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.
Recommended Videos
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 Florida, 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.
Canva
#33. Gilchrist County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.6 years
--- 2.9 years lower than the state average
jenniferlee4828 // Shutterstock
#33. Hardee County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.6 years
--- 2.9 years lower than the state average
Canva
#32. Highlands County
- Life expectancy: 75.5 years
--- 3.0 years lower than the state average
Studio952 // Shutterstock
#30. Hendry County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.4 years
--- 3.1 years lower than the state average
Canva
#30. Jefferson County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.4 years
--- 3.1 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Best counties to raise a family in Florida
Canva
#29. Volusia County
- Life expectancy: 75.3 years
--- 3.2 years lower than the state average
Canva
#28. Hernando County
- Life expectancy: 75.0 years
--- 3.5 years lower than the state average
Canva
#27. Wakulla County
- Life expectancy: 74.9 years
--- 3.6 years lower than the state average
Canva
#26. Franklin County
- Life expectancy: 74.8 years
--- 3.7 years lower than the state average
Victoria1988 // Shutterstock
#24. Bradford County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.6 years
--- 3.9 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Metros where renters are the most overextended in Florida
Canva
#24. Lafayette County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.6 years
--- 3.9 years lower than the state average
Canva
#23. Bay County
- Life expectancy: 74.5 years
--- 4.0 years lower than the state average
Canva
#21. Marion County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.4 years
--- 4.1 years lower than the state average
Roberto Galan // Shutterstock
#21. Baker County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.4 years
--- 4.1 years lower than the state average
Canva
#19. Calhoun County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.3 years
--- 4.2 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Where refugees in Florida are arriving from
Canva
#19. Duval County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.3 years
--- 4.2 years lower than the state average
Canva
#18. Levy County
- Life expectancy: 74.2 years
--- 4.3 years lower than the state average
Canva
#16. Gadsden County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.1 years
--- 4.4 years lower than the state average
Canva
#16. Dixie County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.1 years
--- 4.4 years lower than the state average
Canva
#14. Okeechobee County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 73.9 years
--- 4.6 years lower than the state average
You may also like: How much manufacturers in Florida spend on equipment
Canva
#14. Gulf County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 73.9 years
--- 4.6 years lower than the state average
Canva
#13. Suwannee County
- Life expectancy: 73.8 years
--- 4.7 years lower than the state average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
#12. Liberty County
- Life expectancy: 73.7 years
--- 4.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
#11. Taylor County
- Life expectancy: 73.5 years
--- 5.0 years lower than the state average
Canva
#9. Citrus County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 73.2 years
--- 5.3 years lower than the state average
You may also like: Counties in Florida with more precipitation over the past year than average
Canva
#9. Columbia County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 73.2 years
--- 5.3 years lower than the state average
Canva
#8. Escambia County
- Life expectancy: 73.1 years
--- 5.4 years lower than the state average
Canva
#7. Madison County
- Life expectancy: 73.0 years
--- 5.5 years lower than the state average
Jen Wolf // Shutterstock
#6. Hamilton County
- Life expectancy: 72.7 years
--- 5.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
#5. Jackson County
- Life expectancy: 72.1 years
--- 6.4 years lower than the state average
You may also like: The best beach towns in Florida
Terry Kelly // Shutterstock
#4. Washington County
- Life expectancy: 71.8 years
--- 6.7 years lower than the state average
Susan C. Brown // Shutterstock
#3. Holmes County
- Life expectancy: 71.7 years
--- 6.8 years lower than the state average
Canva
#2. Putnam County
- Life expectancy: 71.5 years
--- 7.0 years lower than the state average
Roberto Galan // Shutterstock
#1. Union County
- Life expectancy: 67.4 years
--- 11.1 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.