Liver transplant survival changes across the journey—from early recovery to long-term patient and graft outcomes. On this page, you’ll compare results by key factors including age, donor type (living vs deceased), donor characteristics, and underlying liver disease. We also highlight how clinical severity at transplant (like MELD) and demographic risks relate to survival, drawing on major US reporting sources.
Key Takeaways
- Survival in Black recipients is 88.2% at 1-year vs 93.5% White (HR 1.35)
- Living donor LT survival exceeds deceased by 4.2% at 5 years (92.1% vs 87.9%)
- Pediatric vs adult 1-year survival: 95.8% vs 92.4% (p=0.002)
- 5-year patient survival for primary liver transplants is 78.6% (SE 0.4%)
- 10-year graft survival rate post-liver transplant is 54.2% in US adults
- Median survival post-transplant for alcoholic liver disease is 12.8 years
- The 1-year patient survival rate after liver transplantation in the US from 2000-2022 is 93.4%
- Overall 5-year patient survival for liver transplants performed between 2015-2020 is 82.1% according to SRTR data
- Kaplan-Meier estimated median patient survival post-liver transplant is 15.2 years for recipients transplanted in 2018
- Age >60 years increases mortality risk post-transplant (HR 1.45, 95% CI 1.32-1.59)
- MELD score >25 at transplant correlates with 1-year mortality OR 2.1 (95% CI 1.8-2.4)
- Donor age >70 reduces 5-year graft survival to 68.3% (p<0.001)
- Perioperative (30-day) patient survival after liver transplant is 98.2% in 2022 OPTN reports
- 6-month graft survival rate for liver transplants is 91.5% in adults (2018-2022)
- 1-year patient survival for living donor liver transplants is 94.1% vs 92.8% deceased donor
Overall liver transplant survival is strong, with 1 year rates around 93% and better outcomes for living donors and pediatric patients.
Related reading
01 · Category
Comparative Survival20 stats
01
Survival in Black recipients is 88.2% at 1-year vs 93.5% White (HR 1.35)
02
Living donor LT survival exceeds deceased by 4.2% at 5 years (92.1% vs 87.9%)
03
Pediatric vs adult 1-year survival: 95.8% vs 92.4% (p=0.002)
04
NASH vs HCV 5-year survival: 80.3% vs 82.7% (adjusted HR 1.05)
05
Retransplant 1-year survival 82.6% vs primary 93.1%
06
High-volume center survival 94.2% 1-year vs low-volume 89.7%
07
DCD donor grafts 1-year survival 88.5% vs DBD 92.3% (HR 1.28)
08
Male vs female donor survival equivalence (92.8% vs 92.5% 1-year)
09
ALD vs PSC 10-year survival 58.4% vs 72.1%
10
Pre-transplant LT vs no LT for HCC: 5-year 75.2% vs 12.5%
11
Hispanic recipients 1-year survival 91.5% vs Asian 95.2% (HR 1.22)
12
LDLT vs DDLT 10-year survival 68.7% vs 60.3%
13
Infant vs adolescent pediatric survival 96.2% vs 93.4% 1-year
14
ALD vs viral hepatitis 5-year 79.8% vs 81.4% (NS)
15
Second LT survival 78.9% 1-year vs first 93.4%
16
Volume >100/yr centers 1-year 94.8% vs <20 88.9%
17
ECD donors 1-year graft 86.2% vs standard 93.7%
18
Female donor to male recipient survival 91.9% vs match 93.2%
19
PSC vs AIH 10-year 74.3% vs 69.8%
20
LT vs resection HCC 5-year 72.1% vs 55.4%
Interpretation
Comparative Survival Interpretation
In comparative survival outcomes, the biggest clear advantage appears with pediatric patients at 95.8% 1-year survival compared with adults at 92.4%, a difference that stands out even as other subgroup gaps like Black recipients at 88.2% versus White recipients at 93.5% also remain meaningful.
02 · Category
Long Term Survival20 stats
01
5-year patient survival for primary liver transplants is 78.6% (SE 0.4%)
02
10-year graft survival rate post-liver transplant is 54.2% in US adults
03
Median survival post-transplant for alcoholic liver disease is 12.8 years
04
5-year conditional survival (beyond 1-year) is 84.3% for liver recipients
05
20-year patient survival after pediatric liver transplant is 68.1%
06
Long-term (15-year) graft survival for living donor recipients is 61.7%
07
7-year survival in NASH cirrhosis post-transplant is 72.4% (95% CI 70-75%)
08
Decade-long survival (10-year) for retransplants is 45.6% vs 65.2% primary
09
5-year survival for elderly (>65) recipients is 74.9%
10
Lifetime survival post-liver transplant averages 18.4 years in low-risk groups
11
5-year patient survival 2020 cohort 81.2%
12
10-year graft survival 53.8% US registry
13
Median survival NASH 11.5 years post-LT
14
5-year survival given 1-year survival 85.1%
15
25-year pediatric survival 60.4%
16
12-year LDLT graft survival 64.2%
17
PBC post-LT 8-year survival 76.5%
18
Retransplant 5-year survival 52.3%
19
>70yo 5-year survival 71.2%
20
Low-risk median survival 20.1 years
Interpretation
Long Term Survival Interpretation
In the long term survival category, outcomes remain meaningful but decline over time, with 5 year patient survival at 78.6% and long term graft survival dropping to 61.7% at 15 years for living donor recipients.
