Obesity rates by country since 1975
How the share of adults with obesity has climbed in the US, Mexico, Egypt, the UK, Brazil, China, India and Japan.
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What the data shows
- In 2024, Egypt ranks #1 with 42.8%, ahead of United States (41.8%) and Mexico (37.4%).
- The top spot changed hands twice: United States in 1987 and Egypt in 2020.
- Egypt grew 3.4× between 1980 and 2024.
About this chart
Obesity here means a body-mass index of 30 or more. Every country in this chart has seen its rate rise since 1975, including Japan and India, which remain far below the rest.
The figures are modelled estimates from the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration and WHO, based on measured height and weight surveys.
The data
Source: WHO / NCD-RisC via Our World in Data, share of adults with obesity (BMI ≥ 30), %. Retrieved November 3, 2026.
| Date | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 🇪🇬 Egypt | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 🇨🇳 China | 🇮🇳 India | 🇯🇵 Japan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 11.8% | 7.0% | 12.5% | 7.4% | 5.4% | 0.7% | 0.3% | 1.6% |
| 1981 | 12.4% | 7.5% | 13.0% | 7.8% | 5.6% | 0.8% | 0.3% | 1.6% |
| 1982 | 13.0% | 7.9% | 13.4% | 8.2% | 5.8% | 0.8% | 0.3% | 1.7% |
| 1983 | 13.6% | 8.4% | 13.9% | 8.7% | 6.0% | 0.8% | 0.4% | 1.7% |
| 1984 | 14.2% | 8.9% | 14.5% | 9.1% | 6.2% | 0.8% | 0.4% | 1.7% |
| 1985 | 14.9% | 9.4% | 15.0% | 9.6% | 6.4% | 0.9% | 0.4% | 1.8% |
| 1986 | 15.6% | 10.0% | 15.6% | 10.1% | 6.6% | 0.9% | 0.5% | 1.8% |
| 1987 | 16.3% | 10.6% | 16.2% | 10.7% | 6.9% | 1.0% | 0.5% | 1.8% |
| 1988 | 17.0% | 11.2% | 16.8% | 11.3% | 7.2% | 1.0% | 0.6% | 1.9% |
| 1989 | 17.8% | 11.9% | 17.4% | 11.9% | 7.5% | 1.1% | 0.6% | 1.9% |
| 1990 | 18.6% | 12.5% | 18.1% | 12.5% | 7.7% | 1.1% | 0.7% | 2.0% |
| 1991 | 19.4% | 13.2% | 18.7% | 13.2% | 8.1% | 1.2% | 0.7% | 2.0% |
| 1992 | 20.3% | 13.9% | 19.4% | 13.9% | 8.4% | 1.3% | 0.8% | 2.1% |
| 1993 | 21.1% | 14.6% | 20.2% | 14.6% | 8.7% | 1.4% | 0.9% | 2.1% |
| 1994 | 22.1% | 15.3% | 20.9% | 15.4% | 9.1% | 1.5% | 0.9% | 2.2% |
| 1995 | 23.0% | 16.1% | 21.7% | 16.1% | 9.5% | 1.6% | 1.0% | 2.3% |
| 1996 | 23.9% | 16.9% | 22.5% | 16.9% | 9.8% | 1.7% | 1.1% | 2.3% |
| 1997 | 24.9% | 17.7% | 23.3% | 17.7% | 10.2% | 1.8% | 1.2% | 2.4% |
| 1998 | 25.9% | 18.5% | 24.2% | 18.5% | 10.7% | 1.9% | 1.3% | 2.5% |
| 1999 | 26.8% | 19.3% | 25.0% | 19.3% | 11.1% | 2.0% | 1.5% | 2.5% |
| 2000 | 27.8% | 20.0% | 25.9% | 20.1% | 11.5% | 2.2% | 1.6% | 2.6% |
| 2001 | 28.8% | 20.8% | 26.7% | 20.8% | 12.0% | 2.3% | 1.7% | 2.7% |
| 2002 | 29.8% | 21.5% | 27.5% | 21.5% | 12.5% | 2.4% | 1.9% | 2.8% |
| 2003 | 30.8% | 22.3% | 28.3% | 22.2% | 13.0% | 2.6% | 2.1% | 2.9% |
| 2004 | 31.7% | 23.0% | 29.1% | 22.9% | 13.5% | 2.8% | 2.2% | 3.0% |
| 2005 | 32.6% | 23.7% | 29.9% | 23.4% | 14.0% | 2.9% | 2.4% | 3.1% |
| 2006 | 33.5% | 24.4% | 30.6% | 24.0% | 14.6% | 3.1% | 2.6% | 3.2% |
| 2007 | 34.3% | 25.1% | 31.4% | 24.5% | 15.2% | 3.3% | 2.8% | 3.3% |
| 2008 | 35.1% | 25.8% | 32.2% | 24.9% | 15.9% | 3.5% | 3.0% | 3.4% |
| 2009 | 35.8% | 26.5% | 33.0% | 25.3% | 16.6% | 3.8% | 3.2% | 3.4% |
| 2010 | 36.4% | 27.3% | 33.8% | 25.7% | 17.4% | 4.0% | 3.4% | 3.5% |
| 2011 | 37.0% | 28.0% | 34.6% | 26.0% | 18.2% | 4.3% | 3.7% | 3.6% |
| 2012 | 37.5% | 28.8% | 35.4% | 26.3% | 19.1% | 4.6% | 3.9% | 3.7% |
| 2013 | 38.0% | 29.5% | 36.2% | 26.5% | 20.0% | 4.9% | 4.2% | 3.8% |
| 2014 | 38.5% | 30.3% | 37.0% | 26.8% | 20.9% | 5.2% | 4.4% | 3.9% |
| 2015 | 38.9% | 31.1% | 37.8% | 27.1% | 21.8% | 5.5% | 4.7% | 4.0% |
| 2016 | 39.4% | 31.8% | 38.5% | 27.3% | 22.8% | 5.8% | 5.0% | 4.1% |
| 2017 | 39.7% | 32.5% | 39.2% | 27.6% | 23.7% | 6.2% | 5.4% | 4.2% |
| 2018 | 40.1% | 33.3% | 39.8% | 27.9% | 24.7% | 6.6% | 5.7% | 4.4% |
| 2019 | 40.4% | 33.9% | 40.4% | 28.1% | 25.7% | 6.9% | 6.1% | 4.5% |
| 2020 | 40.7% | 34.6% | 40.9% | 28.3% | 26.7% | 7.3% | 6.4% | 4.6% |
| 2021 | 41.0% | 35.3% | 41.4% | 28.6% | 27.8% | 7.7% | 6.8% | 4.7% |
| 2022 | 41.3% | 36.0% | 41.9% | 28.8% | 28.8% | 8.2% | 7.2% | 4.9% |
| 2023 | 41.6% | 36.7% | 42.4% | 29.0% | 29.8% | 8.6% | 7.6% | 5.0% |
| 2024 | 41.8% | 37.4% | 42.8% | 29.2% | 30.9% | 9.1% | 8.0% | 5.2% |
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Frequently asked questions
Where does this data come from?
WHO / NCD-RisC via Our World in Data, share of adults with obesity (BMI ≥ 30), %. Retrieved November 3, 2026. You can download the full table as a CSV from this page.
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