The United States experienced a significant drop in the number of births in 2023 with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reporting fewer than 3.6 million babies born. This figure represents a decline of approximately 76,000 compared to 2022 and marks the lowest number of births recorded in nearly 35 years.

Notably, the reduction in births was consistent across most racial and ethnic lines in the United States. This finding suggests that the factors contributing to the declining birth rate are affecting a wide range of communities throughout the country.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic the U.S. birth rate had been trending downward for a decade with a particularly sharp 4% drop between 2019 and 2020. While the pandemic appeared to reverse this trend slightly with a small increase in births over the following two years the latest CDC data indicate that the country has returned to its pre-pandemic trajectory.

University of Wisconsin researcher Nicholas Mark commented on the recent figures stating that “there’s some evidence that not just postponement is going on.” The birth rate decreased among women under 40 last year but did not increase for older women suggesting that the decline is not solely attributed to people delaying parenthood.

As the United States and many other nations worldwide face the challenges associated with an aging population and declining birth rates experts are increasingly focused on understanding the complex factors driving this trend and developing strategies to address its potential consequences.