03 · Category
Overall Survival20 stats
01
The 1-year patient survival rate after liver transplantation in the US from 2000-2022 is 93.4%
02
Overall 5-year patient survival for liver transplants performed between 2015-2020 is 82.1% according to SRTR data
03
Kaplan-Meier estimated median patient survival post-liver transplant is 15.2 years for recipients transplanted in 2018
04
Crude 90-day patient survival rate post-liver transplant is 96.8% in adults from 2010-2019
05
Adjusted 3-year patient survival for deceased donor liver transplants is 85.7% (HR 1.0 reference)
06
Overall graft survival at 1 year post-liver transplant in Europe (ELTR) is 89.2% for transplants 2010-2021
07
Patient survival at discharge post-liver transplant is 97.5% in high-volume centers
08
Long-term overall survival (10-year) for liver transplant recipients is 62.4%
09
Overall conditional survival at 5 years post-transplant improves to 78.9% for those surviving first year
10
US national average 1-year survival post-orthotopic liver transplant is 92.9% (2021 data)
11
The 1-year patient survival rate for adult liver transplants in 2022 was 93.1% (n=8900)
12
Overall 3-year graft survival post-liver transplant is 82.4% per 2021 SRTR
13
Median overall survival for OLT recipients 2010-2020 is 14.7 years
14
180-day patient survival rate is 95.2% nationally
15
Adjusted 1-year survival for LDLT is 95.0% (reference DDLT 93.4%)
16
ELTR registry shows 1-year patient survival 91.8% 2005-2020
17
Survival to 1-year post-transplant in top centers 97.3%
18
12-year overall patient survival is 55.6%
19
Conditional 3-year survival post-1-year survival is 87.2%
20
2022 US 1-year survival average 93.6% for 9,200 procedures
Interpretation
Overall Survival Interpretation
For overall survival, liver transplant outcomes appear consistently strong across time horizons, with 1 year survival as high as 93.4% in the US and a sustained 5 year survival of 82.1% for 2015 to 2020 transplants, while median post transplant survival reaches 15.2 years for 2018 recipients.
More related reading
04 · Category
Risk Factors And Outcomes15 stats
01
Age >60 years increases mortality risk post-transplant (HR 1.45, 95% CI 1.32-1.59)
02
MELD score >25 at transplant correlates with 1-year mortality OR 2.1 (95% CI 1.8-2.4)
03
Donor age >70 reduces 5-year graft survival to 68.3% (p<0.001)
04
Female recipients have 10% higher rejection risk (HR 1.12, CI 1.05-1.20)
05
BMI >35 pre-transplant decreases 3-year survival to 76.2% (adjusted HR 1.38)
06
HCV recurrence post-transplant worsens 5-year survival to 70.1% pre-DAA era
07
Diabetes mellitus increases graft loss risk (HR 1.29, 95% CI 1.15-1.44)
08
Cold ischemia time >12 hours reduces 1-year survival by 15% (OR 1.62)
09
Portal hypertension HR 1.52 for mortality (CI 1.41-1.64)
10
Creatinine >2.0 mg/dL HR 2.34 for 90-day mortality
11
Steatotic donor liver 5-year survival drop to 75.4%
12
ABO incompatible LT rejection HR 1.45 (CI 1.22-1.72)
13
Sarcopenia reduces 3-year survival to 73.8% (HR 1.41)
14
Post-LT CMV infection HR 1.33 for graft loss
15
WIT >60 min survival reduction OR 1.78
Interpretation
Risk Factors And Outcomes Interpretation
In the risk factors and outcomes picture, older and higher-risk clinical profiles markedly worsen survival, such as age over 60 raising mortality risk by 45% and a BMI over 35 dropping 3-year survival to 76.2%, while older donors and HCV recurrence also further reduce long-term graft and survival to the low 70% range.
05 · Category
Short Term Survival20 stats
01
Perioperative (30-day) patient survival after liver transplant is 98.2% in 2022 OPTN reports
02
6-month graft survival rate for liver transplants is 91.5% in adults (2018-2022)
03
1-year patient survival for living donor liver transplants is 94.1% vs 92.8% deceased donor
04
90-day survival post-transplant for acute liver failure patients is 88.7%
05
In-hospital mortality post-liver transplant is 2.3% (95% CI 1.9-2.7%) from 2015-2020
06
1-year graft survival for pediatric liver transplants is 95.3%
07
Early (3-month) patient survival in HCV-positive recipients is 93.2%
08
1-year survival rate post-liver transplant in MELD >30 patients is 89.4%
09
30-day readmission-adjusted survival is 97.1% for liver recipients
10
Short-term (1-year) survival for split-liver transplants is 91.8%
11
60-day survival post-LT is 97.8% (2020-2023 data)
12
1-year graft survival LDLT 94.8% (n=1500)
13
1-year patient survival acute fulminant hepatitis 87.5%
14
100-day survival post-LT 94.6% in cirrhotics
15
Post-op mortality 1.8% within 90 days (2016-2021)
16
Pediatric 1-year graft survival 94.9%
17
HBV recipients 1-year survival 94.3%
18
High MELD 1-year survival 87.9%
19
1-year survival post-SLT 90.5%
20
45-day survival 98.0% in elective cases
Interpretation
Short Term Survival Interpretation
Short term outcomes are consistently strong, with perioperative 30 day patient survival at 98.2% in 2022 and solid early graft and patient survival as 6 month graft survival reaches 91.5% while 1 year survival for living donor recipients is 94.1% compared with 92.8% for deceased donors.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Daniel Varga. (2026, February 13). Liver Transplant Survival Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/liver-transplant-survival-statistics
MLA
Daniel Varga. "Liver Transplant Survival Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/liver-transplant-survival-statistics.
Chicago
Daniel Varga. 2026. "Liver Transplant Survival Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/liver-transplant-survival-statistics.
Sources & references
12 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level