Share of births that are twins in France

France: Share of births that are twins was 1.6% in 2021. ▲ Rising

Latest (2021)
1.6%
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
8th
of 23 countries
All-time high
1.7%
in 2015
All-time low
0.9%
in 1972
Years of data
153
1858–2021

Share of births that are twins in France, 1858–2021

00.511.5185819392021

Source: Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

France recorded 1.6% for share of births that are twins in 2021.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 10.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of births that are twins in France peaked at 1.7% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 1972.

That places France 8th out of 23 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 153 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1850s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 2
1860s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 10
1870s 1.0% 0.9% 1.0% 9
1880s 1.0% 0.9% 1.0% 10
1890s 1.0% 1.0% 1.1% 7
1900s 1.1% 1.0% 1.2% 10
1910s 1.2% 1.1% 1.3% 10
1920s 1.1% 1.1% 1.1% 10
1930s 1.1% 1.0% 1.1% 9
1940s 1.1% 1.1% 1.1% 4
1950s 1.1% 1.0% 1.1% 10
1960s 1.0% 1.0% 1.1% 10
1970s 0.9% 0.9% 1.0% 10
1980s 1.0% 1.0% 1.1% 10
1990s 1.4% 1.2% 1.5% 10
2000s 1.6% 1.5% 1.6% 10
2010s 1.7% 1.6% 1.7% 10
2020s 1.6% 1.6% 1.6% 2

Countries ranked near France

  1. 5 Spain 1.6% compare
  2. 6 United States 1.6% compare
  3. 7 Switzerland 1.6% compare
  4. 9 Canada 1.6% compare
  5. 10 Netherlands 1.5% compare
  6. 11 Austria 1.4% compare

See the full ranking of 23 places →

More reference data data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of births that are twins in France?
Share of births that are twins in France was 1.6% in 2021, according to Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of births that are twins recorded in France?
The highest recorded value was 1.7% in 2015.
What is the lowest share of births that are twins recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 1972.
How does France rank for share of births that are twins?
France ranks 8th out of 23 countries with data for 2021.
Is share of births that are twins rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is down 10.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this France data come from?
The figures come from Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of births that are twins. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 153 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of births that are twins
Unit
%
Source
Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
23 places, 2,436 data points, 1815–2022
Last refreshed

The number of twin deliveries per 100 deliveries.