Domestic violence physically harms about 10 million people in the United States each year. Data show consistent patterns among perpetrators, who are often male and employed, and victims, who face elevated risks tied to age, disability, and identity. The sections below present figures on prevalence, health costs, and system responses.
Key Takeaways
- 70-80% of intimate partner violence incidents involve alcohol use.
- Women aged 18-24 experience the highest rate of domestic violence at 13.2 per 1,000.
- Intimate partner violence causes $8.3 billion in medical costs annually in the US.
- Only 34% of domestic violence cases are reported to police.
- Approximately 10 million people in the United States are physically harmed as a result of intimate partner violence each year.
In the United States, domestic violence remains widespread, affecting millions and threatening lives every day.
Related reading
01 · Category
Demographics of Perpetrators20 stats
01
70-80% of intimate partner violence incidents involve alcohol use.
02
85-90% of domestic violence perpetrators are male.
03
Men who batter their partners are often employed and have higher incomes than non-batterers.
04
80% of men who abuse their partners also abuse their children.
05
Perpetrators of domestic violence use firearms in 20% of intimate partner homicides.
06
Male perpetrators account for 88% of simple assault victims reported to police.
07
62% of male perpetrators have a prior criminal history.
08
Batterers are more likely to have witnessed domestic violence in childhood (63%).
09
50-60% of men who abuse their wives also abuse their children.
10
Perpetrators aged 18-24 commit 40% of reported domestic violence incidents.
11
Alcohol is a factor in 40-60% of domestic violence cases involving male perpetrators.
12
30% of perpetrators have a diagnosed mental health disorder.
13
Male military veterans perpetrate domestic violence at rates 2-3 times higher than civilians.
14
75% of domestic violence perpetrators exhibit controlling behaviors.
15
Perpetrators with unemployment rates are 50% more likely to abuse partners.
16
20% of perpetrators use stalking as a tactic in domestic violence.
17
Black male perpetrators kill Black female victims at rates 8 times higher than white counterparts.
18
65% of perpetrators have prior arrests for violence.
19
Rural male perpetrators have 25% higher recidivism rates for domestic violence.
20
40% of perpetrators report childhood exposure to domestic violence.
Interpretation
Demographics of Perpetrators Interpretation
The statistics paint a grim and interconnected portrait: from the bar stool to the childhood home, a toxic blueprint of power, substance, and witnessed violence is often reproduced by employed, controlling men who escalate from assault to lethal force, with tragic predictability.
02 · Category
Demographics of Victims24 stats
01
Women aged 18-24 experience the highest rate of domestic violence at 13.2 per 1,000.
02
42% of women and 44% of men have experienced coercive control by an intimate partner.
03
Black women are murdered by a partner at 2.5 times the rate of white women.
04
37.3% of Hispanic women and 47.7% of non-Hispanic Black women experience intimate partner violence.
05
Women with disabilities are 40% more likely to experience domestic violence.
06
55% of transgender individuals report intimate partner violence.
07
90% of homeless women have experienced severe physical or sexual abuse.
08
60% of all female murder victims were killed by someone they knew, often an intimate partner.
09
Lesbian women experience domestic violence at the same rate as heterosexual women (44%).
10
84% of bisexual women and 73.8% of bisexual men experience intimate partner violence.
11
Native American women experience violence at rates 2.2 times higher than the national average.
12
46% of women with a history of abuse report being pregnant during the abuse.
13
Elderly women over 60 are victims in 80% of elder abuse cases involving family.
14
Low-income women experience double the rate of intimate partner violence compared to high-income women.
15
1 in 10 high school students has been purposefully hit or physically hurt by a boyfriend or girlfriend.
16
32% of female veterans report experiencing intimate partner violence.
17
Immigrant women face domestic violence at rates up to 53% higher than US-born women.
18
Women in rural areas experience 20% higher rates of intimate partner homicide.
19
50% of Latinx women report experiencing intimate partner violence.
20
Asian American women report lower rates but higher underreporting of domestic violence.
21
40% of women with children under 12 experience domestic violence.
22
Bisexual women face 61.1% lifetime rate of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner.
23
1 in 5 teenage girls who have been in a relationship report being physically or sexually abused.
24
Women aged 20-24 have the highest victimization rate for nonfatal intimate partner violence at 9.6 per 1,000.
Interpretation
Demographics of Victims Interpretation
This unsettling collage of data paints a portrait not of random misfortune, but of a society whose foundations of safety and equality are selectively crumbling under the specific weights of youth, poverty, race, disability, and identity.
03 · Category
Health and Economic Impacts20 stats
01
Intimate partner violence causes $8.3 billion in medical costs annually in the US.
02
Victims of domestic violence miss 8 million paid workdays annually.
03
37% of domestic violence victims suffer physical injury requiring medical attention.
04
Domestic violence-related emergency room visits cost $4.2 billion per year.
05
42% of women who experience violence report depressive symptoms.
06
Children witnessing domestic violence are 50% more likely to abuse drugs/alcohol.
07
Victims lose $1.7 billion in lifetime earnings due to domestic violence.
08
24% of suicide attempts by women are attributed to domestic violence.
09
Domestic violence increases risk of heart disease by 70% in victims.
10
92% of domestic violence shelters needed additional funding in 2022.
11
PTSD affects 31% of women and 23% of men who experience intimate partner violence.
12
Domestic violence costs businesses $8.3 billion annually in lost productivity.
13
65% of abuse victims report chronic health issues post-violence.
