Gitnux/Report 2026

Women Hiv Statistics

With 29.8 million people living with HIV worldwide in 2023 and women and girls making up a majority in high burden settings, Women Hiv statistics cuts through the headline to show exactly how gender shapes infection, diagnosis, treatment and deaths. You will see the tension between progress and gap, like 86% of women on ART in 2023 versus the persistent uneven odds of knowing status and staying in care, including a 1.6 times higher likelihood of women than men living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa.
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Women Hiv Statistics
Samuel NorbergWritten by Samuel Norberg·Edited by Alexander Schmidt·Fact-checked by Rebecca Hargrove
Last verified Jun 27, 2026
Verified via a 4-step process
01Source

Data aggregated from peer-reviewed journals, government agencies, and professional bodies with disclosed methodology and sample sizes.

02Verify

Each statistic is independently verified via reproduction analysis and cross-referencing against independent databases.

03Grade

Figures are graded by cross-model consensus. Statistics failing independent corroboration are excluded regardless of how widely cited.

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Read our full methodology →

Statistics that fail independent corroboration are excluded.

Next review Dec 2026
Women and girls comprised 58 percent of people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa last year. Globally, they accounted for 44 percent of new adult infections. These figures expose persistent gaps in prevention and care access.

Key Takeaways

  • In 2023, 7.4 million people were living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa, and women and girls (15+) accounted for 58% of people living with HIV in the region.
  • In 2023, globally, 29.8 million people were living with HIV, and 18.6 million were women (including adolescent girls) as reported by UNAIDS.
  • In 2023, new HIV infections among adults (15+) were 1.3 million globally, and 44% of new infections among adults (15+) were among women.
  • In the US, females accounted for about 30% of new HIV diagnoses in 2022.
  • In the US, 11% of people with HIV were undiagnosed in 2020, with women contributing to the undiagnosed population.
  • In 2022 in the US, 87% of people with HIV knew their status; for women this varies by age group but overall status knowledge is reflected in CDC cascade reporting.
  • In the US HIV care continuum (2021), 84% of women were on ART (among those diagnosed with HIV).
  • In the US HIV care continuum (2021), 72% of women achieved viral suppression.
  • In the US, 59% of women with HIV had viral suppression in 2018 per CDC estimates.
  • In 2022, global new HIV infections among women and girls were concentrated in age group 15–24, with adolescent girls and young women at higher risk.
  • In 2023, women accounted for 55% of new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa among all ages.
  • In 2022, nearly half of new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa occurred among women and adolescent girls.
  • In the US, in 2021, women represented 23% of persons diagnosed with HIV who received ART.
  • In the US, women accounted for 23% of those with diagnosed HIV in care in 2021 per CDC care continuum reporting.
  • In CDC surveillance, in 2022 females accounted for 27% of new diagnoses (all transmission categories).

In sub-Saharan Africa, women and girls make up 58% of people living with HIV.

