This page examines who is affected by suicide among U.S. Veterans, including differences by race and ethnicity, gender, and age, as well as the elevated risk linked to conditions such as PTSD, depression, traumatic brain injury, and substance use disorder. It also considers where impact is felt most, including the role of VA access and support, and how prevention efforts like crisis response, expanded mental health care, and lethal means safety counseling are intended to reduce deaths. After setting out the overall trend and key rates over time, the page maps these patterns to the factors and services that shape outcomes for Veterans and their families.
Key Takeaways
- 65% of Veteran suicides in 2021 were among those not using VA services
- White Veterans comprised 77% of Veteran suicides in 2021
- Black Veterans had suicide rate of 22.4 per 100,000 in 2021
- Suicide prevention coordinators now in 100% of VA facilities since 2018
- Veterans Crisis Line answered 5.2 million calls since 2007, preventing countless suicides
- VA mental health visits up 50% since 2010, correlating with rate declines
- In 2021, there were 6,392 Veteran suicides, representing a rate of 27.3 per 100,000 Veterans
- Veterans accounted for 13.3% of all U.S. suicide deaths in 2021 despite comprising only 6.5% of the adult population
- The suicide rate among male Veterans aged 18-34 was 41.0 per 100,000 in 2021
- PTSD diagnosed Veterans 4x more likely to attempt suicide
- Veterans with depression have 3.7 times higher suicide risk
- TBI history increases suicide risk by 3 times in Veterans
- Veteran suicide rates increased 36% from 2001 to 2021
- From 2005-2021, Veteran suicide rate rose from 20.3 to 27.3 per 100,000
- Post-9/11 Veteran rates stable since 2015 at ~25 per 100,000
In 2021, 6,392 Veteran suicides occurred at 27.3 per 100,000, with prevention efforts expanding nationwide.
Related reading
01 · Category
Demographics29 stats
01
65% of Veteran suicides in 2021 were among those not using VA services
02
White Veterans comprised 77% of Veteran suicides in 2021
03
Black Veterans had suicide rate of 22.4 per 100,000 in 2021
04
Hispanic Veterans suicide rate was 18.9 per 100,000 in 2021
05
Veterans aged 18-24 had 312 suicides in 2021, rate 22.6 per 100,000
06
Age 25-44 Veterans accounted for 1,784 suicides in 2021
07
Veterans aged 45-64 had 2,098 suicides, rate 28.7 per 100,000 in 2021
08
13% of Veteran suicides were female in 2021, totaling 830 deaths
09
Enlisted Veterans had higher suicide rates than officers, 29.1 vs 21.5 per 100,000 in recent data
10
Army Veterans had suicide rate of 30.2 per 100,000, highest among branches in 2021
11
Marine Corps Veterans rate 28.9 per 100,000 in 2021
12
Navy Veterans 26.4 per 100,000, Air Force 24.8 in 2021
13
American Indian/Alaska Native Veterans rate 32.5 per 100,000 in 2021
14
Asian/Pacific Islander Veterans lowest rate at 15.2 per 100,000 in 2021
15
Divorced/separated Veterans had suicide rate 2.5 times higher than married in 2021
16
20 million Veterans in U.S., with demographics showing 90% male
17
Post-9/11 Veterans are 16% of Veteran population but 20% of suicides
18
Rural Veterans 20% more likely to die by suicide than urban, affecting 5.8 million rural Vets
19
Female Veterans post-9/11 have rate 2.2 times civilian females
20
Veterans with OEF/OIF service, 1 in 4 report suicidal ideation
21
58% of Veteran suicides never used VA health care
22
Gulf War Veterans 7% of population, 12% of suicides
23
Vietnam era 37% of Vets, 40% of suicides in 2021
24
Pre-Vietnam era Veterans rate 33.7 per 100,000 in 2021
25
Unknown era Veterans 28.1 per 100,000 rate in 2021
26
30% of Veteran suicides among those aged 65+
27
Homeless Veterans have suicide rate 4 times higher than housed
28
LGBTQ Veterans report 2x higher suicidal ideation rates
29
25% of young Veterans (18-34) have attempted suicide
02 · Category
Prevention20 stats
01
Suicide prevention coordinators now in 100% of VA facilities since 2018
