Alizada Studios // Shutterstock
1 / 34#34. Wayne County
- Life expectancy: 76.8 years
--- 0.5 years lower than the state average
Counties with the shortest life expectancy in Pennsylvania
Life expectancy can be affected by a variety of factors. About 25% of your lifespan is determined by genetics, according to the National Library of Medicine. Health and wellness habits—like following a balanced, nutrient-rich diet; not smoking; drinking minimal alcohol; maintaining a healthy weight; and staying physically active—can add more than a decade to your life, research from the National Institutes of Health shows. While these factors are significant, another important element that you might not have considered is your environment and community.
While life expectancy generally increases annually in the United States—jumping from about 70.8 years old to 77.5 between 1970 and 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—this particular metric can vary from state to state or even county to county. In some parts of the country, the average lifespan is getting shorter based on a variety of risk factors on top of health, including socioeconomic factors like poverty, unemployment, income, and education.
According to a 2020 study from researchers at Penn State, West Virginia, and Michigan State Universities, communities with a higher population density, more fast food restaurants, and a high number of extraction industry-based jobs tend to have shorter life expectancies.
To find out how life expectancy varies within Pennsylvania, Stacker used 2024 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute to identify the counties with the shortest life expectancy. Life expectancy measures the average number of years from birth a person can expect to live and is calculated based on the number of deaths in a given time period and the average number of people at risk of dying during that period. Counties with unreliable or insufficient data were excluded from the analysis. Mortality data came from the National Vital Statistics System.
Read on to see if your county is on the list.
You may also like: Countries to which Pennsylvania exports the most goods
Canva
2 / 34#33. Perry County
- Life expectancy: 76.7 years
--- 0.6 years lower than the state average
Canva
3 / 34#32. Erie County
- Life expectancy: 76.6 years
--- 0.7 years lower than the state average
Canva
4 / 34#29. Bedford County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.5 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
5 / 34#29. Jefferson County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.5 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Coldest Septembers in Pennsylvania since 1895
George Sheldon // Shutterstock
6 / 34#29. Lycoming County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.5 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
7 / 34#28. Warren County
- Life expectancy: 76.4 years
--- 0.9 years lower than the state average
Canva
8 / 34#27. Lackawanna County
- Life expectancy: 76.3 years
--- 1.0 years lower than the state average
Alejandro Guzmani // Shutterstock
9 / 34#25. Fulton County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.2 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average
Delmas Lehman // Shutterstock
10 / 34#25. Clearfield County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.2 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Highest-rated beer in Pennsylvania
Canva
11 / 34#21. Washington County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.1 years
--- 1.2 years lower than the state average
Canva
12 / 34#21. Sullivan County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.1 years
--- 1.2 years lower than the state average
Canva
13 / 34#21. Somerset County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.1 years
--- 1.2 years lower than the state average
Mark Rust // Shutterstock
14 / 34#21. Indiana County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.1 years
--- 1.2 years lower than the state average
George Sheldon // Shutterstock
15 / 34#20. Mifflin County
- Life expectancy: 76.0 years
--- 1.3 years lower than the state average
You may also like: How gas prices have changed in Pennsylvania in the last week
Orlowski Designs LLC // Shutterstock
16 / 34#18. Beaver County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.9 years
--- 1.4 years lower than the state average
Canva
17 / 34#18. Clarion County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.9 years
--- 1.4 years lower than the state average
Canva
18 / 34#17. Crawford County
- Life expectancy: 75.8 years
--- 1.5 years lower than the state average
Canva
19 / 34#16. McKean County
- Life expectancy: 75.7 years
--- 1.6 years lower than the state average
Canva
20 / 34#15. Wyoming County
- Life expectancy: 75.6 years
--- 1.7 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Highest-rated specialty museums in Pennsylvania by visitors
Canva
21 / 34#14. Northumberland County
- Life expectancy: 75.5 years
--- 1.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
22 / 34#13. Blair County
- Life expectancy: 75.4 years
--- 1.9 years lower than the state average
Rusty Lofgren // Shutterstock
23 / 34#11. Armstrong County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.3 years
--- 2.0 years lower than the state average
Canva
24 / 34#11. Carbon County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.3 years
--- 2.0 years lower than the state average
Canva
25 / 34#8. Mercer County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.0 years
--- 2.3 years lower than the state average
You may also like: See the most extreme temperatures in Pennsylvania history
Canva
26 / 34#8. Venango County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.0 years
--- 2.3 years lower than the state average
Canva
27 / 34#8. Luzerne County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.0 years
--- 2.3 years lower than the state average
Canva
28 / 34#7. Cambria County
- Life expectancy: 74.9 years
--- 2.4 years lower than the state average
The American Explorer // Shutterstock
29 / 34#6. Lawrence County
- Life expectancy: 74.7 years
--- 2.6 years lower than the state average
Bennekom // Shutterstock
30 / 34#5. Schuylkill County
- Life expectancy: 74.6 years
--- 2.7 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Highest-rated Class of 2025 men's basketball recruits from Pennsylvania
Canva
31 / 34#4. Philadelphia County
- Life expectancy: 74.5 years
--- 2.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
32 / 34#3. Greene County
- Life expectancy: 74.4 years
--- 2.9 years lower than the state average
Canva
33 / 34#2. Forest County
- Life expectancy: 73.6 years
--- 3.7 years lower than the state average
Canva
34 / 34#1. Fayette County
- Life expectancy: 73.4 years
--- 3.9 years lower than the state average
This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Kiersten Hickman, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 49 states.