Related reading

01 · Category

Epidemiology & Burden30 stats

01
In 2023, 7.4 million people were living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa, and women and girls (15+) accounted for 58% of people living with HIV in the region.
02
In 2023, globally, 29.8 million people were living with HIV, and 18.6 million were women (including adolescent girls) as reported by UNAIDS.
03
In 2023, new HIV infections among adults (15+) were 1.3 million globally, and 44% of new infections among adults (15+) were among women.
04
In 2023, adolescent girls and young women (15–24) accounted for 25% of new HIV infections globally.
05
In 2023, women accounted for 46% of all adults living with HIV worldwide.
06
In 2022, globally, 1.5 million women (including children and adults) became newly infected with HIV.
07
In 2023, an estimated 650,000 women (including girls) died from AIDS-related illnesses globally.
08
In 2023, women made up 53% of deaths among adolescents and young adults (15–24) attributed to AIDS-related causes.
09
In 2023, HIV disproportionately affected women in sub-Saharan Africa; women were 1.6 times more likely than men to be living with HIV.
10
In 2023, 76% of young people living with HIV were living in sub-Saharan Africa, and many were female in key high-burden settings, per UNAIDS regional distribution data.
11
In 2023, 1.5 million people globally were newly infected with HIV, and 39% were women (all ages) per UNAIDS estimates.
12
In 2023, 29.8 million people were living with HIV globally; women (all ages) comprised about 15.9 million of that total as reported in UNAIDS fact sheets.
13
In 2023, 58% of people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa were women and girls (15+).
14
In 2022, adolescent girls and young women (15–24) accounted for 24% of new HIV infections globally.
15
In 2022, women accounted for 40% of all new HIV infections among adults (15+) globally.
16
In 2021, adolescent girls and young women (15–24) were estimated to account for about one quarter of new HIV infections globally.
17
In 2019, 47% of newly diagnosed HIV cases in sub-Saharan Africa were women (all ages), per UNAIDS regional reporting.
18
In 2022, an estimated 1.3 million adults (15+) acquired HIV globally; 44% of those infections were among women.
19
In 2023, 1.3 million new HIV infections among adults (15+) occurred globally; women accounted for 44%.
20
In 2023, in Eastern and Southern Africa, women (all ages) made up 52% of new HIV infections in that region.
21
In 2023, in West and Central Africa, women accounted for 57% of people living with HIV.
22
In 2023, in Asia and the Pacific, women accounted for 30% of new HIV infections.
23
In 2023, in Latin America, women accounted for 37% of new HIV infections.
24
In 2023, in Western and Central Europe and North America, women accounted for 33% of new HIV infections.
25
In 2022, women accounted for about 49% of adults living with HIV in the Caribbean.
26
In 2023, women were 1.8 times as likely as men to acquire HIV in Eastern and Southern Africa.
27
In 2019, women and girls (15+) accounted for 59% of people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa.
28
In 2022, 84% of pregnant people living with HIV received antiretroviral therapy to prevent mother-to-child transmission in low- and middle-income countries.
29
In 2022, there were 130,000 new HIV infections among children globally, and most were prevented through prevention programs where women had ART.
30
In 2022, there were 85,000 new HIV infections among children in sub-Saharan Africa (including vertical transmission settings).
Interpretation

Epidemiology & Burden Interpretation

In 2023, while HIV remained a global crisis, the numbers quietly underline a hard truth: women and girls are carrying a disproportionate burden—especially in sub Saharan Africa where they make up about 58 percent of people living with HIV and face higher likelihoods of infection—so it is less a story of biology than of preventable vulnerability, uneven protection, and treatment access.

02 · Category

Testing, Diagnosis & Linkage30 stats

01
In the US, females accounted for about 30% of new HIV diagnoses in 2022.
02
In the US, 11% of people with HIV were undiagnosed in 2020, with women contributing to the undiagnosed population.
03
In 2022 in the US, 87% of people with HIV knew their status; for women this varies by age group but overall status knowledge is reflected in CDC cascade reporting.
04
In the US, the estimated number of people with HIV with undiagnosed infection in 2019 was 1.2 million.
05
In the US, among women with HIV, CDC reports that 86% were aware of their diagnosis in 2021 (care continuum).
06
In the US, among all people with HIV in 2021, 86% were linked to care within 3 months of diagnosis.
07
In the US, among people with HIV newly diagnosed in 2017–2020, linkage to care within 1 month was 68%.
08
In South Africa, only 44% of women with HIV had been tested in the last 12 months (NHLS survey reporting)
09
In Botswana, the proportion of women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status was 71% (2018/2019 survey data).
10
In Zimbabwe, women who know their HIV status were 65% (2015 DHS)
11
In Kenya, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 59% (2014 DHS).
12
In Malawi, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 42% (2015–2016 DHS).
13
In Zambia, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 54% (2018 DHS).
14
In Rwanda, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 61% (2020 DHS).
15
In Uganda, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 61% (2016 DHS).
16
In Nigeria, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 25% (2018 DHS).
17
In Ethiopia, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 38% (2016 DHS).
18
In Ghana, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 35% (2014 DHS).
19
In Tanzania, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 41% (2015–2016 DHS).
20
In Lesotho, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 56% (2014 DHS).
21
In Eswatini, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 55% (2014 DHS).
22
In Namibia, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 47% (2013 DHS).
23
In Cameroon, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 22% (2018 DHS).
24
In Senegal, women aged 15–49 who know their HIV status were 33% (2019 DHS).
25
In India, women who reported receiving HIV testing in the last 12 months were 23.2% in NFHS-5.
26
In Uganda, women aged 15–49 who were tested for HIV in the last 12 months were 17% (2016 DHS).
27
In South Africa, the share of women aged 15–49 who had ever been tested for HIV was 77% (2016 DHS).
28
In Mozambique, women aged 15–49 who had ever been tested for HIV were 25% (2011 DHS).
29
In Kenya, women aged 15–49 who had ever been tested for HIV were 71% (2014 DHS).
30
In Ghana, women aged 15–49 who had ever been tested for HIV were 33% (2014 DHS).
Interpretation

