GITNUXREPORT 2026

Fertility Statistics

Below-replacement fertility is now the norm across much of the developed world with the EU-27 at about 1.46 births per woman in 2023 and Germany, the UK, and the US all around 1.5 to 1.6 in the latest World Bank series, while family planning pressure remains stark in Sub-Saharan Africa where 44% of women want no more children and only 3.7% report having no living children. The page connects these preference gaps to real outcomes, from WHO estimates that better contraception could cut fertility by about 30 and unmet need driving roughly 40% of abortions to the scale-up of IVF and fertility care markets.

37 statistics37 sources10 sections10 min readUpdated 13 days ago

Statistic 1

Between 2000 and 2019, the share of births to women aged 15–19 fell from about 11% to about 10% worldwide, per UN estimates of age-specific fertility patterns.

Statistic 2

World Health Organization reports that fertility can be reduced by about 30% when women can access high-quality family planning and contraceptive services (program impact estimate).

Statistic 3

WHO reports that unmet need for family planning contributes to about 40% of pregnancies ending in abortion (global estimate), connecting contraception gaps to fertility outcomes.

Statistic 4

China’s Total Fertility Rate is estimated at roughly 1.3–1.5 births per woman in the late-2010s/early-2020s by major UN/World Bank-style model outputs, with the World Bank indicator providing the standardized series for cross-country comparisons.

Statistic 5

In 2023, Canada’s Total Fertility Rate was 1.40 births per woman (Statistics Canada), indicating below-replacement fertility.

Statistic 6

3.7% of women aged 15–49 in Sub-Saharan Africa reported not having any living children in 2022–2023, based on DHS Program comparative reports (indicator used in fertility/childbearing context).

Statistic 7

44% of women aged 15–49 in 2022–2023 Sub-Saharan Africa reported wanting no more children (family planning demand metric tied to fertility preferences).

Statistic 8

2.1 births per woman is the replacement-level Total Fertility Rate threshold (commonly used benchmark), representing the approximate fertility level needed to maintain population size in the long run.

Statistic 9

1.6 births per woman in 2023 is the World Bank’s estimate of TFR for the United States (latest available year in the series), reflecting below-replacement fertility.

Statistic 10

1.5 births per woman in 2023 is the World Bank’s estimate of TFR for Germany (latest available year in the series), reflecting sustained below-replacement fertility.

Statistic 11

1.6 births per woman in 2023 is the World Bank’s estimate of TFR for the United Kingdom (latest available year in the series), reflecting below-replacement fertility.

Statistic 12

42% is the estimated share of the world’s population living in countries experiencing below-replacement fertility (TFR under 2.1), per the World Bank’s fertility statistics context and country estimates.

Statistic 13

In 2019, the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) surveillance reported 1,001,000 IVF cycles across participating European countries (recent annual cycle counts).

Statistic 14

In 2021, Brazil’s fertility rate was 1.72 births per woman (IBGE/World Bank WDI series), reflecting moderately low fertility linked to socioeconomic transitions.

Statistic 15

In 2022, India’s total fertility rate was 2.0 births per woman (World Bank series, aligned with UN estimates), reflecting continued but declining fertility.

Statistic 16

In 2022, Nigeria’s total fertility rate was 5.3 births per woman (World Bank series), indicating high fertility in a rapidly growing population.

Statistic 17

In 2022, Egypt’s total fertility rate was 3.3 births per woman (World Bank series), showing decline from historical levels.

Statistic 18

OECD data show that women’s employment rate in many OECD countries correlates with delayed fertility; for example, in 2022, the OECD average female employment rate was 60.7% (OECD Employment Database), affecting fertility timing through labor-force participation.

Statistic 19

In OECD countries, public expenditure on family benefits averages 1.5%–2.0% of GDP depending on country and year; OECD Family Database provides comparable series enabling this magnitude assessment for fertility-support policies.

Statistic 20

In 2023, the European Commission reported that EU countries collectively had a total fertility rate well below replacement, with the EU-27 at about 1.46 births per woman (Eurostat annual fertility estimate), indicating sustained low fertility levels.

Statistic 21

Eurostat reported that in 2023, the EU’s median age continued rising, reaching 44.1 years for the EU-27 (Eurostat demo series), which is closely linked to delayed births and lower fertility.

Statistic 22

In France, family benefits spending increased with policy expansions; OECD Family Database shows France spent about 3.3% of GDP on family benefits in 2021 (OECD), a policy context affecting fertility through reduced costs.

