Heroin Statistics

Since 2010, the number of Americans who die from overdosing on heroin has more than quadrupled.

Key Findings

Heroin Usage Statistics

From 2019 to 2020, heroin usage has increased among all people aged 12 or older. A large majority of people who used heroin first misused prescription opioids.

• 902,000 Americans use heroin annually.
• 6.25 Million Americans will use heroin at least once in their lifetime.
• Heroin makes up 4.5% of all illicit drug use in the lifetime of Americans aged 12 or older.
• Heroin makes up 1.5% of all illicit drug use annually among Americans aged 12 or older.
• 103,000 Americans first start using heroin annually.
• 80% of people who use heroin first misused prescription opioids.

Heroin Usage among Grade School Children Statistics

Heroin usage has shown up as early as middle school in minimal amounts. Less than 1% of students in either high school or middle school use heroin on an annual basis.

• 2% of highschool students have used heroin in their lifetime.
• 0.5% of 8th graders reported using heroin within their lifetime.
• 0.2% of 8th graders, 10th graders, and 12th graders combined reported using heroin in the last 12 months.

Heroin Use Disorder Statistics

Among the U.S. population aged 12 or older, less than 1% had a heroin disorder which still translates to hundreds of thousands of Americans. More people receive treatment for using heroin in a year than the number of people who have a substance abuse disorder with heroin.

• 691,000 Americans aged 12 or older had a heroin disorder in 2020.
• 0.2% of Americans aged 12 or older had a heroin disorder.
• Americans with a heroin substance abuse disorder made up 1.7% of the total population with a substance abuse disorder.
• 755,000 people aged 12 or older received substance use treatment for heroin.
• The population with a heroin substance use disorder is the 8th largest population with a substance use disorder.

Heroin Overdose Deaths Nationwide Statistics

Deaths due to heroin overdoses have significantly increased since 2010. From 2012 to 2014 the rate of heroin overdose deaths nearly doubled. After 2014, the death rate remained in the tens of thousands.

• 14,019 die annually from overdosing on heroin.
• Over nearly a decade, the annual death rate due to heroin overdose has risen by over 10,000 people.
• 8,746 people die annually from overdosing on heroin and synthetic opioids other than methadone.
• 5,273 people die annually from overdosing on heroin without taking synthetic opioids other than methadone.
• 2.7 deaths occur annually from overdoses on heroin and synthetic opioids other than methadone for every 100,000 people.
• 1.7 deaths occur annually from overdoses on heroin without taking synthetic opioids other than methadone.

Heroin Overdose Deaths per State Statistics

The death rates below are per every 100,000 people. New Mexico, California, and Mississippi saw the highest spikes in heroin overdose deaths in one year. States that are missing data in the map below did not meet reporting standards by the CDC.

• The death rate for Mississippi increased over a year by 107.1%; the most out of any other state.
• The death rate for Maryland and Vermont decreased over a year by 42.4%; the most out of all the other states.
• New York has the most overdose deaths out of any state at 1,145 deaths.
• Montana had the least amount of overdose deaths out of any other state at 27 deaths.

Heroin Overdose Deaths by Race Statistics

American Indians/ Alaskan Natives have the largest death rates due to heroin overdose per every 100,000 people. Meanwhile, Asians and Pacific Islanders have the lowest death rates from heroin overdose.

• White Americans have an overdose death rate of 5.2 persons for every 100,000 people.
• Black Americans have an overdose death rate of 5.0 persons for every 100,000 people.
• Asians or Pacific Islanders overdose death rate is 0.5 persons for every 100,000 people.
• Hispanic Americans overdose at a rate of 3.1 persons for every 100,000 people.
• American Indians or Alaskan Natives pass away from overdosing at a rate of 5.5 persons per 100,000 people.
• The table below is also per 100,000 people.

Heroin Overdose Deaths by Gender Statistics

Men account for the majority of heroin overdose deaths. Men die at a rate nearly 3 times as much as women. This trend of male to female deaths has held steady as early as 1999.

• 10,499 men die annually from overdosing on heroin.
• 3,520 women die annually from overdosing on heroin.
• 2.2 women die from overdosing for every 100,000 women.
• 6.6 men die from overdosing for every 100,000 men.

Sources

1. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIH): Overdose Death Rates
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Heroin Overdose Data
3. U.S. Dept. of Justice: Heroin and Opioid Awareness
4. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): Table 1.102A Specific Hallucinogen, Inhalant, Needle and Heroin Use in Lifetime 2020
5. Monitoringthefuture.org: 2020 Data from In-School Surveys of 8th, 10th, and 12th Grade Students