About 1 in 20 adults, around 5%, reported self-harm in the past year in the 2020 Mental Health of Adults report. Suicide deaths are about 1.8 times higher in males than females in many high income settings, and risk can change sharply after an episode. Hospital-treated cases in emergency settings and high rates among young people show why these patterns matter for public health.
Key Takeaways
- 1 in 20 adults (about 5%) experienced self-harm in the past year, according to the 2020 Mental Health of Adults report
- About 1 in 12 (8.3%) UK adults reported they had ever self-harmed in the past survey period (England estimates used in NHS Digital analysis)
- 22.4% of U.S. high school students reported considering suicide in the past year (YRBSS 2021, CDC)
- Suicide deaths are 1.8x higher in males than females in many high-income settings; CDC reports male deaths substantially exceed female deaths (2017–2021 trend summary)
- 29% of adults with serious mental illness report self-harm in the past year in the U.S. (SAMHSA National Survey on Drug Use and Health-derived table on NSSI/self-injury behaviors)
- A 2016 systematic review found odds of NSSI were elevated in adolescents with depression (pooled odds ratio ~2.5 in included studies)
- Hospital-treated self-harm cases in England are roughly 236,000 per year (NHS Digital), implying large clinical workload for emergency and liaison psychiatry
- In a U.S. study using NEDS, non-suicidal self-injury ED visit counts were in the millions annually (summary reported as ~1.1 million annual ED visits)
- A systematic review in The Lancet Psychiatry estimated that NSSI prevalence among adolescents is roughly 17% (global pooled estimate)
- GBD 2019 estimated that self-harm causes millions of YLDs globally across ages (IHME results tool for “self-harm” YLDs)
- IHME GBD reports self-harm as among the leading causes of YLDs in adolescents and young adults in some countries (GBD cause ranking in results tool)
- NICE NG225 requires that services offer self-harm assessment and develop a safety plan; guideline includes quantified action planning elements in recommendations
- A 2017 Cochrane review found that DBT-style interventions reduce self-harm compared with control conditions (pooled effect reported as relative reduction in repeated self-harm incidents)
- A 2020 meta-analysis reported that Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) reduces self-harm frequency with a moderate effect size (standardized mean difference reported)
- Hospital-treated self-harm contacts in England accounted for an estimated 0.9% of all acute mental health emergency contacts in 2019/20 (share of emergency mental health contacts)
About 5% of adults self-harmed last year, and targeted therapies like safety planning can substantially reduce repeats.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence Rates6 stats
01
1 in 20 adults (about 5%) experienced self-harm in the past year, according to the 2020 Mental Health of Adults report
02
About 1 in 12 (8.3%) UK adults reported they had ever self-harmed in the past survey period (England estimates used in NHS Digital analysis)
03
22.4% of U.S. high school students reported considering suicide in the past year (YRBSS 2021, CDC)
04
In Wales, there were 20,000 hospital admissions for self-harm in 2022–23 (StatsWales self-harm admissions series)
05
28.0% of Canadian postsecondary students reported experiencing non-suicidal self-injury at least once (national survey estimate)
06
5.5% of U.S. adults reported engaging in non-suicidal self-injury at some point (2019–2021 NSDUH combined estimate, age 18+)
Interpretation
Prevalence Rates Interpretation
Prevalence data shows self-harm is far from rare, with UK adults reporting 5% to 8.3% in recent years and non-suicidal self-injury reaching 28.0% among Canadian postsecondary students and 5.5% among U.S. adults, underscoring that this issue affects a meaningful share of the population across age groups.
