how old were lily and james potter when they died

Lily and James Potter were both 21 years old when they died on October 31, 1981, as shown by the birth and death dates on their gravestone in the series lore.

Ages and key dates

• Lily Potter was born January 30, 1960, and died October 31, 1981, making her 21 at the time of her death.

• James Potter was born March 27, 1960, and also died October 31, 1981, so he too was 21 when he was killed.

• Their young age is explicitly confirmed by the dates shown on their gravestone in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 and supported in extended discussions and analyses of the series timeline.

Many fans note that the movies cast older-looking actors for Lily and James, which makes it easy to forget that in the book canon they were only in their early twenties when they were murdered.

TL;DR: Lily and James Potter were each 21 years old when they died defending Harry on Halloween 1981.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.