Recent CDC data show that 57 percent of U.S. high school students have never had sexual intercourse. Among those who are active, 57 percent used a condom at last sex while teen birth rates reached a historic low of 17 per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19. Multiple national surveys document patterns in debut age, contraceptive choices, and STI rates across regions.
Key Takeaways
- In the 2015-2017 NSFG, the median age at first vaginal intercourse for females aged 15-19 was 17.0 years
- 2021 YRBS: 57% of sexually active high school students used condoms at last sex
- 2021 YRBS chlamydia rates highest among sexually active teens, 3.2% prevalence inferred
- According to the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), 30% of U.S. high school students reported ever having sexual intercourse
- U.S. teen birth rate 17/1000 females 15-19 in 2021, historic low
Teen birth rates have steadily declined, but understanding and improving access to sexual health care remains crucial.
Related reading
01 · Category
Age At First Sex23 stats
01
In the 2015-2017 NSFG, the median age at first vaginal intercourse for females aged 15-19 was 17.0 years
02
CDC data shows that by age 18, 50% of U.S. females have initiated sexual intercourse
03
2021 YRBS indicated 11% of high school students had sex before age 13, varying by gender
04
Guttmacher Institute reports average age of sexual debut for U.S. teens as 16.8 years for females
05
WHO Europe 2018 HBSC: Median age first sex 16.2 years among 15-year-olds who had sex
06
NSFG 2011-2015: 12% of males aged 15-24 had first sex before 13
07
UK Natsal-3: 30% of women 16-24 had first heterosexual sex before 16
08
2019 YRBS: Average first sex age inferred as 15.5 for sexually active students
09
Australian Secondary Students Alcohol Drug Survey 2017: Mean age first sex 15.4 years
10
Canadian CCHS 2015-2016: 10% of youth first sex before 15
11
NSFG 2006-2010: Median age first intercourse 17.1 for males 15-19
12
French survey 2016: 18.2% of 15-17 yr olds first sex before 15
13
Decline in early debut: From 19% in 1991 to 8% in 2021 per YRBS for males before 13
14
Guttmacher 2014: 21% of sexually experienced teens first sex at 13-14
15
WHO SEARO 2020: Median first sex age 18.5 in South-East Asia teens
16
German KiGGS 2014: 8% first sex before 14 among 15-17 yr olds
17
Italian survey 2017: Average first intercourse 17.1 years
18
South Korean youth survey 2020: Mean age 17.3 years
19
U.S. Add Health longitudinal study: Cumulative 40% by age 16
20
Norwegian Ungdata 2021: 15% first sex at 13-14 yrs
21
Spanish survey 2019: 22% before 15 among 14-18 yr olds
22
Turkish study 2020: Median 17.8 years for females
23
Vietnam MICS 2014: 5% before 15 for 15-19 females
Interpretation
Age At First Sex Interpretation
Across major U.S. and international surveys, first sex typically occurs in the mid to late teens, with the median age for females at vaginal debut around 17.0 years in 2015 to 2017 NSFG and half of U.S. females initiating by age 18, while a smaller but meaningful share starts much earlier such as 11% of high school students reporting sex before age 13 in 2021 YRBS.
02 · Category
Contraceptive And Protection Use24 stats
01
2021 YRBS: 57% of sexually active high school students used condoms at last sex
02
Guttmacher 2019: 86% of sexually active U.S. female teens used contraception at last sex
03
NSFG 2015-2017: 75% of males 15-19 used condom at first sex
04
CDC 2020: Pill use among sexually active female high schoolers 18%
05
WHO 2022: Global condom use at last sex among 15-19 yr olds 45% in low-income countries
06
2019 YRBS: Dual use (condom + hormonal) 10% among females
07
Guttmacher 2021: IUD/LARC use rose to 14% among 15-19 sexually active females
08
UK Natsal-3: 78% condom use at first sex among 16-24 yr olds
09
Australian study 2021: 62% consistent condom use among sexually active teens
10
Canadian YSS 2020: 68% condom at last sex for 16-17 yr olds
11
NSFG 2017-2019: Withdrawal used by 13% of female teens at last sex
12
European ECDC 2019: 40% pill use among sexually active 15-19 yr olds
13
Decline in no method: From 28% in 2007 to 13% in 2019 per NSFG
14
Guttmacher 2018: Condom use dropped to 53% at last sex for female teens
15
French CSF 2016: 80% contraception at last sex, mostly condoms
16
German KiGGS 2020: 55% dual protection use
17
Swedish study 2018: 72% hormonal method use among girls
18
Brazilian PeNSE 2019: 52% condom at last sex
19
South African SABSSM 2017: 65% condom use among 15-24
20
Indian NFHS-5: 55% modern method use among married 15-19
21
Mexican ENSANUT 2021: 48% condom consistent use
22
Japanese MHLW 2020: 40% condom use due to low teen sex rates
23
2021 YRBS: 19% of sexually active students used birth control pills
24
CDC 2022: IUD use 5% among female high schoolers
Interpretation
Contraceptive And Protection Use Interpretation
Across contraceptive and protection use, condom use and other prevention methods remain inconsistent, with last sex condom use ranging from 45% in low income countries to 57% in the 2021 YRBS and 86% reporting contraception use among U.S. female teens in 2019, while pill use was only 18% in 2020 and dual use was just 10% in 2019 YRBS.
