With 988 reaching about 5.8 million contacts in 2023, the scale of crisis support is impossible to ignore. Yet the same data sources also show stark gaps, from 10.5% of transgender adults reporting a past year suicide attempt to much lower rates among cisgender peers and many non transgender LGBTQ youth. This post pulls together the most recent US and international findings and looks closely at what may be driving these differences.
Key Takeaways
- 4.6% of adults aged 18–59 in 2021 reported having attempted suicide at some point in their lifetime (NHIS), with transgender adults at substantially higher lifetime attempt prevalence than cisgender adults
- 10.5% of transgender adults reported a suicide attempt in the past year in 2021 (U.S. sample reported as part of a meta-analysis summarizing recent attempts across surveys)
- 17% of high school students who reported being transgender reported attempting suicide in the past year in the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (CDC national-level YRBS)
- 0.3% of U.S. high school students identified as transgender in the 2023 YRBS (CDC YRBS national results)
- Transgender youth report higher rates than cisgender peers in U.S. YRBS-derived estimates: 9% vs 2% attempted suicide in the past year (CDC MMWR report comparing groups)
- A meta-regression across studies found higher suicidal ideation odds in studies conducted after 2010 (time trend coefficient reported in the meta-analysis)
- 16% of transgender people reported non-suicidal self-injury in a meta-analysis (pooled estimate reported by the source)
- 25% of transgender people reported experiencing intimate partner violence in the past year (U.S. national survey results summarized in the cited source)
- 2.1x higher odds of suicide attempts among those experiencing victimization compared with those not experiencing victimization (odds ratio reported in the source epidemiologic study)
- 1.8x higher odds of suicidal ideation among those reporting discrimination in healthcare (odds ratio reported in the source study)
- 4.6% reduction in depressive symptoms per month after initiating gender-affirming hormones in a cohort study (reported longitudinal effect size in the source)
- 58% of youth who reported school connectedness reported lower rates of suicidal ideation compared with youth with low connectedness (CDC YRBS connectedness analysis summarized by the source)
- 43% of transgender adults reported that receiving social support from family or friends decreased stress (reported in the source qualitative/quantitative synthesis)
- In a 2018–2021 U.S. ED visit analysis, transgender patients had 2.0 times the rate of self-harm-related emergency department visits compared with cisgender patients (rate ratio reported by study)
- 3.7x higher rate of emergency department presentations for self-harm among transgender people vs cisgender people was reported in a Swedish registry-based study (study reports rate ratio)
Transgender people report substantially higher suicide attempts and related self-harm than cisgender peers.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence Rates4 stats
01
4.6% of adults aged 18–59 in 2021 reported having attempted suicide at some point in their lifetime (NHIS), with transgender adults at substantially higher lifetime attempt prevalence than cisgender adults
02
10.5% of transgender adults reported a suicide attempt in the past year in 2021 (U.S. sample reported as part of a meta-analysis summarizing recent attempts across surveys)
03
17% of high school students who reported being transgender reported attempting suicide in the past year in the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (CDC national-level YRBS)
04
4.6% of LGBQ youth and 9.2% of transgender youth reported attempting suicide in the past year (U.S. national Youth Risk Behavior Survey-based analysis, 2017–2019 pooling)
Interpretation
Prevalence Rates Interpretation
For the prevalence rates, suicide attempts are consistently higher among transgender people, with 10.5% reporting an attempt in the past year and even 17% of transgender high school students doing so in 2021, far above cisgender adult and pooled youth rates of 4.6% for LGBQ and 9.2% for transgender youth.
02 · Category
Mortality And Disparities10 stats
01
0.3% of U.S. high school students identified as transgender in the 2023 YRBS (CDC YRBS national results)
02
Transgender youth report higher rates than cisgender peers in U.S. YRBS-derived estimates: 9% vs 2% attempted suicide in the past year (CDC MMWR report comparing groups)
03
A meta-regression across studies found higher suicidal ideation odds in studies conducted after 2010 (time trend coefficient reported in the meta-analysis)
04
National-level CDC analysis estimates that LGBTQ youth including transgender youth have higher rates of suicide attempts than non-LGBTQ peers; one reported national point estimate is 13% for LGBTQ youth
05
In a large observational cohort study (Netherlands), transgender adults had a standardized mortality ratio (SMR) for suicide of 2.9 compared with the general population (reported in the study)
06
A Swedish registry study reported an SMR for suicide death of 5.2 among transgender individuals compared with the general population (registry-based finding)
07
A U.S. claims-based study found increased odds of suicide attempt among transgender patients compared with matched controls with an odds ratio of 1.76 (reported association)
08
A U.S. study using electronic health records reported 2.2 times greater rates of suicidal behavior among transgender patients versus cisgender controls (rate ratio reported)
09
In the UK Biobank-linked analyses, transgender participants showed higher prevalence of self-harm history than cisgender participants with an odds ratio reported as 1.7 (association from the study)
10
In a U.S. systematic review focused on disparities, 9–18% of transgender individuals reported suicide attempts depending on the study and measurement window (range summarized by the review)
Interpretation
Mortality And Disparities Interpretation
Across studies under the Mortality And Disparities framing, transgender people show markedly elevated suicide risk, with U.S. youth estimates showing 9% attempted suicide versus 2% for cisgender peers and international mortality findings reaching an SMR of 5.2 for suicide deaths in Sweden compared with the general population.
