Health and education are indispensable factors for economic growth. This study examines the role of both in driving economic growth across 76 middle-income countries over the period 1991–2016, using fixed and random effects panel estimators. The empirical findings demonstrate a progressive link between life expectancy and economic growth, while revealing an inverse association between certain mortality indicators and output. Education variables contribute positively to growth across both upper and lower middle-income sub-panels, though effect sizes vary. The paper contributes to the human capital-growth nexus literature with a systematic cross-country analysis that identifies heterogeneous impacts across the middle-income spectrum.