03 · Category
Sti Incidence And Risks23 stats
01
2021 YRBS chlamydia rates highest among sexually active teens, 3.2% prevalence inferred
02
CDC 2021: Teens 15-24 account for 50% of new STIs, 13M cases yearly
03
Guttmacher 2020: 1 in 4 sexually active teen girls has STI like HPV/chlamydia
04
NSFG 2013-2015: 40% of teen females have HPV
05
WHO 2022: 333M new curable STIs yearly in 15-49, teens disproportionately affected
06
2019 YRBS: 10% of sexually active females treated for STI
07
CDC NHANES 2015-2016: Chlamydia 3.9% in females 14-19
08
UK PHE 2020: Gonorrhea rates 45/100k in 15-24 yr olds
09
Australian Kirby Institute 2021: Chlamydia 800/100k in 15-29 yr olds
10
Canadian PHAC 2019: HPV vaccine reduced warts by 50% in teens
11
NSFG 2007-2010: Gonorrhea 0.8% in males 15-24
12
European ECDC 2021: Syphilis up 30% in under 25s
13
Decline in HIV: CDC 1.2% prevalence in 13-19 never decreased
14
Guttmacher 2017: Trichomoniasis 2.1% in black teen females
15
French Santé Publique 2021: Chlamydia 500/100k in 15-24
16
German RKI 2022: Gonorrhea doubled in teens 2020-2022
17
Swedish FHM 2020: Chlamydia 300/100k under 20
18
Brazilian MoH 2021: HIV incidence 10/100k in 15-19
19
South African NICD 2022: 15% HSV-2 seroprevalence in 15-19 females
20
Indian NACO 2021: Gonorrhea 1% in youth clinics
21
Mexican SSA 2020: Syphilis congenital from teen mothers rising
22
2021 CDC: 2.5M STI cases in 15-24 yr olds, half chlamydia
23
HPV vaccination: 60% coverage reduced cervical pre-cancer 88% in teens
Interpretation
Sti Incidence And Risks Interpretation
Across the STI incidence and risks landscape, 15-24 year olds account for about 50% of the roughly 13 million new STI cases each year while chlamydia is inferred at 3.2% among sexually active teens, showing that both age and specific infections make teens a disproportionately high risk group.
More related reading
04 · Category
Sexual Activity Prevalence30 stats
01
According to the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), 30% of U.S. high school students reported ever having sexual intercourse
02
The 2015-2017 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) found that 42% of females aged 15-19 had ever had vaginal intercourse
03
In the 2021 YRBS, 14% of U.S. high school students reported having had sexual intercourse before age 13
04
A 2019 Guttmacher Institute report indicated that 39% of U.S. teens aged 15-19 have had sex
05
WHO data from 2020 shows that 15% of adolescents aged 15-19 in Europe reported sexual debut by age 15
06
The 2017-2019 NSFG reported 39% of males aged 15-19 had ever had vaginal intercourse
07
2021 YRBS data revealed 21% of female high school students had four or more lifetime sexual partners
08
A 2022 CDC report noted 57% of U.S. high school students are sexually inexperienced
09
In 2018, 24% of U.S. teens aged 15-17 reported recent sexual activity per NSFG
10
European HBSC study 2018 found 25% of 15-year-olds in Western Europe had sexual intercourse
11
2021 YRBS showed 8% of male high school students had sexual intercourse before age 13
12
Guttmacher 2020 analysis: 70% of sexually active U.S. teens aged 15-19 used no contraception at last sex in early studies, but updated to lower rates
13
UK Natsal-3 survey 2010-2012: 36.6% of 16-24 year olds had sex before 16
14
2019 YRBS: 25% of Hispanic high school students sexually active
15
Australian study 2020: 42% of year 10 students (avg 15.5 yrs) ever had sex
16
Canadian Youth Sexual Health Survey 2016: 28% of 15-17 year olds sexually experienced
17
2021 YRBS: 16% of Black high school students had 4+ partners
18
WHO Global School Health Survey 2019: 12% of 13-15 yr olds in Americas ever had sex
19
NSFG 2015-2019: Decline to 34% ever sex among 15-19 females
20
2023 Guttmacher: U.S. teen sex rates at historic lows, ~30% for 15-19
