Trends in Mean Age of Mothers in the United States, 2016 to 2023

Abstract

Objectives: This report presents recent trends in the mean (average) age of mothers when they gave birth in the United States from 2016 to 2023. It updates previous analyses by examining trends in mean maternal age by birth order and presents trends and differences in mean age at first birth across race and Hispanic origin and urbanicity.

Methods: Data are from the National Vital Statistics System, comprising all birth records in the United States for 2016-2023. Mean maternal age was calculated for first, second, and third and higher-order births (the number of live births born to a woman during her lifetime). Trends over time and differences by mother's race and Hispanic origin and urbanicity are described.

Results: The mean age of mothers at first birth increased 0.9 year, from 26.6 in 2016 to 27.5 in 2023. Similar increases were observed for higher-order births, with mean age at birth rising by 1.0 year for second births and 0.9 year for third and higher-order births. All racial and ethnic groups saw an increase in mean age at first birth of 0.4-1.4 years. Mean maternal age at first birth rose across all levels of urbanicity, from large metropolitan counties to rural counties, by 0.7-0.9 year. In 2023, mothers in large metropolitan counties had the highest mean age at first birth (28.5), while those in noncore counties had the lowest (24.8).