The U.S. telehealth market reached $31 billion in 2023. Key metrics show it cut no-show rates by 38% and reduced emergency department use by 23% for monitored patients. This article compiles the data behind its adoption and performance.
Key Takeaways
- $31.0 billion U.S. telehealth market size in 2023 (U.S. telehealth spending)
- $6.3 billion U.S. remote patient monitoring (RPM) market size in 2023
- $33.0 billion global telehealth market size in 2025 (forecast)
- 22% of U.S. adults reported using telemedicine during COVID-19 (2020)
- 41% of Americans used telehealth in 2021 (survey; respondents who used in past 12 months)
- In 2021, 31% of adults aged 18–64 used telehealth in the past 12 months (U.S.)
- 1.5x increase in telehealth visits after policy changes (2022 vs 2020; U.S. trends)
- Telehealth share of total outpatient visits rose from 0.7% in 2019 to 35% at the peak in 2020 (U.S.)
- Telehealth use peaked at 79% among behavioral health clinicians during COVID-19 (U.S.)
- Average physician telehealth wait time: 12 minutes (systematic review; virtual care)
- Telehealth reduced no-show rates by 38% (meta-analysis, outpatient care)
- Telehealth visits had patient satisfaction scores comparable to in-person visits (systematic review)
- Average cost savings of $19 per patient visit with telehealth (systematic review)
- Telehealth reduced total healthcare costs by 19% in a meta-analysis (healthcare utilization impact)
- $199 average reduction in patient costs per telehealth visit vs in-person (survey-based cost analysis)
Telehealth is scaling fast and improving outcomes, cutting costs and wait times while expanding access.
Related reading
01 · Category
Market Size3 stats
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
In the market size category, telehealth is growing sharply with the U.S. reaching $31.0 billion in 2023 and remote patient monitoring adding another $6.3 billion in 2023, while the global telehealth market is forecast to hit $33.0 billion in 2025, signaling rapid expansion beyond the U.S.
02 · Category
User Adoption5 stats
01
22% of U.S. adults reported using telemedicine during COVID-19 (2020)[3]
02
41% of Americans used telehealth in 2021 (survey; respondents who used in past 12 months)[3]
03
In 2021, 31% of adults aged 18–64 used telehealth in the past 12 months (U.S.)[4]
04
63% of providers reported telehealth adoption increased during 2020–2021 (survey)[5]
05
42% of U.S. health care consumers say they are comfortable using telehealth services (2023)[6]
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
User adoption is clearly on the rise, with telehealth use growing from 22% of U.S. adults during COVID-19 in 2020 to 31% of adults aged 18–64 using it in the past 12 months by 2021, and provider adoption increasing alongside them with 63% reporting growth in 2020–2021.
03 · Category
Industry Trends5 stats
01
1.5x increase in telehealth visits after policy changes (2022 vs 2020; U.S. trends)[7]
02
Telehealth share of total outpatient visits rose from 0.7% in 2019 to 35% at the peak in 2020 (U.S.)[3]
03
Telehealth use peaked at 79% among behavioral health clinicians during COVID-19 (U.S.)[8]
04
Telehealth accounted for 5.4% of all outpatient visits by June 2021 (U.S.)[9]
05
53% of physician practices reported using telehealth in 2022 (U.S.)[10]
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Across U.S. industry trends, telehealth expanded rapidly after policy changes with visits rising 1.5 times from 2020 to 2022, while its share of outpatient care jumped from 0.7% in 2019 to a peak of 35% in 2020, showing how quickly the sector moved from niche use to mainstream adoption.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics15 stats
01
Average physician telehealth wait time: 12 minutes (systematic review; virtual care)[7]
02
Telehealth reduced no-show rates by 38% (meta-analysis, outpatient care)[7]
03
Telehealth visits had patient satisfaction scores comparable to in-person visits (systematic review)[7]
04
Emergency department utilization decreased by 23% for patients using telehealth remote monitoring (systematic review)[7]
05
Hospital readmissions were 18% lower with telehealth interventions (meta-analysis)[7]
06
Blood pressure control improved with telehealth by 1.4 mmHg systolic (meta-analysis)[11]
07
HbA1c reduction with telehealth interventions averaged −0.26% (meta-analysis)[12]
08
Mental health symptoms improved: standardized mean difference 0.35 in telepsychology vs control (meta-analysis)[7]