14
Arthritis rates are 28% higher in battered women.
15
Domestic violence contributes to 15-20% of maternal deaths.
16
Victims incur $103 million in annual property loss from violence.
17
76% of female homicide victims are targeted by someone they know, leading to long-term societal health costs.
18
Alcohol abuse among victims increases healthcare costs by 40%.
19
Domestic violence leads to 2 million injuries requiring medical care yearly.
20
Economic abuse affects 99% of domestic violence cases, costing victims $5,800/year.
Interpretation
Health and Economic Impacts Interpretation
This terrifying balance sheet of broken bodies, stolen time, and stolen futures proves that domestic violence is not a private crime but a staggeringly expensive public health crisis where the real cost is measured in human suffering.
More related reading
04 · Category
Legal, Policy, and Response Statistics24 stats
01
Only 34% of domestic violence cases are reported to police.
02
50 states have passed laws restricting firearm access for domestic abusers.
03
Domestic violence protective orders are issued in 80% of reported cases.
04
Only 17% of domestic violence crimes result in arrest.
05
VAWA has funded over $7 billion in services since 1994.
06
85% of protective orders are violated at least once.
07
Only 23% of women who experience violence seek help from police.
08
Batterer intervention programs reduce recidivism by 33%.
09
75% of calls to domestic violence hotlines are from survivors seeking safety plans.
10
Federal funding for DV shelters covers only 50% of needs.
11
Prosecution rates for domestic violence are 70% lower than non-domestic assaults.
12
40 states require arrest in misdemeanor domestic violence cases.
13
Victim service agencies assisted 1.2 million DV victims in 2020.
14
Recidivism rates for domestic violence offenders are 40% within 3 years.
15
Only 10% of shelters turn away no victims due to space.
16
Mandatory reporting laws exist in 18 states for healthcare providers.
17
60% of DV homicides occur after a prior police call.
18
National Domestic Violence Hotline answered 349,000 conversations in 2022.
19
Conviction rates for DV felonies are 62%, but only 25% for misdemeanors.
20
95% of states have some form of batterers' intervention programs mandated.
21
Emergency protective orders are granted in 90% of requests.
22
Only 52% of jurisdictions have specialized DV courts.
23
70% of child custody cases involving DV result in shared custody.
24
Federal grants awarded $478 million for VAWA programs in FY2022.
Interpretation
Legal, Policy, and Response Statistics Interpretation
The system is a contradictory fortress of well-intentioned laws and tragic statistics, where a victim's journey for safety is often a gauntlet running from underfunded hope through legal loopholes to the stark reality that paper orders are fragile shields against persistent predators.
05 · Category
Prevalence and Incidence30 stats
01
Approximately 10 million people in the United States are physically harmed as a result of intimate partner violence each year.
02
1 in 3 women (35.6%) and 1 in 4 men (28.5%) in the US have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
03
From 2010 to 2021, there were nearly 11,000 lives lost to family and intimate partner violence in the US.
04
Domestic violence accounts for 15% of all violent crime in the United States annually.
05
48.4% of women and 48.8% of men have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
06
Intimate partner violence affects 25% of women and 10% of men during their lifetime.
07
Nearly half of all women and men in the US have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner (48.4% women; 48.8% men).
08
1 in 15 women and 1 in 34 men have experienced stalking victimization by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
09
Over 12 million people over the age of 18 are victims of domestic violence each year in the US.
10
Intimate partner violence results in more than 2,000 deaths annually in the US.
11
41% of all women killed by an intimate partner were killed with a gun in the US.
12
Domestic violence hotlines receive over 22,000 calls per day in the US.
13
1 in 7 women and 1 in 18 men have been stalked by an intimate partner during their lifetime.
14
Between 2014 and 2019, the rate of intimate partner homicides increased by 9% in the US.
15
90-95% of domestic violence victims are women, according to police reports.
16
In 2021, there were 1,902 intimate partner homicides in the US.
17
1 in 4 women will be victims of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in her lifetime.
18
1 in 7 men will be victims of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in his lifetime.
19
43.6% of women and 38.4% of men experienced contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner.
20
Domestic violence is the third leading cause of homelessness among families in the US.
21
1.3 million women and 585,000 men are victims of physical violence by an intimate partner each year.
22
Stalking by an intimate partner affects 9.2% of women and 2.5% of men in their lifetime.
23
16% of all homicides in the US are committed by an intimate partner.
24
Intimate partners murdered 1,695 women and 749 men between 1976 and 2002.
25
Every 9 seconds in the US, a woman is beaten or assaulted.
26
Domestic violence victims make 8 million calls to police annually.
27
35% of women and 28% of men first experienced intimate partner violence before age 18.
28
In 2010, 60% of female homicide victims were killed by an intimate partner or family member.
29
The prevalence of lifetime intimate partner violence is 44.0% among women and 25.7% among men.
30
From 1993 to 2001, women accounted for 89% of all intimate partner violence murder victims.
Interpretation
Prevalence and Incidence Interpretation
Behind the carefully measured statistics of domestic violence lies a silent, national epidemic where "home" is statistically one of the most dangerous words in the American lexicon.
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
Ryan Townsend. (2026, February 13). United States Domestic Violence Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/united-states-domestic-violence-statistics
MLA
Ryan Townsend. "United States Domestic Violence Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/united-states-domestic-violence-statistics.
Chicago
Ryan Townsend. 2026. "United States Domestic Violence Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/united-states-domestic-violence-statistics.
Sources & references
20 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level