Published 2026-09-01 · data 2024 · people
One in twenty-five children still die before age five
Global child mortality has plunged — but the remaining burden is not evenly spread.
One in twenty-five children still dies before reaching age five. Despite decades of progress, UN IGME's 2024 estimates put global under-five mortality at about 4% — and the risk a child faces depends heavily on where they are born. The grid sets the 96% who survive past age five against the 4% who do not.
1 cell = 8.2 million people (0.1% of world population) · 1,000 cells
Context
Under-five mortality is the probability that a newborn dies before their fifth birthday. In its 2024 estimates, the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) puts the global rate at roughly 4% — about one child in every twenty-five.
That share reflects decades of steep decline, but the progress has not been even. A child's odds of reaching age five still depend strongly on where they are born, which is why the remaining burden is not evenly spread.
The grid holds the two outcomes side by side: the 96% who survive past age five and the 4% who do not. The smaller band is easy to round away, but it is the part of the story still unfinished.
UN IGME 2024: ~4% under-five mortality globally, rounded.
Share and export
Credit this grid as Inagrid — https://inagrid.com/e/2026-09-01-child-mortality