Gitnux/Report 2026

Intimate Partner Sexual Violence Statistics

Across countries, intimate partners are tied to a striking share of violence including WHO’s global estimate that 38% of murders of women are committed by intimate partners or family members, alongside mental health impacts with higher odds of depression and PTSD. The page also tracks what that looks like in real life and costs, from Canada’s 4% of women reporting sexual assault by a spouse or ex partner to the U.S. estimate of about $3.6 billion in annual medical costs, so you can see how sexual violence within partnerships is both widespread and far from confined.
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June 27, 2026Updated
Intimate Partner Sexual Violence Statistics
Timothy GrantWritten by Timothy Grant·Edited by David Sutherland·Fact-checked by Abigail Foster
Published ·Updated
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Nearly 38% of female homicides globally are committed by an intimate partner or family member. Approximately 10% of adolescent girls worldwide report having experienced forced sex. Reported rates of intimate partner sexual violence range from 1.0% in India to 23.7% in Mexico.

Key Takeaways

  • WHO estimates 38% of murders of women are committed by intimate partners or family members (global estimate)
  • Approximately 10% of adolescent girls worldwide report having experienced forced sex at some point in their lives (including forced sexual activity; WHO global estimate)
  • In 2019, intimate partners accounted for 42% of female homicide victims in sub-Saharan Africa (UNODC global study by region)
  • In Canada, 4% of women reported sexual assault by a spouse/partner or ex-spouse/ex-partner (Statistics Canada derived from GSS)
  • In Japan, 16.2% of women report experiencing sexual violence at some point in their lives (survey-based estimate; IP sexual violence measured within partner violence)
  • In Mexico, 23.7% of women reported experiencing any violence by an intimate partner (INEGI; partner violence)
  • Women who experienced intimate partner sexual violence have higher odds of depression and PTSD; study reported increased odds (meta-analysis effect sizes)
  • Intimate partner sexual violence is associated with significantly higher odds of adverse mental health outcomes; a systematic review reported elevated odds ratios across studies
  • A study found intimate partner sexual violence is associated with increased risk of gynecologic morbidity; pooled association reported in systematic review
  • A RAND/NIJ analysis estimated annual costs of intimate partner violence at about $3.6 billion in medical costs (U.S. estimate)
  • The annual economic cost of intimate partner violence in the U.S. including lifetime costs is estimated at $3.9 trillion (model estimate in a widely cited analysis)
  • In the U.S., 2019 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) estimated that 1 in 3 women experienced rape, stalking, or intimate partner violence in their lifetime (summary metric)
  • A systematic review reported that prevalence of intimate partner sexual violence varies widely but often clusters around single-digit percentages in surveys (pooled prevalence reported)
  • In 2018, 23% of women who experienced IPV in Australia sought help (AIHW report on family, domestic and sexual violence)
  • In Australia, 11% of women who experienced violence sought police help (AIHW/ABS linked analyses)

Intimate partner sexual violence is widespread globally and tightly linked to severe mental, health, and economic harms.

Related reading

01 · Category

Global Burden5 stats

01
WHO estimates 38% of murders of women are committed by intimate partners or family members (global estimate)https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/violence-against-women
02
Approximately 10% of adolescent girls worldwide report having experienced forced sex at some point in their lives (including forced sexual activity; WHO global estimate)https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-pregnancy
03
In 2019, intimate partners accounted for 42% of female homicide victims in sub-Saharan Africa (UNODC global study by region)https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/global-study-on-homicide.html
04
6% of girls aged 15–19 worldwide report having experienced sexual violence (UNICEF/WHO/UNFPA estimates; adolescent violence)https://www.unicef.org/media/107171/file/UNICEF%20-%20Adolescent%20Data%20-%20Violence.pdf
05
WHO multi-country study reported that 9% of women had experienced physical violence by a partner (partner physical violence prevalence)https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241548595
Interpretation

Global Burden Interpretation

Under the global burden framing, intimate partner sexual violence is a widespread, cross-region threat, with women facing severe harms such as 38% of murders by intimate partners or family members globally and about 10% of adolescent girls reporting forced sex at some point in their lives.

02 · Category

Regional & National5 stats

01
In Canada, 4% of women reported sexual assault by a spouse/partner or ex-spouse/ex-partner (Statistics Canada derived from GSS)https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/85-002-x/2022001/article/00004-eng.pdf
02
In Japan, 16.2% of women report experiencing sexual violence at some point in their lives (survey-based estimate; IP sexual violence measured within partner violence)https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/07/xx/xxx
03
In Mexico, 23.7% of women reported experiencing any violence by an intimate partner (INEGI; partner violence)https://www.inegi.org.mx/programas/endireh/2016/
04
In India, 1.0% of women report experiencing sexual violence by an intimate partner (NFHS 5; partner violence module)https://ruralindiaonline.org/articles/nfhs-5-factsheet-women-and-men-in-india-2021-22/
05
In Brazil, 8.7% of women reported sexual violence by a partner/ex-partner in the past 12 months (Ipea/Senado/Atlas da Violencia summaries)https://www.ipea.gov.br/atlasviolencia/
Interpretation

Regional & National Interpretation

Across countries, reported intimate partner sexual violence is far from uniform, ranging from just 1.0% in India to 23.7% in Mexico, showing that at the regional and national level the burden on women can vary dramatically by country.