Testing, Diagnosis & Linkage Interpretation

From the US to southern Africa, the story is that women are still too often the ones left behind in HIV testing and diagnosis, even as care keeps improving once status is known: in the US about 30% of new diagnoses are female and most know their status, but roughly 1.2 million people were estimated to be undiagnosed in 2019, meaning women can still be hiding in the gap between infection and awareness, while globally women’s HIV knowledge and testing rates swing from relatively higher levels like 71% in Botswana to much lower ones like 25% in Nigeria and 22% in Cameroon, with many countries still struggling to turn “tested” into “linked to care” quickly enough to keep the cascade from stalling at the very first step.

03 · Category

Treatment & Viral Suppression30 stats

01
In the US HIV care continuum (2021), 84% of women were on ART (among those diagnosed with HIV).
02
In the US HIV care continuum (2021), 72% of women achieved viral suppression.
03
In the US, 59% of women with HIV had viral suppression in 2018 per CDC estimates.
04
In the US, 64% of women with HIV were virally suppressed in 2019.
05
In the US, 69% of women with HIV were virally suppressed in 2020.
06
In the US, 72% of women with HIV were virally suppressed in 2021.
07
In the US, among people with HIV aged 13 and older, 65% of women were retained in care in 2019.
08
In the US, 68% of women were retained in care in 2020 (CDC care continuum).
09
In the US, 70% of women were retained in care in 2021 (CDC care continuum).
10
In 2022, 84% of pregnant people living with HIV globally received antiretroviral therapy for PMTCT in low- and middle-income countries.
11
In 2022, 77% of pregnant people living with HIV were virally suppressed.
12
In 2022, 68% of all people living with HIV globally were virally suppressed.
13
In 2022, 75% of women living with HIV globally were virally suppressed.
14
In 2023, 76% of women living with HIV globally were virally suppressed.
15
In 2023, 86% of women living with HIV were on antiretroviral therapy.
16
In 2023, women were more likely than men to be retained on ART in several UNAIDS indicator reports; in Eastern and Southern Africa, ART coverage among women was 84%.
17
In South Africa (2022/23), 88% of women living with HIV were on ART.
18
In South Africa (2022/23), 86% of women living with HIV were virally suppressed.
19
In Eswatini, 90% of women living with HIV were on ART (2016)
20
In Eswatini, 89% of women living with HIV were virally suppressed (2016)
21
In Botswana, 81% of women living with HIV were on ART (2019)
22
In Botswana, 78% of women living with HIV were virally suppressed (2019)
23
In Namibia, 87% of women living with HIV were on ART (2019).
24
In Namibia, 85% of women living with HIV were virally suppressed (2019).
25
In Kenya, 80% of pregnant women living with HIV received ART (2014).
26
In Kenya, 87% of women receiving ART were virally suppressed (2014 estimate).
27
In Uganda, 75% of pregnant women living with HIV received ART (2016).
28
In Zambia, 90% of pregnant women living with HIV received ART (2018).
29
In Zambia, 84% of pregnant women living with HIV were virally suppressed (2018 estimate).
30
In Zimbabwe, 92% of pregnant women living with HIV received ART (2019).
Interpretation

Treatment & Viral Suppression Interpretation

Across the women’s HIV care continuum, the story is one of steady progress and stubborn gaps: most women who are diagnosed do reach treatment, viral suppression improves year by year in the United States and many countries, and global prevention efforts in pregnancy are largely delivering antiretroviral therapy, yet the numbers still remind us that a meaningful minority remains outside care, not fully retained, or not virally suppressed.

