Suicide Deaths in the United States

From 2011 to 2021, the total age-adjusted suicide death rate increased from 12.3 to 14.1 per 100,000 people. During that time period, the rate increased from 20 to 22.8 per 100,000 for males. Among females, the rate increased from 5.2 in 2011 to 5.7 in 2021.1

Suicides consistently outnumber homicides. The homicide rate has not consistently shown the upward trend we see with the suicide rate, but the homicide rate did increase from 6 per 100,000 in 2019 to 7.8 per 100,000 in 2020.1

Between 2018 and 2021, suicide rates were highest in the region that includes Alaska and the western and northwestern United States, except in southern California and parts of Washington. In the past two decades, suicide rates have been consistently higher in rural areas than in urban areas in the U.S. Between 2000-2020, suicide rates increased 46% in non-metro areas compared to 27.3% in metro areas.

High crude rate (blue) ranges are from 19 to 120 per 100,000 and low crude rate (green) ranges are from 5 to 18 per 100,000. Death rates are unreliable when the rate is calculated with a numerator less than 20; death rates are suppressed when the rate is calculated with a numerator of nine or fewer.2,3

Between 2018 and 2021, Alaska had the highest suicide rates in the U.S. in several counties (blue shading). Hawaii had lower suicide rates in some counties (green shading) but had some counties with the second highest suicide rates in the U.S. (blue shading).

Death rates are unreliable when the rate is calculated with a numerator less than 20; death rates are suppressed when the rate is calculated with a numerator of nine or fewer.4

References

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021). 1999-2020 Wide ranging online data for epidemiological research (WONDER), multiple cause of death files [Data file]. National Center for Health Statistics.https://wonder.cdc.gov/Deaths-by-Underlying-Cause.html
  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023, June). 2018-2021 United States, age-adjusted death rates per 100,000 population. All injury, suicide, all races, all ethnicities, both sexes, all ages. [Map]. CDC Wonder. https://wonder.cdc.gov/
  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Suicide in rural America. https://www.cdc.gov/ruralhealth/Suicide.html#:~:text=In%20the%
    20past%20two%20decades,to%2027.3%25%20in%20metro%20areas
  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, January). 2014-2020 United States, age-adjusted death rates per 100,000 population. All injury, suicide, all races, all ethnicities, both sexes, all ages. [Map]. CDC Wonder. https://wonder.cdc.gov/
The charts and graphs in this section are also available as a PowerPoint slide set. Feel free to use this slide set to deliver a presentation about the scope of the suicide problem.