 | 16.04 | +0.3% |
| 1952 | 16.04 | -0.0% |
| 1953 | 15.98 | -0.4% |
| 1954 | 15.86 | -0.7% |
| 1955 | 15.71 | -1.0% |
| 1956 | 15.52 | -1.2% |
| 1957 | 15.3 | -1.4% |
| 1958 | 15.06 | -1.6% |
| 1959 | 14.8 | -1.7% |
| 1960 | 14.59 | -1.4% |
| 1961 | 14.42 | -1.2% |
| 1962 | 14.28 | -1.0% |
| 1963 | 14.15 | -0.9% |
| 1964 | 14.07 | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 13.93 | -1.0% |
| 1966 | 13.72 | -1.5% |
| 1967 | 13.57 | -1.1% |
| 1968 | 13.46 | -0.8% |
| 1969 | 13.39 | -0.6% |
| 1970 | 13.33 | -0.4% |
| 1971 | 13.27 | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 13.22 | -0.4% |
| 1973 | 13.2 | -0.2% |
| 1974 | 13.19 | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 13.19 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 13.19 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 13.22 | +0.2% |
| 1978 | 13.28 | +0.4% |
| 1979 | 13.34 | +0.5% |
| 1980 | 13.42 | +0.6% |
| 1981 | 13.5 | +0.6% |
| 1982 | 13.59 | +0.6% |
| 1983 | 13.68 | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 13.78 | +0.7% |
| 1985 | 13.87 | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 13.96 | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 14.03 | +0.6% |
| 1988 | 14.12 | +0.6% |
| 1989 | 14.21 | +0.7% |
| 1990 | 14.32 | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 14.43 | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 14.54 | +0.8% |
| 1993 | 14.66 | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 14.79 | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 14.92 | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 15.04 | +0.8% |
| 1997 | 15.15 | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 15.28 | +0.8% |
| 1999 | 15.41 | +0.9% |
| 2000 | 15.56 | +1.0% |
| 2001 | 15.73 | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 15.88 | +1.0% |
| 2003 | 16.03 | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 16.19 | +1.0% |
| 2005 | 16.33 | +0.9% |
| 2006 | 16.47 | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 16.58 | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 16.69 | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 16.79 | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 16.89 | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 17 | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 17.13 | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 17.28 | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 17.46 | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 17.65 | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 17.85 | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 18.06 | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 18.29 | +1.3% |
| 2019 | 18.54 | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 18.78 | +1.3% |
| 2021 | 19.02 | +1.3% |
| 2022 | 19.27 | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 19.53 | +1.3% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 19.53 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 21.43, 91% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 19.53 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 18.22, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 15.63 | 14.8 | 16.04 | 10 |
| 1960s | 13.96 | 13.39 | 14.59 | 10 |
| 1970s | 13.24 | 13.19 | 13.34 | 10 |
| 1980s | 13.82 | 13.42 | 14.21 | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.85 | 14.32 | 15.41 | 10 |
| 2000s | 16.23 | 15.56 | 16.79 | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.62 | 16.89 | 18.54 | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.15 | 18.78 | 19.53 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More reference data data for Kenya
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5379 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.377 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 58.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 68.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.05 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is median age in Kenya?
- Median age in Kenya was 19.53 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest median age recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 19.53 in 2023.
- What is the lowest median age recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.19 in 1974.
- How does Kenya rank for median age?
- Kenya ranks 198th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is median age rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Median age. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).