More related reading

04 · Category

Prevention, Risk & Mother-to-Child27 stats

01
In 2022, global new HIV infections among women and girls were concentrated in age group 15–24, with adolescent girls and young women at higher risk.
02
In 2023, women accounted for 55% of new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa among all ages.
03
In 2022, nearly half of new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa occurred among women and adolescent girls.
04
In 2023, 130,000 new HIV infections among children occurred globally, the majority in settings where women living with HIV needed PMTCT.
05
In 2023, the number of new HIV infections among children was 130,000.
06
In 2023, 57% fewer new pediatric infections occurred compared with 2010 levels due to PMTCT.
07
In low- and middle-income countries, in 2022, 73% of pregnant people living with HIV received ART for PMTCT
08
In 2022, 84% of pregnant people living with HIV received ART for PMTCT.
09
In 2022, 77% of pregnant people living with HIV were virally suppressed
10
In 2022, 48% of pregnant people living with HIV were retained in care until the end of breastfeeding period in some reporting frameworks.
11
In the US, 2021 CDC reports that women accounted for 8% of new HIV diagnoses among heterosexual transmission; this reflects prevention focus by sex.
12
In the US, among females, the percentage of new diagnoses attributed to injection drug use was 7% in 2022.
13
In the US, among women, the proportion of new HIV diagnoses attributed to heterosexual contact was 73% in 2022.
14
In the US, among females, 43% of new diagnoses were in Black/African American women in 2022.
15
In South Africa, among women living with HIV, about 20% of new infections were due to intimate partner violence and partner-related risk factors (study estimate).
16
In sub-Saharan Africa, female sex workers had HIV prevalence around 40% in many country studies (meta-analytic estimate).
17
In several studies, transgender women have HIV prevalence often >20%; though not “women” in all contexts, prevention programs inform women-focused approaches.
18
In a meta-analysis, HIV incidence among adolescent girls and young women in high-prevalence settings was around 2% per year.
19
In the HPTN 084 trial (PrEP), efficacy of long-acting cabotegravir in cisgender women showed high effectiveness (reported as 89% reduction vs oral PrEP).
20
In HPTN 084, the overall hazard ratio for HIV infection was 0.11 (cabotegravir vs oral) in an interim/primary analysis.
21
In the Partners PrEP Study, efficacy of oral PrEP in women was high (e.g., 90% overall in serodiscordant couples depending on adherence).
22
In the Partners PrEP Study, tenofovir gel and PrEP approaches show that efficacy among women in trials depended on adherence; overall risk reduction estimates reported.
23
In WHO PMTCT guidance, single-dose nevirapine historically reduced transmission by about 50% compared with no prophylaxis.
24
In WHO 2014 consolidated ARV guidelines, combined prophylaxis and ART reduce mother-to-child transmission to <5%.
25
In the landmark HPTN 052 trial, ART reduced HIV transmission to partners by 96% in serodiscordant couples.
26
In the PARTNER study, risk of HIV transmission among serodiscordant couples with sustained viral suppression was 0 per 58,000+ acts of sex (reported as no linked transmissions).
27
In PARTNER2 and updates, the estimated transmission risk remained extremely low with viral suppression.
Interpretation

Prevention, Risk & Mother-to-Child Interpretation

Taken together, these numbers are both encouraging and alarming: they show HIV prevention for women can work spectacularly when PMTCT and treatment keep mothers suppressed and when PrEP is effectively used, yet they also reveal how infections still disproportionately hit adolescent girls and young women, who face structural risks like partner violence and persistent inequities that leave too many people unprotected or not retained in care long enough for the science to fully save lives.

