To quantitatively assess the association between parity and all-cause mortality, we conducted a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Relevant reports were identified from PubMed and Embase databases. Cohort studies with relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of all-cause mortality in three or more categories of parity were eligible. Eighteen articles with 2,813,418 participants were included. Results showed that participants with no live birth had higher risk of all-cause mortality (RR= 1.19, 95% CI = 1.03-1.38; I(2) = 96.7%, P < 0.001) compared with participants with one or more live births. Nonlinear dose-response association was found between parity and all-cause mortality (P for non-linearity < 0.0001). Our findings suggest that moderate-level parity is inversely associated with all-cause mortality.