The United States recorded more births in 2024 than in 2023 — but the nation is actually less fertile, not more. Final birth data released by the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) reveals a paradox that reflects the complexity of demographic change in modern America: the raw number of births increased by 1%, reaching 3,628,934, while the general fertility rate simultaneously declined by 1%.
The distinction matters. The absolute number of births increased because the U.S. population grew — not because individuals became more likely to have children. The general fertility rate (GFR) — the number of births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44, which controls for population size — fell from 54.5 in 2023 to 53.8 in 2024, according to NCHS Data Brief No. 535, authored by Joyce A. Martin, M.P.H., Brady E. Hamilton, Ph.D., and Michelle J.K. Osterman, M.H.S.
