The Number of Retirees per 100 Workers, by 2050

What we’re showing

This graphic shows the old-age dependency ratio across 10 major economies, for the years 2000 and 2050 (forecast).

Key takeaway

The number of retired people per 100 workers is climbing globally, which could put social security systems under immense stress.

Also noteworthy is China's significant increase, from 11 in 2000, to an expected 48 in 2050. This is partly due to the country's now defunct one-child policy, which ran from 1979 to 2015.

Context

Two major drivers of this trend are increasing life expectancies (longer retirements) and slowing fertility rates, especially in mature economies like Japan and Italy.