Suicide Data and Statistics

At a glance

Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. This page shows the most recent suicide data overall and by selected demographic characteristics.

Image of the WISQARS Injury Data webpage

Suicide trends interactive chart

Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Use our interactive chart to track the number of suicide deaths by month and year.

An animated chart of suicide fatal injury data, showing how selecting various years loads different sets of data.
Select "Suicide" as the Injury Type to track the number of suicide deaths by month and year. Image is not a link.

Suicide deaths, plans, and attempts in the United States

More than 48,000 people died by suicide in 2021. That is 1 death every 11 minutes. 12.3 million adults seriously thought about suicide. 3.5 million adults made a plan. 1.7 million adults attempted suicide.
More than 48,000 people died by suicide in 2021. That is 1 death every 11 minutes. 12.3 million adults seriously thought about suicide. 3.5 million adults made a plan. 1.7 million adults attempted suicide.
  • Data for race and Hispanic or Latino (Hispanic) origin should be interpreted with caution; studies comparing race and Hispanic origin on death certificates and on U.S. Census Bureau surveys have shown inconsistent reporting. This might lead to underestimates for certain racial groups.
  • Provisional data shown above are based on death certificate data received, but not yet fully reviewed, by CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Provisional data provide an early estimate of deaths before the release of final data. Complete documentation may be found at https://wonder.cdc.gov/mcd-icd10-provisional.html.
  • Data were accessed on CDC WONDER on August 10, 2023 and represent data received as of August 6, 2023.

Source: SAMHSA, CDC NCHS National Vital Statistics System, Provisional Mortality on CDC WONDER

Suicide rates

Data Table: Suicide Rates

Year

Rate per 100,000

Count

2000

10.4

29,350

2001

10.7

30,622

2002

10.9

31,655

2003

10.8

31,484

2004

11.0

32,439

2005

10.9

32,637

2006

11.0

33,300

2007

11.3

34,598

2008

11.6

36,035

2009

11.8

36,909

2010

12.1

38,364

2011

12.3

39,518

2012

12.6

40,600

2013

12.6

41,149

2014

13.0

42,826

2015

13.3

44,193

2016

13.5

44,965

2017

14.0

47,173

2018

14.2

48,344

2019

13.9

47,511

2020

13.5

45,979

2021

14.1

48,183

Source: CDC Vital Statistics

Learn more about suicide rates by state.

Suicide rate disparities

The racial/ethnic groups with the highest rates in 2021 were non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaska Native people and non-Hispanic White people.

Data Table: Racial/Ethnic Disparities

Race/ethnicity

Rate per 100,000

Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native

28.1

Non-Hispanic White

17.4

Non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander

12.6

Non-Hispanic Multiracial

9.7

Non-Hispanic Black

8.7

Hispanic

7.9

Non-Hispanic Asian

6.8

The suicide rate among males in 2021 was approximately four times higher than the rate among females. Males make up 50% of the population but nearly 80% of suicides.

Data Table: Sex Disparities

Sex

Rate per 100,000

Males

22.8

Females

5.7

People ages 85 and older have the highest rates of suicide.

Data Table: Age Disparities

Age range

Rate per 100,000

85+

22.4

75-84

19.6

65-74

15.3

55-64

17.0

45-54

18.2

35-44

18.1

25-34

19.5

15-24

15.2

10-14

2.8

Source: CDC WONDER

Learn more about disparities in suicide.

Suicide methods

Data Table: Method of Suicide, 2021

Method

Percent

Count

Firearm

54.6%

26,328

Suffocation

25.8%

12,431

Poisoning

11.6%

5,568

Other

8%

3,856

Source: CDC Vital Statistics

Learn more about firearm violence.