Roughly one in eight U.S. adults report feeling lonely some or all of the time. Loneliness also carries a substantial economic burden, with global societal costs estimated at $241.5 billion annually.
Key Takeaways
- 8% of people in the United States aged 45 and older report always or often feeling lonely
- 13% of U.S. adults report being lonely some or all of the time
- 24% of people reporting poor mental health also report loneliness
- 1.9x higher odds of loneliness among people with chronic conditions compared with those without
- 1.8x higher risk of depression among people who are lonely
- 29% increased risk of dementia associated with social isolation (including loneliness) in a meta-analysis
- 50% higher risk of developing heart disease in people with loneliness compared with those without (systematic review)
- US$ 241.5 billion in annual societal costs of loneliness (global estimate, 2020)
- £3.3 billion annual cost to the UK economy from loneliness (2019 estimate)
- $18.1 billion annual cost of loneliness to employers in the United States (2021 estimate)
- Meta-analysis found group-based social interventions reduce loneliness with a standardized mean difference of -0.33
- Home-based telehealth interventions reduced depressive symptoms (often linked to loneliness) with a pooled effect size of SMD -0.22 (review)
- Randomized trial: a befriending program reduced loneliness scores by 0.29 points on the UCLA Loneliness Scale
Loneliness affects tens of millions and is linked to higher risks of mental and physical illness.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence2 stats
01
8% of people in the United States aged 45 and older report always or often feeling lonelyhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7248456/
02
13% of U.S. adults report being lonely some or all of the timehttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2801092
Interpretation
Prevalence Interpretation
Under the prevalence category, loneliness is not rare among older Americans, with 8% of adults aged 45 and older reporting they always or often feel lonely and 13% of U.S. adults reporting they feel lonely some or all of the time.
02 · Category
Determinants2 stats
01
24% of people reporting poor mental health also report lonelinesshttps://www.oecd.org/wise/mental-health/mental-health-and-loneliness.htm
02
1.9x higher odds of loneliness among people with chronic conditions compared with those withouthttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8244742/
Interpretation
Determinants Interpretation
From a determinants perspective, loneliness is strongly linked to health conditions, with 24% of people reporting poor mental health also reporting loneliness and chronic conditions raising the odds of loneliness by 1.9 times compared with those without.
03 · Category
Health Impacts12 stats
01
1.8x higher risk of depression among people who are lonelyhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7176145/
02
29% increased risk of dementia associated with social isolation (including loneliness) in a meta-analysishttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6179320/
03
50% higher risk of developing heart disease in people with loneliness compared with those without (systematic review)https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.120.17093
04
29% higher risk of stroke among socially isolated peoplehttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7213720/
05
26% increased risk of mortality for those experiencing loneliness compared with those who do not (meta-analysis)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31488829/
06
1.45x higher risk of death associated with social isolation (meta-analysis)https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6179337/
07
2.3x higher risk of anxiety among lonely individuals (meta-analysis)https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7938519/
08
1.37x higher odds of suicidal ideation among lonely individualshttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2723067
09
3.0x higher prevalence of loneliness among people with poor sleep quality (cross-sectional study)https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7401919/
10
32% of individuals with loneliness report worse self-rated healthhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8024267/
11
17% higher risk of mortality for people with loneliness (Danish cohort study)https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6772925/
12
Social isolation and loneliness are associated with 29% higher risk of mortality (meta-analysis)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1745691619841900
Interpretation
Health Impacts Interpretation
Loneliness is not just a feeling but a health risk, with studies showing it is linked to a 50% higher risk of heart disease and a 26% increased risk of mortality, underscoring its major health impacts.
More related reading
04 · Category
Economic Burden6 stats
01
US$ 241.5 billion in annual societal costs of loneliness (global estimate, 2020)https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343872938_The_Costs_of_Loneliness_An_Economic_Analysis_of_the_Payoffs_of_Social_Connection_in_the_United_States
02
£3.3 billion annual cost to the UK economy from loneliness (2019 estimate)https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333902646_The_cost_of_loneliness_in_the_UK
03
$18.1 billion annual cost of loneliness to employers in the United States (2021 estimate)https://www.aon.com/about-aon/press-room/2021/aon-benefits-loneliness.html
04
US$ 4.2 billion cost to Medicare in the United States attributable to social isolation (model-based estimate)https://www.ajmc.com/view/social-isolation-associated-with-higher-medicare-expenditures-study
05
US$ 1,978higher per-person annual Medicare spending for socially isolated individualshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7243115/
06
€ 4.8 billion annual economic burden of loneliness in Germany (estimate)https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/fileadmin/files/BSt/Publikationen/GrauePublikationen/Studie_Wertschatz-Einsamkeit.pdf
Interpretation
Economic Burden Interpretation
The economic burden of loneliness is enormous across countries, totaling roughly US$ 241.5 billion worldwide each year in societal costs in 2020 and reaching £3.3 billion in the UK, with employer costs in the US alone estimated at $18.1 billion in 2021.
05 · Category
Interventions & Technology6 stats
01
Meta-analysis found group-based social interventions reduce loneliness with a standardized mean difference of -0.33https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34465587/
02
Home-based telehealth interventions reduced depressive symptoms (often linked to loneliness) with a pooled effect size of SMD -0.22 (review)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36777673/
03
Randomized trial: a befriending program reduced loneliness scores by 0.29 points on the UCLA Loneliness Scalehttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7800395/
04
A systematic review of interventions for social isolation found 24% of studies reported significant improvements in loneliness outcomeshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK537053/
05
UK ‘Community Pharmacy’ loneliness support roll-out planned to reach 1 million people (policy target)https://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/clinical-policy/community-mental-health/nhs-community-pharmacy/
06
24% of adults in a trial improved loneliness after receiving an app-based chat intervention (pilot study)https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-98372-3
Interpretation
Interventions & Technology Interpretation
Across interventions and technology for loneliness, meta evidence shows group programs cut loneliness by an SMD of -0.33 and app based support helps about 24% of users improve, suggesting that structured social contact delivered through real world programs and digital tools can reliably move loneliness outcomes.
report visual · Key figures
Loneliness is common—and linked to worse health
Across studies, loneliness and social isolation are associated with higher odds or risk of multiple health outcomes, and a notable share of adults report loneliness.
13%
13% of U.S. adults report being lonely some or all of the time
50%
50% higher risk of developing heart disease in people with loneliness compared with those without (systematic review)
26%
26% increased risk of mortality for those experiencing loneliness compared with those who do not (meta-analysis)
32%
32% of individuals with loneliness report worse self-rated health
29%
29% higher risk of stroke among socially isolated people
source-verifiedjamanetwork.com · ahajournals.org · pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
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
Lars Eriksen. (2026, February 13). Loneliness Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/loneliness-statistics
MLA
Lars Eriksen. "Loneliness Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/loneliness-statistics.
Chicago
Lars Eriksen. 2026. "Loneliness Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/loneliness-statistics.
Sources & references
28 datasets cited across this report
+16 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)