Drowning data
Drowning by Age
Young children and older adults have the highest drowning death rates. Here is what CDC data show for every age.
Highest rate of any age group, 2024
3.28
Children ages 1-4, per 100,000
Children 1-4 who drowned in pools
1,857
2018-2024 combined
Adults 65 and older who cannot swim
18.6%
Self-reported, 2023
Key takeaways
- Children ages 1-4 had the highest drowning death rate of any age group in 2024: 3.28 per 100,000. (CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab), 2024)
- CDC: “More children ages 1-4 die from drowning than any other cause of death.” (CDC Drowning Facts (opens in a new tab), as published)
- For children ages 1-4, swimming pools were the most common known place of drowning: 1,857 deaths in 2018-2024 combined. (CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab), 2018-2024)
- For babies under 1, the bathtub was the most common known place: 199 deaths in 2018-2024 combined. (CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab), 2018-2024)
- Among teens ages 14-17, 62.2% of drowning deaths in 2018-2019 happened in natural water such as lakes and rivers. (NCHS Data Brief 413 (opens in a new tab), 2018-2019)
- After age 55, the drowning death rate rises with every age group, to 2.25 per 100,000 at 85 and older. (CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab), 2024)
Drowning death rates by age
A rate compares groups of different sizes fairly: it is deaths per 100,000 people in that age group.
Drowning death rate by age group, 2024
Per 100,000 people in each age group, including boating
Age-specific rates: deaths per 100,000 people in that age group. "Not Stated" deaths have no population, so they have no rate.
Source: CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab). Retrieved .
Show the data table
| Age group | Deaths | Population | Rate per 100,000 in the age group | 95% confidence interval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | 26 | 3,615,598 | 0.72 | 0.47 to 1.05 |
| 1-4 years | 492 | 14,983,716 | 3.28 | 2.99 to 3.57 |
| 5-14 years | 259 | 41,098,826 | 0.63 | 0.55 to 0.71 |
| 15-24 years | 502 | 44,797,761 | 1.12 | 1.02 to 1.22 |
| 25-34 years | 515 | 46,453,864 | 1.11 | 1.01 to 1.20 |
| 35-44 years | 543 | 45,539,224 | 1.19 | 1.09 to 1.29 |
| 45-54 years | 463 | 40,780,356 | 1.14 | 1.03 to 1.24 |
| 55-64 years | 573 | 41,661,725 | 1.38 | 1.26 to 1.49 |
| 65-74 years | 618 | 35,444,962 | 1.74 | 1.61 to 1.88 |
| 75-84 years | 404 | 19,299,813 | 2.09 | 1.89 to 2.30 |
| 85+ years | 145 | 6,435,143 | 2.25 | 1.89 to 2.62 |
| Not Stated | 0 | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Drowning death rate by five-year age group, 2024
Per 100,000, excluding boating (W65-W74)
W65-W74 only (this breakdown was queried for that definition). WONDER has no population for five-year groups above 85, so those rows have counts only.
Source: CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab). Retrieved .
Show the data table
| Age group | Deaths | Population | Rate per 100,000 in the age group |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | 26 | 3,615,598 | 0.72 |
| 1-4 years | 486 | 14,983,716 | 3.24 |
| 5-9 years | 159 | 20,197,672 | 0.79 |
| 10-14 years | 90 | 20,901,154 | 0.43 |
| 15-19 years | 221 | 22,375,825 | 0.99 |
| 20-24 years | 241 | 22,421,936 | 1.07 |
| 25-29 years | 223 | 22,459,876 | 0.99 |
| 30-34 years | 234 | 23,993,988 | 0.98 |
| 35-39 years | 257 | 23,170,072 | 1.11 |
| 40-44 years | 234 | 22,369,152 | 1.05 |
| 45-49 years | 208 | 20,294,049 | 1.02 |
| 50-54 years | 203 | 20,486,307 | 0.99 |
| 55-59 years | 241 | 20,359,928 | 1.18 |
| 60-64 years | 293 | 21,301,797 | 1.38 |
| 65-69 years | 302 | 19,489,471 | 1.55 |
| 70-74 years | 265 | 15,955,491 | 1.66 |
| 75-79 years | 219 | 11,993,326 | 1.83 |
| 80-84 years | 160 | 7,306,487 | 2.19 |
| 85-89 years | 91 | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| 90-94 years | 38 | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| 95-99 years | Suppressed (1-9 deaths) | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| 100+ years | Suppressed (1-9 deaths) | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| Not Stated | 0 | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Children and teens
For children ages 5-14, drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury death after motor vehicle crashes. (CDC (opens in a new tab)). The charts below come from a CDC report on children that uses its own age groups and ends in 2019.
