TOP 10 Countries with Lowest Infant Mortality Rate (2025)
Lowest infant mortality rates in the latest country comparison
Infant mortality is the probability that a child born alive will die before reaching age one, expressed per 1,000 live births. It is one of the most sensitive summary indicators for maternal care, newborn survival, vaccination, nutrition, sanitation, early diagnosis and the reliability of civil registration.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The Top 10 ranking uses archived CIA World Factbook 2024 country-comparison estimates because that source provides one-decimal values and includes selected small territories. World Bank WDI, UN IGME and WHO sources are used for the indicator definition, global benchmark and methodological context. The page is labelled as a 2025 snapshot because 2024 estimates are the latest complete comparison year used across the cited reference sources.
Values are estimates, not direct annual counts. Small territories can move sharply because a few additional infant deaths can change the rate more than they would in a larger country. Differences of 0.1 or 0.2 deaths per 1,000 should be read cautiously, especially where values are rounded.
Singapore and Slovenia are listed at about 1.5 infant deaths per 1,000 live births.
The full Top 10 is separated by less than one death per 1,000 live births.
World Bank WDI reports the 2024 world estimate at about 27.7 per 1,000 live births.
International tables combine registration data, surveys, censuses and demographic modelling.
What the upper end of the ranking shows
The strongest performers are countries and territories where infant deaths have already fallen to very low levels. At this point, additional reductions depend less on broad public-health expansion and more on high-quality pregnancy monitoring, safe delivery, neonatal intensive care, early detection of congenital conditions, postnatal follow-up and targeted support for vulnerable families.
The list is heavily shaped by high-income health systems, but it is not a simple income table. Singapore and Japan represent dense Asian systems with strong hospital capacity and preventive services. Nordic countries appear repeatedly. Slovenia and Belarus show that low infant mortality can also be achieved outside the largest rich economies when perinatal care, immunisation and primary care are broadly accessible.
Monaco and Bermuda are useful as small-territory observations, but they should not be interpreted in the same way as Japan, Sweden or Norway. Small birth cohorts make single-year estimates more volatile, so long-run patterns are more informative than a single annual ranking point.
Top 10 lowest infant mortality rates
The table is sorted from the lowest estimate upward. The unit is infant deaths before age one per 1,000 live births. Equal one-decimal values should be treated as ties rather than meaningful separations.
| Rank | Country / territory | Infant deaths per 1,000 live births |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore | 1.5 |
| 2 | Slovenia | 1.5 |
| 3 | Iceland | 1.6 |
| 4 | Monaco | 1.7 |
| 5 | Norway | 1.8 |
| 6 | Japan | 1.9 |
| 7 | Belarus | 2.1 |
| 8 | Bermuda | 2.1 |
| 9 | Finland | 2.1 |
| 10 | Sweden | 2.3 |
Ranking values: archived CIA World Factbook 2024 one-decimal country-comparison estimates. World Bank WDI / UN IGME is used for the world benchmark and indicator context.
Chart: a narrow band at the low-mortality frontier
The difference between first place and tenth place is only 0.8 infant deaths per 1,000 live births. That is a very small spread compared with the 2024 global benchmark of 27.7 per 1,000 live births.
Methodology
Infant mortality is treated here as the probability of dying between birth and age one, expressed per 1,000 live births. A value of 2.0 means that, under the estimated mortality pattern, about two infants die before their first birthday for every 1,000 live births.
Ranking logic
The Top 10 order follows archived CIA World Factbook 2024 one-decimal country-comparison estimates. That source is used for the ranking because it includes selected small territories and provides decimal precision.
Reference year
The page uses a 2025 snapshot label because the ranking values and global comparison rely on 2024 estimates, the latest complete year used consistently across the cited reference sources.
Benchmark and definition
World Bank WDI indicator SP.DYN.IMRT.IN, based on UN IGME child mortality estimates, is used for the global 2024 benchmark. WHO GHO is used for the indicator definition.
Rounding
Ranking values are shown to one decimal place. Equal values are interpreted as ties; small differences should not be treated as proof of a better or worse health system.
International comparability is strongest for broad patterns, not for separating countries by tenths of a point. Estimates can be affected by vital-registration quality, late registration, treatment of extremely premature births, survey uncertainty and demographic modelling.
Small territories such as Monaco and Bermuda have an additional limitation: small birth cohorts make the rate volatile. For policy analysis, multi-year averages, confidence intervals and subnational detail are more useful than a single annual point estimate.