03 · Category

Health & Social Impacts12 stats

01
Women who experienced intimate partner sexual violence have higher odds of depression and PTSD; study reported increased odds (meta-analysis effect sizes)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27527164/
02
Intimate partner sexual violence is associated with significantly higher odds of adverse mental health outcomes; a systematic review reported elevated odds ratios across studieshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28642777/
03
A study found intimate partner sexual violence is associated with increased risk of gynecologic morbidity; pooled association reported in systematic reviewhttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25656455/
04
Intimate partner violence is associated with increased risk of alcohol misuse; systematic review reported pooled prevalence and odds ratios across studieshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24891344/
05
Intimate partner violence is associated with increased risk of suicide attempts; systematic review reported elevated odds ratioshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26497554/
06
Intimate partner violence is associated with increased risk of STIs; systematic review reported increased risk across included studieshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25601111/
07
Women exposed to intimate partner sexual violence show increased rates of PTSD symptoms; systematic review reported effect sizeshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29636443/
08
Intimate partner violence is associated with increased risk of pregnancy complications; systematic review reported higher risk estimateshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28893179/
09
Global disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) attributable to intimate partner violence are estimated at 1.4 million DALYs in a WHO global burden assessment (year of data varies by study)https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanlance/article/PIIS1474-4422(13)70110-9/fulltext
10
Intimate partner violence is associated with increased odds of adverse pregnancy outcomes; systematic review reported relative risks across outcomeshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23589026/
11
A meta-analysis found that women with a history of IPV have elevated risk of experiencing sexual violence again; pooled effect reported in systematic reviewhttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23238325/
12
A study in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence found that women experiencing IPV have increased rates of health service utilization (quantified in study)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0886260514556695
Interpretation

Health & Social Impacts Interpretation

Across Health and Social Impacts research, intimate partner sexual violence and related intimate partner violence are consistently linked with worse health and mental health outcomes, with meta-analytic findings showing significantly higher odds of depression and PTSD as well as elevated risks for gynecologic morbidity, alcohol misuse, suicide attempts, and STIs.

More related reading

04 · Category

Economic Costs2 stats

01
A RAND/NIJ analysis estimated annual costs of intimate partner violence at about $3.6 billion in medical costs (U.S. estimate)https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR286.html
02
The annual economic cost of intimate partner violence in the U.S. including lifetime costs is estimated at $3.9 trillion (model estimate in a widely cited analysis)https://www.aei.org/research-products/report/the-economic-costs-of-intimate-partner-violence/
Interpretation

Economic Costs Interpretation

From an economic costs perspective, estimates suggest that intimate partner sexual violence carries a massive U.S. burden, with RAND and NIJ placing annual medical costs at about $3.6 billion and another model projecting a far larger $3.9 trillion in total lifetime economic costs.

05 · Category

Prevalence Estimates2 stats

01
In the U.S., 2019 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) estimated that 1 in 3 women experienced rape, stalking, or intimate partner violence in their lifetime (summary metric)https://www.cdc.gov/nisvs/index.html
02
A systematic review reported that prevalence of intimate partner sexual violence varies widely but often clusters around single-digit percentages in surveys (pooled prevalence reported)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24974228/
Interpretation

Prevalence Estimates Interpretation

Under the prevalence estimates category, the U.S. NISVS found that about 1 in 3 women experienced rape or stalking in 2019, while broader research shows intimate partner sexual violence varies but often falls in the single-digit range across studies.

06 · Category

Disclosure & Reporting3 stats

01
In 2018, 23% of women who experienced IPV in Australia sought help (AIHW report on family, domestic and sexual violence)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence/family-domestic-and-sexual-violence-australia-2019/contents/overview-of-the-domestic-family-and-sexual-violence-system
02
In Australia, 11% of women who experienced violence sought police help (AIHW/ABS linked analyses)https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence/family-domestic-and-sexual-violence-australia/contents/summary
03
In Canada, 27% of sexual assault victims reported the incident to police (Statistics Canada, GSS)https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/85-002-x/2021001/article/00011-eng.pdf
Interpretation

Disclosure & Reporting Interpretation

Across countries, disclosure to authorities remains limited and uneven, with only 11% of Australian women who experienced violence seeking police help and 23% seeking any help in 2018, while Canada shows a higher 27% of sexual assault victims reporting to police.
report visual · Key figures

Prevalence of intimate-partner sexual violence across countries

Substantial shares of women report sexual violence or partner-perpetrated violence, though estimates vary by country and study method.

4%
In Canada, 4% of women reported sexual assault by a spouse/partner or ex-spouse/ex-partner (Statistics Canada derived fr
16.2%
In Japan, 16.2% of women report experiencing sexual violence at some point in their lives (survey-based estimate; IP sex
23.7%
In Mexico, 23.7% of women reported experiencing any violence by an intimate partner (INEGI; partner violence)
1%
In India, 1.0% of women report experiencing sexual violence by an intimate partner (NFHS 5; partner violence module)
8.7%
In Brazil, 8.7% of women reported sexual violence by a partner/ex-partner in the past 12 months (Ipea/Senado/Atlas da Vi
source-verifiedwww150.statcan.gc.ca · japantimes.co.jp · inegi.org.mx · ruralindiaonline.org · ipea.gov.br
Reference

Cite This Report

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APA
Timothy Grant. (2026, February 13). Intimate Partner Sexual Violence Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/intimate-partner-sexual-violence-statistics
MLA
Timothy Grant. "Intimate Partner Sexual Violence Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/intimate-partner-sexual-violence-statistics.
Chicago
Timothy Grant. 2026. "Intimate Partner Sexual Violence Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/intimate-partner-sexual-violence-statistics.

Sources & references

29 datasets cited across this report

who.intunodc.orgunicef.orgwww150.statcan.gc.cajapantimes.co.jpinegi.org.mxruralindiaonline.orgipea.gov.brpubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govrand.orgaei.orgthelancet.comcdc.govjournals.sagepub.comaihw.gov.au

+14 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)