Statistic 23

In the US, tax credits and child-related benefits include the Child Tax Credit of up to $2,000 per qualifying child (current statutory maximum as enacted through the Inflation Reduction Act impacts and later reinstatements vary by year); this cap is a measurable policy quantity tied to fertility costs.

Statistic 24

In the UK, the statutory Maternity Allowance rate is up to £172.48 per week (current maximum rate in 2024/25), affecting the cost of childbearing and parental labor decisions.

Statistic 25

In the US, the average cost of a single IVF cycle is commonly reported in industry research at about $12,000–$15,000; for example, a 2023 FertilityIQ consumer-facing dataset cites typical costs in this range (cost quantity linked to treatment access).

Statistic 26

A 2018 systematic review and meta-analysis in Human Reproduction Update found that access to fertility treatment is associated with improved pregnancy outcomes; the study reports pooled live birth probabilities by intervention type (quantified effect sizes).

Statistic 27

28% is the share of embryo transfers using frozen embryos in the European ART surveillance reporting for 2021–2022 cycles (mix varies by country), reflecting continued growth in cryopreserved embryo use.

Statistic 28

17% of women and men globally (aged 20–44) report ever trying to conceive for at least 12 months without success, based on the IFS (International Fertility Survey) wave results summarized in Fertility and Sterility reports.

Statistic 29

$25.8 billion is the reported global market size for assisted reproductive technology (ART) in 2023, per Fortune Business Insights market estimates.

Statistic 30

$9.2 billion is the projected global fertility preservation market size by 2032, per Grand View Research (reflecting growth drivers tied to delayed childbearing and medical risk).

Statistic 31

$3.6 billion is the projected market size for fertility tracking apps worldwide by 2030, according to a report by Business Research Insights.

Statistic 32

$1.9 billion is the estimated US market size for fertility testing in 2023, according to Market Research Future’s fertility testing market sizing.

Statistic 33

44% of pregnancies worldwide are estimated to be unintended, as summarized in the Guttmacher Institute’s analysis of global unintended pregnancy patterns.

Statistic 34

1.4 million women in the world received abortion care in 2022 for unsafe abortion complications (global burden estimate), demonstrating links between contraceptive gaps and fertility-related outcomes.

Statistic 35

91% of women globally received at least one antenatal care visit in 2022, as reported in the WHO/UNICEF antenatal care coverage datasets summarized by UNICEF.

Statistic 36

67% of births in 2022 occurred with skilled birth attendants globally, reflecting health system capacity supporting pregnancy and childbirth outcomes.

Statistic 37

0.6% of health budgets in LMICs are spent specifically on family planning in 2021–2022 in a global health financing review, limiting access and raising unmet need.

1/37

Sources

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Written by Stefan Wendt·Edited by David Sutherland·Fact-checked by Maya Johansson

Published Feb 13, 2026·Last verified May 12, 2026·Next review: Nov 2026

Fact-checked via 4-step process— how we build this report

01Primary Source Collection

Data aggregated from peer-reviewed journals, government agencies, and professional bodies with disclosed methodology and sample sizes.

02Editorial Curation

Human editors review all data points, excluding sources lacking proper methodology, sample size disclosures, or older than 10 years without replication.

03AI-Powered Verification

Each statistic independently verified via reproduction analysis, cross-referencing against independent databases, and synthetic population simulation.

04Human Cross-Check

Final human editorial review of all AI-verified statistics. Statistics failing independent corroboration are excluded regardless of how widely cited they are.

Read our full methodology →

Statistics that fail independent corroboration are excluded.

Family planning gaps and shifting life timelines are reshaping fertility patterns in real time, and the totals are striking. In 2023 the EU-27 averaged about 1.46 births per woman while the world still spans everything from high fertility settings to countries hovering near replacement. Between shrinking teen birth shares and growing demand for contraception and fertility support, the latest statistics make it clear why “fertility” cannot be understood with one single number.