09
Telehealth improved medication adherence by 20% (meta-analysis)[7]
10
Telehealth enabled 44% faster specialist consults for rural patients (study)[7]
11
Remote monitoring reduced mortality by 8% (meta-analysis; follow-up)[7]
12
Telehealth reduced stroke recognition time by 30% (tele-stroke study)[7]
13
Tele-ICU reduced ICU mortality by 6% (study/meta-analysis)[7]
14
Teledermatology achieved diagnostic accuracy of 90% (systematic review)[7]
15
Telehealth mental health delivery increased clinician throughput by 15% (real-world study)[7]
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Under performance metrics, telehealth consistently improves care delivery, cutting no show rates by 38% and reducing emergency department use by 23% while also lowering readmissions by 18% and slightly improving systolic blood pressure by 1.4 mmHg.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis12 stats
01
Average cost savings of $19 per patient visit with telehealth (systematic review)[7]
02
Telehealth reduced total healthcare costs by 19% in a meta-analysis (healthcare utilization impact)[7]
03
$199 average reduction in patient costs per telehealth visit vs in-person (survey-based cost analysis)[13]
04
Time cost savings of 62 minutes per telehealth visit (study; patient time)[7]
05
Travel cost reduction of $60 per telehealth visit (study; patient travel)[7]
06
Healthcare spending reduced by 0.8% over 12 months in telehealth-enabled primary care (RCT/real-world evidence)[13]
07
Cost-effectiveness: telehealth for hypertension management dominated usual care in an economic evaluation (incremental cost-effectiveness)[7]
08
Cost-effectiveness: remote monitoring reduced costs by £216 per patient-year (UK evaluation)[7]
09
Telehealth reduced total care costs by $143 per episode on average (systematic review)[14]
10
Remote monitoring programs reduced costs by £1,210 per patient-year on average (health economic evaluation)[15]
11
Telehealth visits reduced transportation costs by 41% compared with in-person visits (real-world study)[16]
12
Telehealth reduced the incremental cost of care by 22% for chronic disease management (economic evaluation)[17]
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Cost analysis shows telehealth can meaningfully reduce spending and patient expenses, with studies reporting $19 average savings per visit and a 19% drop in total healthcare costs, alongside patient cost reductions such as $199 less per visit and $60 in avoided travel costs.
06 · Category
Clinical Outcomes4 stats
01
3.1% reduction in emergency department utilization per 1000 patients receiving remote monitoring (follow-up period, RCT meta-analysis)[3]
02
0.17 standard deviations improvement in depression symptom scores with telepsychiatry vs control (systematic review/meta-analysis)[17]
03
0.40% mean reduction in systolic blood pressure with home blood pressure telemonitoring (systematic review/meta-analysis)[18]
04
−0.52% mean HbA1c change with telemedicine interventions compared with control (meta-analysis)[17]
Interpretation
Clinical Outcomes Interpretation
Across clinical outcomes, telehealth shows small but consistent benefits, including a 3.1% reduction in emergency department use with remote monitoring and measurable improvements such as 0.40% lower systolic blood pressure and a 0.17 standard deviation improvement in depression symptoms.
report visual · Key figures
Telehealth adoption surged during COVID-19, then stabilized
Telehealth use expanded rapidly across patients and providers during 2020–2021.
22%
22% of U.S. adults reported using telemedicine during COVID-19 (2020)
41%
41% of Americans used telehealth in 2021 (survey; respondents who used in past 12 months)
63%
63% of providers reported telehealth adoption increased during 2020–2021 (survey)
0.7%
Telehealth share of total outpatient visits rose from 0.7% in 2019 to 35% at the peak in 2020 (U.S.)
source-verifiedjamanetwork.com · healthcaredive.com2021
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
Margot Villeneuve. (2026, February 13). Telehealth Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/telehealth-statistics
MLA
Margot Villeneuve. "Telehealth Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/telehealth-statistics.
Chicago
Margot Villeneuve. 2026. "Telehealth Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/telehealth-statistics.
Sources & references
18 sources cited across this report