On May 5, 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported estimates that show the full death toll associated directly or indirectly with the COVID-19 pandemic (described as ‘excess mortality’) between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2021 was approximately 14.9 million (range 13.3 million to 16.6 million).

Excess mortality associated with the COVID-19 pandemic is used to quantify the direct and indirect impacts of the pandemic. Excess mortality is defined as the difference between the total number of deaths estimated for a specific place and given time period and the number that would have been expected in the absence of a crisis (e.g., COVID-19 pandemic). This difference is assumed to include deaths attributable directly to COVID-19 as well as deaths indirectly associated with the COVID-19 pandemic through impacts on health systems and society, minus any deaths that would have occurred under normal circumstances but were averted due to pandemic-related changes in social conditions and personal behaviours.

Estimates of the excess mortality associated with the COVID-19 pandemic encompass deaths from all causes. In certain locations, these estimates may also capture excess deaths related to other crises such as extreme weather, disasters or conflicts. These non-COVID-19 pandemic related deaths are removed from the final estimates to isolate excess mortality solely attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic.