Titanic — A Voyage in Numbers

Overview

The Numbers at a Glance

769

Passengers

152

Survivors

19.8%

Survival Rate

3

Classes

On April 15, 1912, the RMS Titanic sank in the North Atlantic after striking an iceberg. Of the 769 passengers in this dataset, only 152 survived — a grim 19.8% survival rate. The following chapters explore how class, age, port of embarkation, and fare shaped one's fate that night.

Chapter I

Survival by Passenger Class

Who Made It to the Lifeboats?

Class Breakdown

First Class25.13%

Second Class18.75%

Third Class17.56%

Total Passengers769

First-class passengers had the highest survival rate at 25.1%, while third-class passengers — though most numerous — had the lowest at 17.6%. The data echoes the era's social order, even at sea.

Chapter II

Age Profile by Class

Survivors

Non-Survivors

Surviving first-class passengers averaged 41 years. The youngest survivor was just 0.17 years (two months) old in third class, while the oldest reached 76 in first class.

Chapter III

Survival Rate by Embarkation Port

Three Ports, Three Fates

Port Statistics

Queenstown (Q)50%

Cherbourg (C)43%

Southampton (S)42%

Largest Boarding529 (S)

Queenstown passengers had the highest survival rate at 50%, while those boarding at Southampton — the largest group at 529 souls — had the lowest at 42%.

Chapter IV

Average Fare by Class & Outcome

The Price of Passage

Fare Differential

1st Survivors£115.59

1st Non-Survivors£75.59

2nd Class Δ+£6.26

3rd Class Δ+£1.91

Across every class, survivors paid more on average. First-class survivors paid £115.59 — over £40 more than first-class non-survivors. Wealth, it seems, bought a closer berth to the lifeboats.