Detailed Top 10 with coverage notes
The detailed table keeps the same Top 10 values and adds region or coverage context. Use the controls to compare countries by name, region or value.
| Rank | Country / territory | Region / status | Rate per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore | Asia · high-income city-state | 1.5 |
| 2 | Slovenia | Europe · EU member | 1.5 |
| 3 | Iceland | Europe · Nordic | 1.6 |
| 4 | Monaco | Europe · small population | 1.7 |
| 5 | Norway | Europe · Nordic | 1.8 |
| 6 | Japan | Asia · high-income economy | 1.9 |
| 7 | Belarus | Europe · Eastern Europe | 2.1 |
| 8 | Bermuda | North Atlantic · small territory | 2.1 |
| 9 | Finland | Europe · Nordic | 2.1 |
| 10 | Sweden | Europe · Nordic | 2.3 |
Source note: archived CIA World Factbook 2024 estimates are used for the one-decimal Top 10 values. World Bank WDI / UN IGME provides the 2024 world benchmark and indicator context.
Insights from the ranking
The top is a health-system frontier
At rates near 1.5–2.3, many remaining infant deaths are linked to extreme prematurity, congenital conditions, rare complications or very complex neonatal cases. Further reductions are possible, but the gains are smaller and harder than in countries still reducing preventable infectious and perinatal deaths.
Small values can still hide inequality
A national average can conceal differences by income, maternal age, geography, migration background and access to specialist care. Even countries with very low national rates need subnational monitoring to identify groups with higher risk.
The Nordic cluster reflects decades of universal maternal care, integrated child-health visits, primary-care access and low financial barriers. Singapore and Japan show a different route: dense urban systems, advanced hospitals, high health-system capacity and strong preventive services.
Belarus is the clearest income outlier in this Top 10. Its position suggests that infant mortality can fall to low levels when perinatal systems, vaccination and basic child-health services are broadly available. The comparison still needs caution because reporting practice and data quality can matter when rates are already very low.
What this means for readers
For readers comparing health systems, infant mortality is a compact signal of how reliably a country protects life at the most vulnerable stage. It reflects hospitals, midwives, pregnancy monitoring, vaccination, sanitation, parental support, social protection and the strength of civil registration.
For policymakers, the ranking shows that very low infant mortality is not produced by neonatal intensive care alone. The strongest performers combine pregnancy monitoring, skilled birth attendance, emergency obstetric care, neonatal referral systems, early screening and postnatal follow-up.
For analysts, the table is a starting point rather than a full health-system score. Infant mortality should be read together with birth volume, neonatal mortality, maternal mortality, prematurity rates, health spending, poverty, regional inequality and the completeness of birth and death registration.
FAQ
Which country has the lowest infant mortality rate in this 2025 snapshot?
Singapore and Slovenia are both listed at about 1.5 infant deaths per 1,000 live births. Because the value is rounded to one decimal place, they should be treated as tied at the top.
Why does the page use 2024 estimates for a 2025 snapshot?
International mortality estimates are released after data collection, validation and modelling. For a 2025 publication snapshot, 2024 is the latest complete comparison year used across the main reference sources cited here.
Is infant mortality a direct count?
No. It is an estimated probability of dying before age one, expressed per 1,000 live births. In countries with complete vital registration it is close to observed registration data; in countries with incomplete systems it relies more heavily on surveys, censuses and demographic modelling.
Does a low infant mortality rate mean the whole health system is the best?
No. Infant mortality is a powerful health and development indicator, but it does not measure waiting times, adult outcomes, affordability, mental health, patient experience or all forms of health inequality.
Why are small territories included?
The archived ranking source includes selected territories. They are retained for transparency, but their values should be interpreted carefully because small birth cohorts make annual estimates more volatile.
Why can two sources show slightly different values?
Sources can differ because of rounding, revision schedules, treatment of very premature births, completeness of registration and modelling assumptions. Differences of a few tenths per 1,000 should not be overread.
Sources
-
World Bank Data — Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births)
Used for the official WDI indicator, country-series context and the 2024 world benchmark of 27.7 infant deaths per 1,000 live births. -
United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME)
Used for the underlying international child-mortality estimate framework behind the WDI series. -
WHO Global Health Observatory — Infant mortality rate definition
Used for the technical definition: probability of dying between birth and age one, expressed per 1,000 live births. -
Archived republication of CIA World Factbook 2024 country-comparison estimates
Used for the one-decimal Top 10 order and small-territory coverage. The current live CIA World Factbook field pages are no longer served as an active country-comparison table, so this ranking is treated as an archived 2024 snapshot.