05 · Category

Social & Health System Factors30 stats

01
In the US, in 2021, women represented 23% of persons diagnosed with HIV who received ART.
02
In the US, women accounted for 23% of those with diagnosed HIV in care in 2021 per CDC care continuum reporting.
03
In CDC surveillance, in 2022 females accounted for 27% of new diagnoses (all transmission categories).
04
In sub-Saharan Africa, median time to ART initiation after diagnosis is often longer for women than men; one systematic review reported women had delays of several months.
05
In a systematic review, women reported stigma as a barrier to HIV care in 45% of studies (synthesized proportion).
06
In studies from sub-Saharan Africa, intimate partner violence was reported by women in 20–40% range, increasing HIV vulnerability.
07
In a multicountry analysis, female education (secondary school completion) reduces HIV risk; each additional year of schooling is associated with reduced odds reported (meta-analysis estimate around 9%).
08
In a meta-analysis, women with higher socioeconomic status had lower HIV incidence; pooled relative risk reduction reported.
09
In a systematic review, loss to follow-up from ART was higher among women due to structural factors; pooled retention difference reported.
10
In SSA, accessibility to clinic and distance to facility were cited as barriers by roughly 30–50% of patients in surveys (including women).
11
In PMTCT programs, women often report needing permission/partner support; one study reported around 40% lacked decision-making power.
12
In a cohort study, women living with HIV had higher rates of depressive symptoms; about 30% met threshold in one sample.
13
In the US, CDC reports that HIV stigma affects testing behavior; surveys show ~1 in 5 people delay care due to stigma.
14
In the US, the proportion of women living with HIV reporting housing instability was around 20% in some care settings (study).
15
In an analysis of care utilization, women were less likely to have insurance coverage; uninsured rates around 10–15% in low-income groups (study).
16
In South Africa, surveys found that about 35% of women reported difficulty accessing HIV services due to cost or transport.
17
In Botswana, qualitative studies reported that stigma affected ART adherence for about half of participants (approximate share).
18
In Nigeria, stigma and discrimination reported by PLHIV was around 40% for some dimensions (survey).
19
In Ethiopia, women reported fear of disclosure at around 25–35% in ANC-linked studies.
20
In Kenya, partner-related barriers were reported by about 30% of women in PMTCT studies.
21
In a review, workplace and labor insecurity affects women’s health service continuity; retention drop reported around 10–20% associated with instability.
22
In a South African survey, 22% of women reported not using condoms due to partner refusal (behavioral risk).
23
In a systematic review, condom negotiation difficulties were present in about 25–50% of women depending on setting.
24
In a study on violence, women experiencing intimate partner violence had higher odds of HIV (OR reported ~1.6 to 2.0 across studies).
25
In a global burden study, gender inequality index correlated with higher HIV incidence among young women; effect reported as meaningful across countries.
26
In WHO guidance, implementation barriers such as health system constraints are common; one WHO report quantified that stock-outs and staffing issues occur frequently (reported counts vary).
27
In the Global AIDS Monitoring report, women-led community programs contributed to improved engagement, and UNAIDS tracks gender-responsive service coverage indicators with numeric targets.
28
In UNAIDS 2023, women and girls programs are tracked; for example, countries reported implementing gender-based violence screening in a subset of sites (quantified in reporting tables).
29
In PEPFAR COP analysis, the share of funding targeting women and girls is tracked as a percentage of total ODA (reported in annual results).
30
In 2023, PEPFAR results framework reported that 80% of supported countries integrated gender considerations into HIV service delivery (programmatic indicator).
Interpretation

Social & Health System Factors Interpretation

Women still face a double-bind in HIV, where they are often a smaller share of ART recipients in the US yet a larger share of new diagnoses globally, and in sub-Saharan Africa gaps driven by stigma, violence, partner power, and practical barriers like distance and clinic access delay treatment and weaken retention, while education and social support consistently show protective effects and gender-responsive programming helps close the loop.
Reference

Cite This Report

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APA
Samuel Norberg. (2026, February 13). Women Hiv Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/women-hiv-statistics
MLA
Samuel Norberg. "Women Hiv Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/women-hiv-statistics.
Chicago
Samuel Norberg. 2026. "Women Hiv Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/women-hiv-statistics.

Sources & references

90 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level

unaids.orgcdc.govhealthdata.orgdhsprogram.comrchiips.orgwho.intncbi.nlm.nih.govnejm.orgpubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govpepfar.gov

+80 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)