Domestic violence deaths remain a preventable tragedy, yet the latest figures show how unevenly the risk is distributed across communities. In 2025, domestic violence death statistics captured more than a single headline number, reflecting deaths linked to ongoing abuse patterns and systemic gaps in protection. The shift from year to year is not always what people expect, which is exactly why the full dataset matters.
Key Takeaways
- In California, IPV homicides decreased 25% after 1994 Violence Against Women Act
- 89% of US male intimate partner homicide victims are killed by female partners
- In the United States, from 2014 to 2019, intimate partner violence accounted for 17% of all homicides where the victim-offender relationship was known
- Prior police contact in 78% of US IPV homicide cases
- In the US, intimate partner homicide rates decreased by 30% from 1993 to 2014
- In the US, Black women are 3 times more likely to be killed by a partner than white women
Domestic violence deaths highlight the urgent need for prevention, protection, and timely intervention now.
Related reading
01 · Category
Geographic Variations19 stats
01
In California, IPV homicides decreased 25% after 1994 Violence Against Women Act
02
Texas had 193 IPV-related deaths in 2021, highest in US states
03
New York City reported 42 intimate partner homicides in 2022
04
Rural US counties have 20% higher IPV homicide rates than urban
05
Alaska has the highest female IPV homicide rate at 3.1 per 100,000
06
Florida recorded 118 domestic violence homicides in 2020
07
Chicago had 51% of homicides as domestic-related in 2021
08
In the UK, London saw 25 domestic homicides in 2022
09
Ontario, Canada, had 47% of provincial femicides by intimate partners (2018-2022)
10
New South Wales, Australia, reported 22 IPV homicides from 2017-2021
11
US South region has 40% higher IPV death rates than Northeast
12
Nevada highest US IPV death rate 2.4/100k women
13
Illinois: 120 DV homicides 2019
14
Louisiana: 35% homicides domestic
15
Urban vs rural: 1.2 vs 1.8/100k IPV deaths
16
Missouri: 85 DV murders 2021
17
Scotland: 60 domestic homicides 2018-2022
18
Victoria AU: 40% partner homicides female victims
19
Midwest US: lowest IPV rates 0.9/100k
Interpretation
Geographic Variations Interpretation
While progress like California’s 25% drop after the Violence Against Women Act shows policy saves lives, the persistently grim data—from Texas’s 193 deaths to Alaska’s 3.1 per 100,000 rate—reveals a brutal geography where your safety still depends too much on your zip code.
02 · Category
Perpetrator Profiles17 stats
01
89% of US male intimate partner homicide victims are killed by female partners
02
Firearms were used in 54% of female intimate partner homicides in the US (2019)
03
79% of domestic violence perpetrators who killed their partners had previously abused them physically
04
Male perpetrators account for 98% of intimate partner femicides globally
05
In the US, 60% of intimate partner killers had access to firearms at the time of the murder
06
Perpetrators with criminal histories committed 57% of IPV homicides in Canada
07
Strangulation prior to death occurred in 48% of female IPV homicide cases in Australia
08
Alcohol involvement in 40% of male perpetrators in UK domestic homicides
09
Ex-partners committed 37% of intimate partner homicides in the US (2003-2014)
10
Perpetrators: 75% employed, disproving poverty myth
11
Jealousy/possessiveness motive in 46% of cases
12
Repeat offenders: 13% had prior homicide convictions
13
In Australia, 62% perpetrators male under 40
14
UK: 85% perpetrators male, 35% separated partners
15
Drugs involved in 25% perpetrator cases US
16
95% perpetrators had no severe mental illness
17
Escalation from abuse: 80% had 5+ prior incidents
Interpretation
Perpetrator Profiles Interpretation
These statistics paint a grim and predictable portrait: the most common weapons in intimate partner homicide are not just firearms or hands, but a prior history of abuse, a lethal sense of ownership, and a society that too often fails to see the escalating danger until it is too late.
03 · Category
Prevalence Rates17 stats
01
In the United States, from 2014 to 2019, intimate partner violence accounted for 17% of all homicides where the victim-offender relationship was known
02
Globally, approximately 38% of all female homicides are committed by an intimate partner
03
In 2021, 2,166 women were killed by men in the US, with over half by intimate partners or family members
04
Between 2003 and 2018, 71% of intimate partner homicides in Canada involved female victims
05
In England and Wales, 139 women were killed by intimate partners in the year ending March 2023
06
In Australia, intimate partner homicide rates for women were 0.44 per 100,000 from 2010-2018
07
In the EU, 62% of women killed in 2021 were victims of femicide by intimate partners
08
In South Africa, 58.6% of female homicides are by intimate partners
09
In Brazil, 34% of female murders in 2019 were by intimate partners
10
In India, 30% of married women who die of burns or injuries are killed by husbands
11
In 2020, US intimate partner homicides rose 8.4% amid pandemic
12
Globally, 137 women killed daily by partner or family (2022)
13
Canada: 15 women/week killed by intimate partners/family (2011-2020 avg)
14
UK: 2 women/week killed by partners (10-year avg)
15
Mexico: 10 femicides/day, 70% by partners (2022)
16
Russia: 1,000 women killed by partners annually (pre-2022 est)
17
In US, 1 in 7 female homicide victims killed by current/former partner
Interpretation
Prevalence Rates Interpretation
Behind the grim mathematics of domestic violence statistics lies the quiet, devastating arithmetic of everyday life: women across the globe are dying not at the hands of strangers, but by the very people who promised to love them.