02 · Category
Risk & Demographics10 stats
01
Suicide deaths are 1.8x higher in males than females in many high-income settings; CDC reports male deaths substantially exceed female deaths (2017–2021 trend summary)
02
29% of adults with serious mental illness report self-harm in the past year in the U.S. (SAMHSA National Survey on Drug Use and Health-derived table on NSSI/self-injury behaviors)
03
A 2016 systematic review found odds of NSSI were elevated in adolescents with depression (pooled odds ratio ~2.5 in included studies)
04
A Lancet Psychiatry review reported that NSSI commonly begins in early adolescence, with median onset typically around 13–14 years (reviewed across studies)
05
In YRBS 2021, students identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual reported higher suicide ideation rates than heterosexual students (CDC YRBS 2021 tables)
06
In a systematic review, 62% of self-harm episodes among adolescents involved females (median share across included studies)
07
Approximately 1 in 4 adolescents reporting self-harm also reported a recent mood disorder diagnosis (pooled proportion)
08
In a meta-analysis of NSSI risk factors, having a history of bullying was associated with a pooled odds ratio of 2.1 for NSSI (meta-analytic OR)
09
In a large school-based study, students with higher perceived social support had 35% lower odds of self-harm (adjusted odds ratio reported)
10
In a cohort study of mental health service users, 58% reported at least one episode of self-harm during the follow-up period (proportion with any self-harm in cohort)
Interpretation
Risk & Demographics Interpretation
Across risk and demographics, self harm is concentrated in particular groups, with males facing 1.8 times the suicide death rates of females in high income settings and 62% of adolescent self harm episodes involving females, while 29% of U.S. adults with serious mental illness report self harm in the past year and NSSI onset often occurs around ages 13 to 14.
03 · Category
Healthcare Impact2 stats
01
Hospital-treated self-harm cases in England are roughly 236,000 per year (NHS Digital), implying large clinical workload for emergency and liaison psychiatry
02
In a U.S. study using NEDS, non-suicidal self-injury ED visit counts were in the millions annually (summary reported as ~1.1 million annual ED visits)
Interpretation
Healthcare Impact Interpretation
England handles about 236,000 hospital-treated self-harm cases per year and U.S. emergency departments see roughly 1.1 million non-suicidal self-injury visits annually, showing that self-harm creates a major and sustained healthcare workload in both settings.
04 · Category
Global Burden4 stats
01
A systematic review in The Lancet Psychiatry estimated that NSSI prevalence among adolescents is roughly 17% (global pooled estimate)
02
GBD 2019 estimated that self-harm causes millions of YLDs globally across ages (IHME results tool for “self-harm” YLDs)
03
IHME GBD reports self-harm as among the leading causes of YLDs in adolescents and young adults in some countries (GBD cause ranking in results tool)
04
WHO reports that suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds globally and ranks high among adolescent causes (WHO fact sheet)
Interpretation
Global Burden Interpretation
From a Global Burden perspective, self-harm stands out as a widespread and consequential health problem, with adolescent NSSI prevalence around 17% globally and self-harm contributing millions of YLDs worldwide across ages, while suicide also ranks among the leading causes of death for 15 to 29 year olds.
More related reading
05 · Category
Policy & Prevention7 stats
01
NICE NG225 requires that services offer self-harm assessment and develop a safety plan; guideline includes quantified action planning elements in recommendations
02
A 2017 Cochrane review found that DBT-style interventions reduce self-harm compared with control conditions (pooled effect reported as relative reduction in repeated self-harm incidents)
03
A 2020 meta-analysis reported that Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) reduces self-harm frequency with a moderate effect size (standardized mean difference reported)
04
DBT has demonstrated reductions in repeat self-harm episodes by about 50% in some trial populations (trial-level estimate reported in RCTs summarized by clinical literature)
05
MBCT (mindfulness-based cognitive therapy) studies report improvements in depression and reductions in suicidal ideation; a review reported effect on self-harm outcomes in at-risk groups (review includes quantified results)
06
The WHO live fact sheet reports that suicide prevention interventions can reduce suicide rates by around 10–30% in model-based scenarios (WHO prevention modeling range)
07
A 2022 systematic review reported that safety planning interventions reduce subsequent self-harm by about 40% vs usual care in included studies (pooled estimate range)
Interpretation
Policy & Prevention Interpretation
For Policy and Prevention, the evidence base suggests that structured, evidence-led approaches such as NICE-aligned safety planning and DBT-style treatment can meaningfully cut self-harm rates, with RCT and meta-analytic findings showing reductions of around 50% in repeat episodes and moderate effect sizes, while broader suicide prevention efforts may reduce suicide rates by about 10 to 30% in model-based scenarios.
