How old women are when their first child is born
Topic: Population and health
Women in Italy are 31.9 years old on average when their first child is born, against 26.9 years in Bulgaria.
In 2024, women in the EU were 29.9 years old on average when their first child was born. The figure comes from that year's first births, weighted by the birth rates at each age.
- Figures for:
- 2024.
- Covers:
- the whole year.
- New data:
- once a year.
- Dataset updated:
- 30 September 2026.
Published 4 November 2026
The ranking
In 2024, the mean age of women at the birth of their first child was highest in Italy, at 31.9 years, and lowest in Bulgaria, at 26.9 years.
Mean age of women at the birth of their first child, years
2024Over time
Mean age of women at the birth of their first child in the EU, years
2013–2024Between 2013 and 2024, the age at the first child rose in 27 countries.
Mean age of women at the birth of their first child, years
2013 and 2024 · ranked by 2024First, second and third child
In 2024, women in the EU were 32.0 years old on average when their second child was born, and 33.1 years when their third was.
Mean age of women at the birth of their first, second and third child, years
2024Age at the first child and the number of children
In 2024, the total fertility rate in the EU was 1.34 children per woman. That is how many children a woman would have if the birth rates at each age of that year held all her life.
Mean age of women at the birth of their first child (across) and total fertility rate (up)
2024About the data
The mean age of women when their first child is born alive, computed from the fertility rates at each age in a year. The dataset also has the mean age at any birth and the total fertility rate.
Eurostat: “Mean age of women at birth of first child : the mean age of women delivering their first child (live births). The indicator is calculated as weighted average of the ages, where weights are the age specific fertility rates (rate-based mean age).” (source)
Births recorded in civil and population registers and population figures, reported by the national statistical institutes to Eurostat. Eurostat computes the indicators.
How to read these numbers
How it is measured
The mean age is computed from the births of a single year, weighted by the fertility rates at each age. It describes that year's first births, not the age at which women born in a given year have their first child. Only live births count.
Estimates
The EU figures are Eurostat estimates (flag e), recent ones also provisional (flag p). The EU figure for the first child starts in 2013.
An estimated value (flag e) was estimated, not measured or counted in full. This concerns Poland (2024), Romania (2024) and the EU (2013–2014, 2018–2024).
Breaks in the series
A break in the series (flag b) means that a value is not fully comparable with the years before it. This concerns Czechia (2020), Estonia (2015), France (2014), Germany (2023), Greece (2021), Italy (2018–2019), Luxembourg (2017), Poland (2018, 2022) and the EU (2014–2015, 2017–2020, 2022–2023).
Provisional figures
A provisional value (flag p) may still be revised. This concerns France (2024), Poland (2024) and the EU (2018, 2020–2024).
Sources and data
Eurostat, Fertility indicators (demo_find). Data updated 30 September 2026, retrieved 3 November 2026. Licence: CC BY 4.0.
Eurostat metadata · Eurostat methodology
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/demo_find?format=JSON&lang=en&freq=A&geo=AT&geo=BE&geo=BG&geo=CY&geo=CZ&geo=DE&geo=DK&geo=EE&geo=EL&geo=ES&geo=EU27_2020&geo=FI&geo=FR&geo=HR&geo=HU&geo=IE&geo=IT&geo=LT&geo=LU&geo=LV&geo=MT&geo=NL&geo=PL&geo=PT&geo=RO&geo=SE&geo=SI&geo=SK&indic_de=AGEMOTH1Related stories
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