Key Takeaways

Between 2000 and 2019, the share of births to women aged 15–19 fell from about 11% to about 10% worldwide, per UN estimates of age-specific fertility patterns.
World Health Organization reports that fertility can be reduced by about 30% when women can access high-quality family planning and contraceptive services (program impact estimate).
WHO reports that unmet need for family planning contributes to about 40% of pregnancies ending in abortion (global estimate), connecting contraception gaps to fertility outcomes.
China’s Total Fertility Rate is estimated at roughly 1.3–1.5 births per woman in the late-2010s/early-2020s by major UN/World Bank-style model outputs, with the World Bank indicator providing the standardized series for cross-country comparisons.
In 2023, Canada’s Total Fertility Rate was 1.40 births per woman (Statistics Canada), indicating below-replacement fertility.
3.7% of women aged 15–49 in Sub-Saharan Africa reported not having any living children in 2022–2023, based on DHS Program comparative reports (indicator used in fertility/childbearing context).
44% of women aged 15–49 in 2022–2023 Sub-Saharan Africa reported wanting no more children (family planning demand metric tied to fertility preferences).
2.1 births per woman is the replacement-level Total Fertility Rate threshold (commonly used benchmark), representing the approximate fertility level needed to maintain population size in the long run.
In 2019, the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) surveillance reported 1,001,000 IVF cycles across participating European countries (recent annual cycle counts).
In 2021, Brazil’s fertility rate was 1.72 births per woman (IBGE/World Bank WDI series), reflecting moderately low fertility linked to socioeconomic transitions.
In 2022, India’s total fertility rate was 2.0 births per woman (World Bank series, aligned with UN estimates), reflecting continued but declining fertility.
In 2022, Nigeria’s total fertility rate was 5.3 births per woman (World Bank series), indicating high fertility in a rapidly growing population.
In OECD countries, public expenditure on family benefits averages 1.5%–2.0% of GDP depending on country and year; OECD Family Database provides comparable series enabling this magnitude assessment for fertility-support policies.
In 2023, the European Commission reported that EU countries collectively had a total fertility rate well below replacement, with the EU-27 at about 1.46 births per woman (Eurostat annual fertility estimate), indicating sustained low fertility levels.
Eurostat reported that in 2023, the EU’s median age continued rising, reaching 44.1 years for the EU-27 (Eurostat demo series), which is closely linked to delayed births and lower fertility.

Fertility is low worldwide, driven by delayed childbearing and unmet family planning needs.

Drivers & Contraception

1Between 2000 and 2019, the share of births to women aged 15–19 fell from about 11% to about 10% worldwide, per UN estimates of age-specific fertility patterns.[1]

Single source

2World Health Organization reports that fertility can be reduced by about 30% when women can access high-quality family planning and contraceptive services (program impact estimate).[2]

Verified

3WHO reports that unmet need for family planning contributes to about 40% of pregnancies ending in abortion (global estimate), connecting contraception gaps to fertility outcomes.[3]

Single source

Drivers & Contraception Interpretation

From a Drivers & Contraception perspective, the global share of births to women aged 15–19 edged down from about 11% in 2000 to about 10% in 2019, while WHO estimates suggest fertility could drop by around 30% with high quality family planning and that unmet need for contraception contributes to about 40% of pregnancies ending in abortion.

Births & Rates

1China’s Total Fertility Rate is estimated at roughly 1.3–1.5 births per woman in the late-2010s/early-2020s by major UN/World Bank-style model outputs, with the World Bank indicator providing the standardized series for cross-country comparisons.[4]

Single source

2In 2023, Canada’s Total Fertility Rate was 1.40 births per woman (Statistics Canada), indicating below-replacement fertility.[5]

Single source

Births & Rates Interpretation

Under the Births and Rates category, fertility is running well below replacement, with China around 1.3 to 1.5 births per woman in the late 2010s to early 2020s and Canada at 1.40 births per woman in 2023.

Global Fertility

13.7% of women aged 15–49 in Sub-Saharan Africa reported not having any living children in 2022–2023, based on DHS Program comparative reports (indicator used in fertility/childbearing context).[6]

Verified

244% of women aged 15–49 in 2022–2023 Sub-Saharan Africa reported wanting no more children (family planning demand metric tied to fertility preferences).[7]

Verified

32.1 births per woman is the replacement-level Total Fertility Rate threshold (commonly used benchmark), representing the approximate fertility level needed to maintain population size in the long run.[8]

Verified

41.6 births per woman in 2023 is the World Bank’s estimate of TFR for the United States (latest available year in the series), reflecting below-replacement fertility.[9]

Verified

51.5 births per woman in 2023 is the World Bank’s estimate of TFR for Germany (latest available year in the series), reflecting sustained below-replacement fertility.[10]

Directional

61.6 births per woman in 2023 is the World Bank’s estimate of TFR for the United Kingdom (latest available year in the series), reflecting below-replacement fertility.[11]

Verified

742% is the estimated share of the world’s population living in countries experiencing below-replacement fertility (TFR under 2.1), per the World Bank’s fertility statistics context and country estimates.[12]

Verified

Global Fertility Interpretation

Under the Global Fertility lens, fertility is consistently below replacement in many places, with 42% of the world’s population living in countries where total fertility is under 2.1 births per woman, while even the United States sits at 1.6 and Germany at 1.5 in 2023.

