--- title: U.S. Suicide Rate Rose 4% in 2021 After Two-Year Decline description: The largest increases were among men—especially young men. Here's what else the federal report found. canonical: https://time.com/6219004/us-suicide-rate-2021/ author: Tara Law article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2022-09-30T21:31:09.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-24T14:50:40.646Z article:section: Health og:title: U.S. Suicide Rate Rose 4% in 2021 After a Two-Year Decline og:description: The largest increases were among men—especially young men og:url: https://time.com/6219004/us-suicide-rate-2021/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2277d129434679db/698a361ae6e84a580c2af5e8/suicide-rates-hot-line.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: suicide-rates-hot-line og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: U.S. Suicide Rate Rose 4% in 2021 After a Two-Year Decline twitter:description: The largest increases were among men—especially young men twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2277d129434679db/698a361ae6e84a580c2af5e8/suicide-rates-hot-line.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # U.S. Suicide Rate Rose 4% in 2021 After a Two-Year Decline  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Sep 30, 2022 9:31 PM UTC  Isabelle Row, a crisis line specialist, at The Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD, in Houston, Texas, on March 7, 2022. Isabelle Row, a crisis line specialist, at The Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD, in Houston, Texas, on March 7, 2022.Brandon Thibodeaux—The New York Times/Redux  by [Tara Law](https://time.com/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Sep 30, 2022 9:31 PM UTC Deaths by suicide increased 4% in 2021 compared to 2020, ending a two-year decline, according to [provisional data](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr024.pdf) released by the National Center for Health Statistics on Sept. 30\. A total of 47,646 deaths were recorded as suicides during 2021, at a rate of about 14 deaths per 100,000 people. The largest increases were [among men](https://time.com/5590344/youth-suicide-rates/)—especially young men. The age-adjusted suicide rate rose by about 3% among males in 2021 and by 2% among females (although the increase among females was not statistically significant) compared to 2020\. The greatest increase among males—8%—occurred among ages 15 to 24\. In [2020](https://wisqars.cdc.gov/data/lcd/home), suicide was the third leading cause of death for people in that age group, and the second leading cause of death among people ages 10 to 14 and 25 to 34\. Past research has found that the COVID-19 pandemic has been[ particularly difficult](https://time.com/6211734/mental-health-treatment-pandemic-young-people/) for young people, who [have been found](https://time.com/6211734/mental-health-treatment-pandemic-young-people/) to be more likely than older adults to report symptoms of depression and anxiety [during the crisis](https://time.com/5886228/depression-covid-19-pandemic/). **Read More**: [_There’s a New Number to Call for Mental-Health Crises: 988_](https://time.com/6197997/988-mental-health-crisis-hotline/) Suicide deaths in the U.S. decreased during the 1980s and 90s, but they have been generally increasing (except for slight declines during some years) for the last two decades. In 2021, just 1% fewer people died by suicide than in 2018, which is the year with the highest suicide rate [since 1942](https://time.com/5609124/us-suicide-rate-increase/). Experts emphasize that the causes of suicide are complex, and there are many risk factors. Though the report does not speculate about what may have contributed to increased rates in 2021, other researchers [have warned](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2764584) that fallout from the pandemic—such as job loss, increased stress, and social isolation—could create a “perfect storm” that may contribute to an increase in suicides. _If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental-health crisis or contemplating suicide, call or text 988_ _. In emergencies, call 911, or seek care from a local hospital or mental health provider._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6219004/us-suicide-rate-2021/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6219004/us-suicide-rate-2021/"},"headline":"U.S. Suicide Rate Rose 4% in 2021 After a Two-Year Decline","datePublished":"2022-09-30T21:31:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T14:50:40.646Z","description":"The largest increases were among men—especially young men.","url":"https://time.com/6219004/us-suicide-rate-2021/","keywords":["Public Health","healthscienceclimate"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2277d129434679db/698a361ae6e84a580c2af5e8/suicide-rates-hot-line.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tara Law","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tara-law/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2277d129434679db/698a361ae6e84a580c2af5e8/suicide-rates-hot-line.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"suicide-rates-hot-line","caption":"Isabelle Row, a crisis line specialist, at The Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD, in Houston, Texas, on March 7, 2022.","creditText":"Brandon Thibodeaux—The New York Times/Redux","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/public-health/","name":"Public Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6219004/us-suicide-rate-2021/","name":"U.S. Suicide Rate Rose 4% in 2021 After a Two-Year Decline"}}]}] ```