Share of men who are obese in Ireland

Ireland: Share of men who are obese was 28.8% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
28.8%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
44th
of 199 countries
All-time high
28.8%
in 2024
All-time low
8.7%
in 1980
Years of data
45
1980–2024

Share of men who are obese in Ireland, 1980–2024

10152025301980200220241980: 8.7 %1981: 9.1 %1982: 9.4 %1983: 9.8 %1984: 10.2 %1985: 10.7 %1986: 11.1 %1987: 11.6 %1988: 12 %1989: 12.6 %1990: 13.1 %1991: 13.7 %1992: 14.3 %1993: 14.9 %1994: 15.5 %1995: 16.2 %1996: 16.9 %1997: 17.5 %1998: 18.2 %1999: 18.9 %2000: 19.7 %2001: 20.4 %2002: 21.1 %2003: 21.7 %2004: 22.4 %2005: 23 %2006: 23.5 %2007: 24.1 %2008: 24.6 %2009: 25 %2010: 25.4 %2011: 25.7 %2012: 26 %2013: 26.2 %2014: 26.5 %2015: 26.8 %2016: 27 %2017: 27.3 %2018: 27.5 %2019: 27.7 %2020: 27.9 %2021: 28.1 %2022: 28.3 %2023: 28.5 %2024: 28.8 %

Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Ireland recorded 28.8% for share of men who are obese in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.

The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 8.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of men who are obese in Ireland peaked at 28.8% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 8.7%, in 1980.

That places Ireland 44th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 10.5% 8.7% 12.6% 10
1990s 15.9% 13.1% 18.9% 10
2000s 22.5% 19.7% 25.0% 10
2010s 26.6% 25.4% 27.7% 10
2020s 28.3% 27.9% 28.8% 5

Countries ranked near Ireland

  1. 41 Paraguay 29.3% compare
  2. 42 Jordan 29.2% compare
  3. 43 Fiji 28.8% compare
  4. 45 Nicaragua 28.7% compare
  5. 46 Palestine 28.3% compare
  6. 47 Uzbekistan 28.3% compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More reference data data for Ireland

All data for Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of men who are obese in Ireland?
Share of men who are obese in Ireland was 28.8% in 2024, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of men who are obese recorded in Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 28.8% in 2024.
What is the lowest share of men who are obese recorded in Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 8.7% in 1980.
How does Ireland rank for share of men who are obese?
Ireland ranks 44th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of men who are obese rising or falling in Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is up 8.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Ireland data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of men who are obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of men who are obese
Unit
%
Source
World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 8,955 data points, 1980–2024
Last refreshed

Obesity is defined as having a body-mass index (BMI) equal to, or greater than, 30. BMI is a person's weight (in kilograms) divided by their height (in meters) squared.