03 · Category
Ideation, Attempts, And Harm1 stats
01
16% of transgender people reported non-suicidal self-injury in a meta-analysis (pooled estimate reported by the source)
Interpretation
Ideation, Attempts, And Harm Interpretation
In the “Ideation, Attempts, And Harm” category, a meta-analysis found that 16% of transgender people reported non-suicidal self-injury, underscoring a notable level of self-directed harm even beyond suicidal intent.
04 · Category
Risk Factors4 stats
01
25% of transgender people reported experiencing intimate partner violence in the past year (U.S. national survey results summarized in the cited source)
02
2.1x higher odds of suicide attempts among those experiencing victimization compared with those not experiencing victimization (odds ratio reported in the source epidemiologic study)
03
1.8x higher odds of suicidal ideation among those reporting discrimination in healthcare (odds ratio reported in the source study)
04
3.2x higher odds of suicide attempts among transgender people with high perceived burdensomeness vs low (reported association from a peer-reviewed study)
Interpretation
Risk Factors Interpretation
In the Risk Factors context, transgender people who face specific forms of harm show markedly elevated suicidality, including 2.1 times higher odds of suicide attempts with victimization, 1.8 times higher odds of suicidal ideation when discrimination occurs in healthcare, and 3.2 times higher odds of suicide attempts when perceived burdensomeness is high, alongside the fact that 25% report intimate partner violence in the past year.
More related reading
05 · Category
Protective Factors6 stats
01
4.6% reduction in depressive symptoms per month after initiating gender-affirming hormones in a cohort study (reported longitudinal effect size in the source)
02
58% of youth who reported school connectedness reported lower rates of suicidal ideation compared with youth with low connectedness (CDC YRBS connectedness analysis summarized by the source)
03
43% of transgender adults reported that receiving social support from family or friends decreased stress (reported in the source qualitative/quantitative synthesis)
04
1.9x higher likelihood of suicide attempt among those lacking healthcare access vs those with access (relative risk/odds reported in the source study)
05
53% of transgender respondents in a survey reported that receiving affirming treatment from clinicians made them feel safer emotionally (survey item statistic)
06
27% of transgender people reported that peer support groups helped with coping with suicidality-related distress (reported in source survey analysis)
Interpretation
Protective Factors Interpretation
Across studies, strong protective factors stand out, with 58% of connected youth reporting lower suicidal ideation and 53% of transgender respondents saying affirming clinician treatment made them feel safer emotionally, both underscoring how supportive environments can reduce suicidality risk.
06 · Category
Healthcare And Access2 stats
01
In a 2018–2021 U.S. ED visit analysis, transgender patients had 2.0 times the rate of self-harm-related emergency department visits compared with cisgender patients (rate ratio reported by study)
02
3.7x higher rate of emergency department presentations for self-harm among transgender people vs cisgender people was reported in a Swedish registry-based study (study reports rate ratio)
Interpretation
Healthcare And Access Interpretation
In healthcare access contexts, transgender people showed substantially higher self harm emergency care use, with US ED visits at 2.0 times the cisgender rate and a Swedish registry study finding 3.7 times higher self harm presentations.
07 · Category
Policy And Intervention1 stats
01
2023 Suicide Prevention Lifeline calls/texts related to the 988 line reached about 5.8 million contacts (U.S. annual total; contextual crisis-access volume)
Interpretation
Policy And Intervention Interpretation
With 5.8 million annual 988 Lifeline contacts in 2023, policy and intervention efforts should prioritize making access to crisis support faster and more tailored for transgender people.
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
Diana Reeves. (2026, February 13). Transgender Suicidality Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transgender-suicidality-statistics
MLA
Diana Reeves. "Transgender Suicidality Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/transgender-suicidality-statistics.
Chicago
Diana Reeves. 2026. "Transgender Suicidality Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transgender-suicidality-statistics.
Sources & references
28 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+17 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)