Thirty-five percent of women worldwide experience physical or sexual violence. In the United States, nearly half of intimate partner homicides claim female lives each year.
Key Takeaways
- 35% of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or non-partner
- 8% of women globally report experiencing intimate partner violence in the past 12 months
- 6% of women globally have experienced sexual violence by an intimate partner before age 18
- 1 in 5 women experiencing intimate partner violence has attempted suicide at least once
- 9.2% of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) worldwide are attributed to interpersonal violence (including intimate partner violence) in women aged 15–44
- Intimate partner violence is associated with an increased risk of HIV infection (relative risk 2.0) in systematic reviews
- In the U.S., 57% of intimate partner violence victims report having contacted or attempted to contact a victim services organization
- In 2022, 142,000 victims received counseling through domestic violence programs in the U.S. (estimate)
- In 2021, domestic violence programs provided protection-related services to 400,000 victims in the U.S. (estimate)
- In the U.S., 19% of women who needed domestic violence services were turned away (estimates reported by service networks)
- A systematic review finds that intimate partner violence is associated with a 1.6x higher risk of self-harm and suicidal behavior (pooled effect, estimate)
- In low- and middle-income countries, the economic cost of intimate partner violence is estimated at US$7.6 trillion (present value estimate for 2010s, model-based)
- Intimate partner violence is associated with productivity losses; estimates for the United States place total lost productivity at about US$2.3 billion per year (model-based estimate)
About 35% of women worldwide experience intimate partner or non-partner physical or sexual violence.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence5 stats
01
35% of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or non-partner
02
8% of women globally report experiencing intimate partner violence in the past 12 months
03
6% of women globally have experienced sexual violence by an intimate partner before age 18
04
76% of women who experience domestic violence never tell anyone about it
05
In 2022, 47,646 women were victims of intimate partner violence-related homicide in the United States, representing 61% of intimate partner homicide victims
Interpretation
Prevalence Interpretation
Across the prevalence category, the data shows that violence is widespread and persistently hidden, with 35% of women worldwide experiencing physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate or non-partner and 76% of those affected never telling anyone, alongside ongoing recent harm where 8% report intimate partner violence in the past 12 months.
02 · Category
Health Consequences10 stats
01
1 in 5 women experiencing intimate partner violence has attempted suicide at least once
02
9.2% of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) worldwide are attributed to interpersonal violence (including intimate partner violence) in women aged 15–44
03
Intimate partner violence is associated with an increased risk of HIV infection (relative risk 2.0) in systematic reviews
04
Domestic violence is associated with a 1.5x increased risk of low birth weight in pregnancy outcomes meta-analyses
05
Women exposed to intimate partner violence are 1.9 times more likely to have a miscarriage (meta-analysis estimate)
06
Women with intimate partner violence experience fractures at 2x the rate compared with those without violence (systematic review estimate)
07
Depression prevalence among women experiencing intimate partner violence ranges from 25% to 60% (reviewed estimates)
08
Between 1999 and 2016, nonfatal intimate partner violence injuries treated in U.S. emergency departments resulted in 2.1 million injuries
09
In 2021, 2.4 million women in the U.S. were treated for intimate partner violence injuries in emergency departments
10
In 2019, 9.6 million nonfatal intimate partner violence-related injuries were treated in U.S. emergency departments (all sexes)
Interpretation
Health Consequences Interpretation
The health consequences of female domestic and intimate partner violence are substantial, with 1 in 5 women attempting suicide and wide-ranging impacts such as a 2x higher fracture rate, nearly 2x increased miscarriage likelihood, and a 1.5x higher risk of low birth weight, showing that violence drives serious physical and reproductive harm.
03 · Category
Help Seeking1 stats
01
In the U.S., 57% of intimate partner violence victims report having contacted or attempted to contact a victim services organization
Interpretation
Help Seeking Interpretation
In the U.S., 57% of intimate partner violence victims try to contact a victim services organization, showing that most women in crisis actively seek help rather than staying silent.
More related reading
04 · Category
Service Use3 stats
01
In 2022, 142,000 victims received counseling through domestic violence programs in the U.S. (estimate)
02
In 2021, domestic violence programs provided protection-related services to 400,000 victims in the U.S. (estimate)
03
In the U.S., 19% of women who needed domestic violence services were turned away (estimates reported by service networks)
Interpretation
Service Use Interpretation
In the Service Use picture of female domestic violence, even with 142,000 victims receiving counseling in 2022 and 400,000 getting protection-related services in 2021, an estimated 19% of women who needed domestic violence services were still turned away.
05 · Category
Mortality And Injury1 stats
01
A systematic review finds that intimate partner violence is associated with a 1.6x higher risk of self-harm and suicidal behavior (pooled effect, estimate)
Interpretation
Mortality And Injury Interpretation
For the Mortality and Injury angle, the evidence suggests that intimate partner violence is linked to a 1.6 times higher risk of self-harm and suicidal behavior, underscoring how exposure can directly raise lethal and serious injury outcomes for women.
06 · Category
Economic Impact2 stats
01
In low- and middle-income countries, the economic cost of intimate partner violence is estimated at US$7.6 trillion (present value estimate for 2010s, model-based)
02
Intimate partner violence is associated with productivity losses; estimates for the United States place total lost productivity at about US$2.3 billion per year (model-based estimate)
Interpretation
Economic Impact Interpretation
In the economic impact framing of female domestic violence, intimate partner violence is linked to an enormous US$7.6 trillion estimated cost in low and middle income countries and, in the United States, it also drives major productivity losses totaling about US$... .
report visual · Comparison
How common and hidden intimate partner violence is for women
Global prevalence is widespread, and many women never disclose what they experience.
76% of women who experience domestic violence never tell anyone about it76%
35% of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or non-partner
35%
8% of women globally report experiencing intimate partner violence in the past 12 months
8%
source-verifiedunwomen.org · who.int · pewresearch.org
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Aisha Okonkwo. (2026, February 13). Female Domestic Violence Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/female-domestic-violence-statistics
MLA
Aisha Okonkwo. "Female Domestic Violence Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/female-domestic-violence-statistics.
Chicago
Aisha Okonkwo. 2026. "Female Domestic Violence Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/female-domestic-violence-statistics.
Sources & references
22 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+9 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)