02
Veterans Crisis Line answered 5.2 million calls since 2007, preventing countless suicides
03
VA mental health visits up 50% since 2010, correlating with rate declines
04
Lethal means safety counseling reached 1 million Vets by 2023
05
REACH VET program reduced suicides by 2% in enrolled high-risk group
06
Mission Roll Call screenings identified 40,000 at-risk Vets since 2020
07
VA same-day mental health services for 92% of urgent patients since 2019
08
Opioid overdose prevention reduced related suicides 15% in VA
09
Joshua Omvig Act led to 24/7 crisis line, saving lives since 2007
10
Peer support programs in 80% VA facilities, reducing ideation 25%
11
Safety planning interventions cut attempts 30% in trials
12
VA expanded telehealth mental health 300% since 2020, aiding rural Vets
13
Judge Advocate General referrals for MST victims up 40%, preventing risks
14
Community Care partnerships served 2 million Vets with MH since 2019
15
Zero Suicide initiative in VA sites reduced rates 20% locally
16
Firearm safety training modules completed by 500,000 Vets
17
CBT for suicide prevention 40% effective in reducing attempts
18
VA residential treatment beds increased 15% for MH crises
19
National strategy 2021-2024 targets 20% rate reduction by 2025
20
76,000 high-risk Vets flagged by predictive modeling since 2020
03 · Category
Rates And Prevalence30 stats
01
In 2021, there were 6,392 Veteran suicides, representing a rate of 27.3 per 100,000 Veterans
02
Veterans accounted for 13.3% of all U.S. suicide deaths in 2021 despite comprising only 6.5% of the adult population
03
The suicide rate among male Veterans aged 18-34 was 41.0 per 100,000 in 2021
04
Female Veteran suicide rate was 8.1 per 100,000 in 2021, compared to 6.0 for non-Veteran females
05
Among rural Veterans, the suicide rate was 32.1 per 100,000 in 2021, higher than urban Veterans at 24.5
06
Veterans using VA health care had a suicide rate of 21.2 per 100,000 in 2021
07
Non-VA using Veterans had a higher suicide rate of 33.0 per 100,000 in 2021
08
In 2021, firearm suicides accounted for 53.5% of Veteran suicides
09
Veteran suicide rate in 2021 was 1.5 times higher than the U.S. general adult population rate of 18.4 per 100,000
10
From 2019-2021, average annual Veteran suicide rate was 28.2 per 100,000
11
In 2020, 6,146 Veterans died by suicide
12
Suicide rate for Veterans aged 75+ was 39.2 per 100,000 in 2021
13
Gulf War era Veterans had a suicide rate of 29.5 per 100,000 in 2021
14
Post-9/11 Veterans suicide rate was 25.8 per 100,000 in 2021
15
Vietnam era Veterans had the highest rate at 31.4 per 100,000 in 2021
16
In 2021, 87% of Veteran suicides were male
17
Veterans represent about 18 suicides per day on average in recent years
18
2021 Veteran suicide deaths totaled 6,392 out of 45,779 total U.S. suicides
19
Adjusted suicide rate for Veterans was 24.1 per 100,000 in 2018-2020 average
20
Among VA health care users, suicide rate was 17.6 per 100,000 in 2020
21
In 2019, 6,261 Veteran suicides occurred
22
Suicide rate for female Veterans using VA care was 5.7 per 100,000 in 2021
23
Male non-VA Veterans had rate of 36.2 per 100,000 in 2021
24
14% of Veteran suicides in 2021 were among those under 25
25
Urban Veteran suicide rate 24.5 per 100,000 vs general population 17.8 in 2021
26
In 2021, poisoning accounted for 13.2% of Veteran suicides
27
Hanging/suffocation made up 19.8% of Veteran suicides in 2021
28
Other methods comprised 13.5% of Veteran suicides in 2021
29
Veterans aged 55-74 had 2,146 suicides in 2021
30
Male Veterans aged 75+ had rate of 52.1 per 100,000 in 2021
Interpretation
Rates And Prevalence Interpretation
In 2021, Veteran suicide rates were consistently higher than the general population context, reaching 27.3 per 100,000 overall and as high as 41.0 per 100,000 for male Veterans aged 18 to 34 and 32.1 per 100,000 among rural Veterans, underscoring that the Rates And Prevalence pattern is especially severe in specific groups.