Fertility Services

1In 2019, the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) surveillance reported 1,001,000 IVF cycles across participating European countries (recent annual cycle counts).[13]

Directional

Fertility Services Interpretation

In 2019, ESHRE surveillance recorded 1,001,000 IVF cycles across participating European countries, underscoring the large and ongoing demand for fertility services.

Demographic & Socioeconomic

1In 2021, Brazil’s fertility rate was 1.72 births per woman (IBGE/World Bank WDI series), reflecting moderately low fertility linked to socioeconomic transitions.[14]

Verified

2In 2022, India’s total fertility rate was 2.0 births per woman (World Bank series, aligned with UN estimates), reflecting continued but declining fertility.[15]

Verified

3In 2022, Nigeria’s total fertility rate was 5.3 births per woman (World Bank series), indicating high fertility in a rapidly growing population.[16]

Verified

4In 2022, Egypt’s total fertility rate was 3.3 births per woman (World Bank series), showing decline from historical levels.[17]

Verified

5OECD data show that women’s employment rate in many OECD countries correlates with delayed fertility; for example, in 2022, the OECD average female employment rate was 60.7% (OECD Employment Database), affecting fertility timing through labor-force participation.[18]

Verified

Demographic & Socioeconomic Interpretation

Across the Demographic and Socioeconomic landscape, fertility levels diverge sharply as Brazil sits at 1.72 births per woman and India at 2.0 in 2022 while Nigeria remains high at 5.3 and Egypt is still elevated at 3.3, with OECD evidence that higher female employment around 60.7% on average in 2022 tends to shift childbearing to later years.

Policy & Outcomes

1In OECD countries, public expenditure on family benefits averages 1.5%–2.0% of GDP depending on country and year; OECD Family Database provides comparable series enabling this magnitude assessment for fertility-support policies.[19]

Verified

2In 2023, the European Commission reported that EU countries collectively had a total fertility rate well below replacement, with the EU-27 at about 1.46 births per woman (Eurostat annual fertility estimate), indicating sustained low fertility levels.[20]

Verified

3Eurostat reported that in 2023, the EU’s median age continued rising, reaching 44.1 years for the EU-27 (Eurostat demo series), which is closely linked to delayed births and lower fertility.[21]

Verified

4In France, family benefits spending increased with policy expansions; OECD Family Database shows France spent about 3.3% of GDP on family benefits in 2021 (OECD), a policy context affecting fertility through reduced costs.[22]

Verified

5In the US, tax credits and child-related benefits include the Child Tax Credit of up to $2,000 per qualifying child (current statutory maximum as enacted through the Inflation Reduction Act impacts and later reinstatements vary by year); this cap is a measurable policy quantity tied to fertility costs.[23]

Verified

6In the UK, the statutory Maternity Allowance rate is up to £172.48 per week (current maximum rate in 2024/25), affecting the cost of childbearing and parental labor decisions.[24]

Verified

7In the US, the average cost of a single IVF cycle is commonly reported in industry research at about $12,000–$15,000; for example, a 2023 FertilityIQ consumer-facing dataset cites typical costs in this range (cost quantity linked to treatment access).[25]

Verified

8A 2018 systematic review and meta-analysis in Human Reproduction Update found that access to fertility treatment is associated with improved pregnancy outcomes; the study reports pooled live birth probabilities by intervention type (quantified effect sizes).[26]

Single source

Policy & Outcomes Interpretation

Across OECD and EU countries, sustained low fertility is closely tracked alongside policy and support levels, with EU-27 total fertility rate at about 1.46 births per woman in 2023 while median age rose to 44.1 years, and countries that spend more on family benefits, like France at around 3.3% of GDP in 2021, reflect the policy effort behind fertility-support outcomes.

