Life expectancy at birth is the most important and useful single overall and standardized measure of mortality in a population. Published figures show that Hong Kong men's life expectancy at birth is comparable to that of most industrialized countries. But men in Hong Kong, on average, die 6 years earlier than women.

The life expectancy at birth of men in Hong Kong has increased steadily from 72.3 in 1981 to 83.2 in 2021. The corresponding figures for women were 78.5 and 87.9 years respectively.