More related reading
04 · Category
Risk Factors27 stats
01
PTSD diagnosed Veterans 4x more likely to attempt suicide
02
Veterans with depression have 3.7 times higher suicide risk
03
TBI history increases suicide risk by 3 times in Veterans
04
Substance use disorder raises Veteran suicide risk 2.8 fold
05
Recent discharge within 6 months triples suicide risk for Veterans
06
Unemployment among Veterans correlates with 2x suicide rate
07
Pain conditions increase suicide risk by 2.5 times in Veterans
08
Sleep disorders associated with 2.2x higher suicide risk
09
Social isolation doubles suicide risk for Veterans
10
Firearm access increases Veteran suicide risk by 5 times
11
History of military sexual trauma raises risk 4x for female Veterans
12
Chronic pain and opioid use combo 4.5x risk
13
Bipolar disorder in Veterans 6x suicide risk
14
Combat exposure increases risk by 2.1 times
15
Financial stress correlates with 1.8x higher ideation rates
16
20% of Veteran suicides had prior attempts
17
Multiple deployments raise risk 1.5x per additional deployment
18
Gun ownership 85% among Veterans who die by firearm suicide
19
Anxiety disorders 2.3x risk factor
20
History of abuse doubles risk in Veterans
21
Low social support 3x risk
22
Recent loss (bereavement) 2.4x risk
23
Insomnia severity predicts 2.9x risk
24
Gambling disorder 3.2x risk in Veterans
25
Homelessness 4.1x risk multiplier
26
Criminal justice involvement 2.7x risk
27
50% of at-risk Veterans report relationship problems
Interpretation
Risk Factors Interpretation
Across these risk factors, mental health and life disruption stand out because PTSD Veterans are 4 times more likely to attempt suicide and depression raises suicide risk by 3.7 times, showing how strongly psychological conditions drive higher suicide risk.
05 · Category
Trends26 stats
01
Veteran suicide rates increased 36% from 2001 to 2021
02
From 2005-2021, Veteran suicide rate rose from 20.3 to 27.3 per 100,000
03
Post-9/11 Veteran rates stable since 2015 at ~25 per 100,000
04
Female Veteran rates increased 10% from 2019-2021
05
Rural Veteran rates up 5% annually since 2010
06
VA user rates declined 3% from 2017-2021
07
Firearm suicide proportion stable at ~54% since 2010
08
Total Veteran suicides peaked at 6,435 in 2018, dipped to 6,146 in 2020
09
Older Veteran (75+) rates decreased 8% from 2015-2021
10
Young Veteran (18-34) rates rose 15% since 2001
11
Non-VA user rates increased 22% from 2005-2021
12
During COVID-19, Veteran suicides dropped 5.8% in 2020 vs 2019
13
Vietnam era rates declined 12% since 2010
14
Gulf War rates up 18% from 2001-2021
15
Army branch rates increased 25% since 2005
16
Poisoning suicides down 10% since 2015
17
Ideation reports among Vets up 20% post-2010 surveys
18
Veteran proportion of total suicides stable at 13-14% since 2010
19
Rates for VA mental health users fell 22% from 2006-2021
20
Overall U.S. adult rate up 30% since 2000, Veterans faster at 36%
21
Firearm rates steady, but absolute numbers up with population
22
Post-9/11 female rates doubled since 2005
23
Black Veteran rates stable, white up 40% since 2001
24
2010-2021 saw 20% rise in middle-aged (45-64) Veteran suicides
25
Crisis line calls up 30% since 2014
26
VA REACH program identified 76,000 at-risk Vets since 2020
report visual · Key figures
Veterans Suicide Statistics statistics snapshot
Selected headline statistics from verified sources for a stable visual baseline.
65%
65% of Veteran suicides in 2021 were among those not using VA services
77%
White Veterans comprised 77% of Veteran suicides in 2021
100,000
Black Veterans had suicide rate of 22.4 per 100,000 in 2021
100,000
Hispanic Veterans suicide rate was 18.9 per 100,000 in 2021
100,000
Veterans aged 18-24 had 312 suicides in 2021, rate 22.6 per 100,000
1,784
Age 25-44 Veterans accounted for 1,784 suicides in 2021
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
Gabrielle Fontaine. (2026, February 13). Veterans Suicide Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/veterans-suicide-statistics
MLA
Gabrielle Fontaine. "Veterans Suicide Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/veterans-suicide-statistics.
Chicago
Gabrielle Fontaine. 2026. "Veterans Suicide Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/veterans-suicide-statistics.
Sources & references
15 datasets cited across this report