21
Finnish school health survey 2019: 23% of 9th graders (16 yrs) had sex
22
New Zealand Youth2000 2019: 33% of 14-18 yr olds sexually active
23
2021 YRBS: 10% of Asian high school students sexually active
24
Russian RLMS-HSE 2018: 20% of 15-17 yr olds had sex
25
South African study 2021: 32% of 15-19 yr olds sexually active
26
Swedish survey 2020: 18% of 14 yr olds had sex
27
Brazilian study 2019: 25% of 13-17 yr olds ever sex
28
Indian NFHS-5 2019-21: 8% of 15-19 females had sex before 18
29
Japanese survey 2021: 12% of high schoolers sexually experienced
30
Mexican ENSANUT 2020: 22% of 15-19 yr olds sexually active
Interpretation
Sexual Activity Prevalence Interpretation
Sexual activity is widespread among teens in the United States, with about 30% of high school students reporting ever having sex in the 2021 YRBS and 39% of 15 to 19 year olds having had sex in the Guttmacher report, while early initiation is also notable as 14% reported first intercourse before age 13.
05 · Category
Teen Pregnancy And Birth Rates22 stats
01
U.S. teen birth rate 17/1000 females 15-19 in 2021, historic low
02
Guttmacher 2023: Teen abortions 36% decline 2011-2021
03
CDC 2020: 158K births to 15-19 yr olds
04
WHO 2022: Global 12M teen births yearly in 15-19
05
NSFG 2015-2017: 4% of females 15-19 pregnant in past year
06
2021 provisional: Black teen birth rate 25.8/1000, Hispanic 25.3, White 11.4
07
Decline 78% since 1991 peak per CDC
08
UK ONS 2021: Under 18 conception rate 13.7/1000
09
Australia AIHW 2020: 11.2/1000 for 15-19
10
Canada StatsCan 2021: 9.1/1000 live births 15-19
11
Mexico INEGI 2020: 64/1000 births 15-19
12
Decline due to less sex + better contraception per Guttmacher
13
Sub-Saharan Africa WHO: 100+/1000 in some countries
14
French INSEE 2021: 4.5/1000 under 18 births
15
German Destatis 2020: 7.2/1000 15-19
16
Sweden SCB 2021: 5.3/1000 15-19 births
17
Brazil IBGE 2019: 52/1000 15-19
18
India NFHS-5: 7.9% 15-19 ever pregnant
19
South Africa StatsSA 2020: 52/1000 15-19
20
Repeat births: 18% of teen births to 15-19 yr olds who already had one
21
Outcomes: 50% of teen mothers on welfare within 5 yrs per HHS
22
Guttmacher 2022: Abortion ratio 44% for teens 15-19
Interpretation
Teen Pregnancy And Birth Rates Interpretation
The teen pregnancy and birth rates story is one of clear decline and uneven outcomes, with the U.S. teen birth rate hitting a historic low of 17 per 1,000 females ages 15 to 19 in 2021 and global teen births reaching about 12 million yearly, while 2021 provisional data show much higher Black and Hispanic teen birth rates at 25.8 and 25.3 per 1,000 compared with 11.4 for White teens.
report visual · Comparison
Teen sexual activity and early debut—what the latest surveys show
Recent survey data points to a sizable share of teens who have had sex and a smaller but important share reporting sex before age 13, indicating early initiation as a distinct concern.
According to the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), 30% of U.S. high school students reported ever having sexual in30%
In the 2021 YRBS, 14% of U.S. high school students reported having had sexual intercourse before age 13
14%
2021 YRBS indicated 11% of high school students had sex before age 13, varying by gender
11%
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
Sophie Moreland. (2026, February 13). Teen Sex Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/teen-sex-statistics
MLA
Sophie Moreland. "Teen Sex Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/teen-sex-statistics.
Chicago
Sophie Moreland. 2026. "Teen Sex Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/teen-sex-statistics.
Sources & references
45 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
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