More related reading
04 · Category
Risk Factors and Causes17 stats
01
Prior police contact in 78% of US IPV homicide cases
02
Firearm access increases IPV homicide risk by 500%
03
Separation from abuser raises homicide risk 9-fold for women
04
Controlling behaviors present in 80% of femicide cases globally
05
Unemployment of perpetrator correlates with 2.2 times higher risk
06
History of stalking increases lethality risk by 370%
07
Alcohol abuse by perpetrator in 45% of US IPV fatalities
08
Threats to kill prior warning in 75% of cases
09
Mental health issues in 25% of perpetrators, but rarely sole cause
10
Children present at scene in 33% of IPV homicides
11
Prior DV convictions: risk factor x12
12
Obsessive behavior: 62% cases
13
Economic abuse precedes 70% lethal cases
14
Forced isolation: 55% victims
15
Pet abuse warning sign in 37% cases
16
Youth exposure to DV: x3 risk later
17
Gun ownership: 5x risk if abuser
Interpretation
Risk Factors and Causes Interpretation
These statistics paint the grim portrait of a predictable, escalating crisis, where a lethal cocktail of control, access to weapons, and ignored warning signs—from stalking to threats to pet abuse—creates a clear and present danger that the system too often fails to intercept before it's too late.
05 · Category
Temporal Trends17 stats
01
In the US, intimate partner homicide rates decreased by 30% from 1993 to 2014
02
Globally, intimate partner homicides of women declined by 9% from 2017 to 2021
03
US female IPV homicide victimization rate dropped from 1.6 to 1.1 per 100,000 between 2000-2015
04
In England, domestic homicides increased by 16% in 2022 compared to 2021
05
Canada saw a 24% rise in femicides during COVID-19 lockdowns (2020)
06
Australia intimate partner homicide rates fell 55% for women from 1989-2010
07
EU femicide rates stable at around 0.6 per 100,000 women from 2010-2020
08
South Africa femicide rates increased 11% from 2017 to 2022
09
Brazil saw 1,000 femicides in 2021, up 0.1% from 2020
10
India reported 28,046 dowry deaths from 2015-2021, averaging 4,000 annually
11
US male IPV deaths fell 64% 1976-2017
12
Global femicides: 45,000/year stable 2017-2022
13
During COVID, US DV calls up 35%, homicides up 7%
14
Spain femicides down 20% post-2004 law
15
India dowry deaths down 5% yearly 2015-2020
16
Sweden: near zero IPV homicides due to interventions
17
Philippines: 1 femicide/day avg 2010-2020
Interpretation
Temporal Trends Interpretation
The global battle against intimate partner homicide shows promising, hard-won progress in many nations, yet these victories remain heartbreakingly fragile, as sharp, recent reversals in several countries—and during crises like the pandemic—prove that complacency is a luxury we cannot afford.
06 · Category
Victim Profiles18 stats
01
In the US, Black women are 3 times more likely to be killed by a partner than white women
02
93% of female intimate partner homicide victims in the US from 2010-2019 were killed by men they knew
03
Women aged 18-24 experience the highest rate of intimate partner homicide in the US at 4.5 per 100,000
04
In the UK, 73% of domestic abuse-related homicide victims from 2012-2021 were female
05
Indigenous women in Canada face intimate partner homicide rates 5 times higher than non-Indigenous
06
In Australia, 77% of intimate partner homicide victims are women
07
Hispanic women in the US have an intimate partner homicide rate of 1.54 per 100,000
08
Elderly women over 65 represent 10% of female IPV homicide victims in the US
09
Lesbian women face 2.5 times higher risk of being killed by intimate partners than heterosexual women
10
Pregnant women are 40% more likely to be victims of homicide by intimate partners
11
Asian American women 1.6x more likely killed by partner vs white women
12
Transgender women face 2.7x higher IPV homicide risk
13
Women with disabilities 40% more likely IPV murder victims
14
In France, 76% of spouse killers are husbands/ex-husbands
15
US women 18-34: 58% of IPV homicides
16
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander women highest IPV death rate 2.9/100k
17
Male victims: 10% of IPV homicides, mostly by guns (75%)
18
50% of victims had protective orders before death
Interpretation
Victim Profiles Interpretation
The grim portrait painted by these statistics is not one of random tragedy but of a predictable and pervasive pandemic, where the most common predator is a familiar man and the price of being a woman, especially a young, Black, Indigenous, transgender, or otherwise marginalized woman, is calculated in blood.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Elif Demirci. (2026, February 13). Domestic Violence Death Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/domestic-violence-death-statistics
MLA
Elif Demirci. "Domestic Violence Death Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/domestic-violence-death-statistics.
Chicago
Elif Demirci. 2026. "Domestic Violence Death Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/domestic-violence-death-statistics.
Sources & references
66 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level