The Average Life Expectancy in the United States Dropped for the Second Year in a Row On Thursday, the Center for Disease Control released the new life average expectancy for the United States. According to data collected from 2016, the average life expectancy is 78.6 which is down from 78.7 in 2015 and 78.9 in 2014. Women are still expected to live longer than men, 81.1 years compared to 76.1. The drop in life expectancy is likely due to the rise of drug overdoses, which reached roughly 64,00 the National Institute on Drug Abuse.