According to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the infant mortality rate in the United States fell to 5.4 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2025, marking the lowest rate ever recorded. This represents a 3% decline from the previous year's rate of 5.6 per 1,000.
The decline was observed across most racial and ethnic groups, with the largest improvements seen among Black infants, whose mortality rate dropped from 10.4 to 9.8 per 1,000 live births. However, significant disparities persist, as Black infants remain more than twice as likely to die before their first birthday compared to white infants.
Experts attribute the record low to advances in prenatal care, increased access to neonatal intensive care units, and public health initiatives targeting sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and preterm birth. The CDC noted that the leading causes of infant death continue to be congenital malformations, preterm birth, and low birth weight.
The data, released on June 15, 2026, covers all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The previous record low was set in 2022 at 5.6 per 1,000 live births.