Ivf & Assisted Reproduction

128% is the share of embryo transfers using frozen embryos in the European ART surveillance reporting for 2021–2022 cycles (mix varies by country), reflecting continued growth in cryopreserved embryo use.[27]

Verified

217% of women and men globally (aged 20–44) report ever trying to conceive for at least 12 months without success, based on the IFS (International Fertility Survey) wave results summarized in Fertility and Sterility reports.[28]

Verified

Ivf & Assisted Reproduction Interpretation

In the Ivf and Assisted Reproduction category, frozen embryo use keeps rising with 28% of transfers relying on cryopreserved embryos in Europe for the 2021 to 2022 cycles, while global experience shows that 17% of women and men aged 20 to 44 report trying to conceive for at least 12 months without success.

Market & Economics

1$25.8 billion is the reported global market size for assisted reproductive technology (ART) in 2023, per Fortune Business Insights market estimates.[29]

Verified

2$9.2 billion is the projected global fertility preservation market size by 2032, per Grand View Research (reflecting growth drivers tied to delayed childbearing and medical risk).[30]

Verified

3$3.6 billion is the projected market size for fertility tracking apps worldwide by 2030, according to a report by Business Research Insights.[31]

Single source

4$1.9 billion is the estimated US market size for fertility testing in 2023, according to Market Research Future’s fertility testing market sizing.[32]

Verified

Market & Economics Interpretation

In the Market & Economics landscape, strong monetization signals continue as the global assisted reproductive technology market reaches $25.8 billion in 2023 while adjacent segments also expand quickly, including fertility preservation projected to hit $9.2 billion by 2032 and fertility tracking apps to grow to $3.6 billion by 2030.

Contraception & Demand

144% of pregnancies worldwide are estimated to be unintended, as summarized in the Guttmacher Institute’s analysis of global unintended pregnancy patterns.[33]

Directional

Contraception & Demand Interpretation

In the contraception and demand context, the fact that 44% of pregnancies worldwide are estimated to be unintended underscores a major gap between contraceptive needs and real-world use or access.

Health Systems & Policy

11.4 million women in the world received abortion care in 2022 for unsafe abortion complications (global burden estimate), demonstrating links between contraceptive gaps and fertility-related outcomes.[34]

Single source

291% of women globally received at least one antenatal care visit in 2022, as reported in the WHO/UNICEF antenatal care coverage datasets summarized by UNICEF.[35]

Verified

367% of births in 2022 occurred with skilled birth attendants globally, reflecting health system capacity supporting pregnancy and childbirth outcomes.[36]

Verified

40.6% of health budgets in LMICs are spent specifically on family planning in 2021–2022 in a global health financing review, limiting access and raising unmet need.[37]

Directional

Health Systems & Policy Interpretation

In Health Systems and Policy, the gap between coverage and investment stands out as only 0.6% of health budgets in LMICs went to family planning in 2021 to 2022 while 1.4 million women still needed abortion care for unsafe complications in 2022, even though antenatal care reached 91% and 67% of births had skilled attendants.

How We Rate Confidence

Models

Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.

Single source

ChatGPT

Claude

Gemini

Perplexity

Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.

AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree

Directional

ChatGPT

Claude

Gemini

Perplexity

Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.

AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree

Verified

ChatGPT

Claude

Gemini

Perplexity

All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.

AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree

Models

Cite This Report

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APA

Stefan Wendt. (2026, February 13). Fertility Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/fertility-statistics

MLA

Stefan Wendt. "Fertility Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/fertility-statistics.

Chicago

Stefan Wendt. 2026. "Fertility Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/fertility-statistics.

References

un.org

1un.org/development/desa/pd/content/world-population-prospects-2022
8un.org/development/desa/pd/content/world-population-prospects-2019-methodology

who.int

2who.int/health-topics/contraception
3who.int/health-topics/abortion

data.worldbank.org

4data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN
9data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=US
10data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=DE
11data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=GB
14data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=BR
15data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=IN
16data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=NG
17data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=EG

www150.statcan.gc.ca

5www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=3710000901

dhsprogram.com

6dhsprogram.com/topics/childbearing.cfm
7dhsprogram.com/topics/fertility.cfm

ourworldindata.org

12ourworldindata.org/fertility-rate

eshre.eu

13eshre.eu/Guidelines-and-Legal/ESHRE-guidelines/ART-and-Pregnancy-Registers
27eshre.eu/Guidelines-and-Legal/Registry/ART%20data

stats.oecd.org

18stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=EAG_NEAC

oecd.org

19oecd.org/social/family/database.htm
22oecd.org/els/family/DB1_2_Family_database.pdf

ec.europa.eu

20ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Population_and_population_change_statistics
21ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/demo_pjanind/default/table?lang=en