The place and date of death were unclear. The Pentagon did not comment.
Bin Laden, thought to be aged about 30, had released audio and video messages calling for attacks on the US and other countries.
As recently as February, the US government offered $1m (£825,000) for information leading to his capture.
His death was widely reported by US media outlets including NBC News, the New York Times and CNN, citing unnamed US intelligence officials.
Bin Laden was seen as an emerging leader of al-Qaeda. The reports say he was killed in a military operation in the last two years and the US government was involved, but the exact date and time were unclear.
President Donald Trump declined to comment when questioned by reporters on Wednesday, as did the White House national security adviser, John Bolton.
There was no confirmation from al-Qaeda. Supporters of the Islamist militant group have urged caution over the reports and are awaiting an official announcement from its leaders, according to analysts at BBC Monitoring.
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