06 · Category
Healthcare Utilization3 stats
01
Hospital-treated self-harm contacts in England accounted for an estimated 0.9% of all acute mental health emergency contacts in 2019/20 (share of emergency mental health contacts)
02
In the U.S., the age-standardized rate of ED visits for non-suicidal self-injury was 353 per 100,000 persons in 2014 (NEDS-based estimate)
03
In a Canadian cohort study, 34% of individuals who presented to an ED for self-harm re-presented within 12 months (repeat presentation proportion)
Interpretation
Healthcare Utilization Interpretation
From a healthcare utilization perspective, hospital and emergency care for self-harm appears to be a persistent but not overwhelming burden, with England estimating 0.9% of acute mental health emergency contacts in 2019 to U.S. emergency department visit rates of 353 per 100,000 in 2014 and a Canadian finding that 34% of people re-present within 12 months.
07 · Category
Clinical Pathways2 stats
01
DBT-informed care reduced repeat self-harm by 40% versus control in a UK pragmatic trial subgroup analysis (relative risk reduction reported)
02
In a meta-analysis of safety planning interventions, 44.0% of participants assigned to safety planning had no subsequent self-harm event vs 32.5% in control conditions (pooled absolute rates reported across trials)
Interpretation
Clinical Pathways Interpretation
Within clinical pathways, evidence suggests that structured approaches can meaningfully reduce repeat self-harm, with DBT-informed care cutting it by 40% versus control in a UK pragmatic subgroup and safety planning yielding a 44.0% rate of no subsequent self-harm event among participants.
08 · Category
Burden & Impact3 stats
01
The global age-standardized rate of deaths due to suicide was 9.0 per 100,000 in 2019 (Global Burden of Disease 2019 estimate)
02
In the UK, self-harm accounts for roughly 0.7% of Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) in adolescents (GBD-based UK estimate, 2019 era modeling)
03
Self-harm-related mortality risk increases sharply following index presentation; in a systematic review, the pooled relative risk of death after self-harm was 30.0x compared with matched controls (meta-analytic estimate)
Interpretation
Burden & Impact Interpretation
For the Burden and Impact angle, the global age-standardized suicide death rate stood at 9.0 per 100,000 in 2019, and in the UK self-harm contributes about 0.7% of DALYs among adolescents while mortality risk rises sharply after an initial episode, underscoring both immediate and longer lasting harm.
report visual · Key figures
How common is self-harm across groups?
Self-harm rates vary by population and country: estimates range from about one in twelve adults in the UK to higher rates among students (e.g., one-quarter or more depending on the measure).
5%
1 in 20 adults (about 5%) experienced self-harm in the past year, according to the 2020 Mental Health of Adults report
8.3%
About 1 in 12 (8.3%) UK adults reported they had ever self-harmed in the past survey period (England estimates used in N
22.4%
22.4% of U.S. high school students reported considering suicide in the past year (YRBSS 2021, CDC)
28%
28.0% of Canadian postsecondary students reported experiencing non-suicidal self-injury at least once (national survey e
5.5%
5.5% of U.S. adults reported engaging in non-suicidal self-injury at some point (2019–2021 NSDUH combined estimate, age
source-verifieddigital.nhs.uk · cdc.gov · journals.sagepub.com · samhsa.gov2021
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
Daniel Varga. (2026, February 13). Self-Harm Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/self-harm-statistics
MLA
Daniel Varga. "Self-Harm Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/self-harm-statistics.
Chicago
Daniel Varga. 2026. "Self-Harm Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/self-harm-statistics.
Sources & references
37 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
digital.nhs.uk
cdc.gov
statswales.gov.wales
samhsa.gov
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
vizhub.healthdata.org
who.int
nejm.org
nice.org.ukncbi.nlm.nih.gov
journals.sagepub.comengland.nhs.uk
thelancet.com
sciencedirect.com
jamanetwork.comghdx.healthdata.org
acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
psycnet.apa.org
+19 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)