Drowning death rates for children, 1999-2019
Per 100,000 children in each age group
- Under 1 year
- 1-4 years
- 5-13 years
- 14-17 years
Crude rates per 100,000 children in each age group (W65-W74). The brief uses its own age groups and ends in 2019.
Source: NCHS Data Brief 413 (opens in a new tab). Retrieved .
Show the data table
| Year | Under 1 year, rate | 1-4 years, rate | 5-13 years, rate | 14-17 years, rate | Under 1 year, deaths | 1-4 years, deaths | 5-13 years, deaths | 14-17 years, deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1.8 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 68 | 490 | 331 | 238 |
| 2000 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 1.6 | 75 | 493 | 328 | 264 |
| 2001 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 1.3 | 68 | 458 | 292 | 219 |
| 2002 | 1.6 | 2.9 | 0.8 | 1.3 | 63 | 454 | 278 | 212 |
| 2003 | 1.5 | 2.9 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 58 | 456 | 228 | 188 |
| 2004 | 1.5 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 62 | 430 | 227 | 210 |
| 2005 | 1.6 | 3.1 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 64 | 493 | 221 | 201 |
| 2006 | 1.3 | 2.9 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 51 | 458 | 223 | 202 |
| 2007 | 1.4 | 2.9 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 57 | 458 | 191 | 195 |
| 2008 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 41 | 443 | 225 | 180 |
| 2009 | 1.1 | 2.8 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 45 | 450 | 179 | 186 |
| 2010 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 39 | 436 | 215 | 196 |
| 2011 | 1.3 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 52 | 438 | 205 | 156 |
| 2012 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 43 | 415 | 223 | 170 |
| 2013 | 0.6 | 2.5 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 23 | 393 | 184 | 155 |
| 2014 | 0.7 | 2.4 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 29 | 388 | 207 | 139 |
| 2015 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 30 | 390 | 188 | 147 |
| 2016 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 38 | 425 | 225 | 160 |
| 2017 | 1.1 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 43 | 424 | 208 | 133 |
| 2018 | 1.0 | 2.8 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 39 | 443 | 194 | 122 |
| 2019 | 0.9 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 34 | 378 | 196 | 148 |
Where children drowned, by age, 2018-2019
Percent of each age group’s drowning deaths
- Swimming pool
- Natural water
- Bathtub
- Other or unspecified
Percent of each age group’s drowning deaths, as published by NCHS (rows may not add to exactly 100 because of rounding).
Source: NCHS Data Brief 413 (opens in a new tab). Retrieved .
Show the data table
| Age group | Deaths, 2018-2019 | Bathtub (%) | Swimming pool (%) | Natural water (%) | Other or unspecified (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | 73 | 75.3% | 6.8% | 2.7% | 15.1% |
| 1-4 years | 821 | 9.7% | 58.6% | 21.2% | 10.5% |
| 5-13 years | 390 | 5.4% | 45.9% | 37.4% | 11.3% |
| 14-17 years | 270 | 8.1% | 13.7% | 62.2% | 15.9% |
Where children ages 1-4 drowned, 2018-2024
Deaths, all seven years combined
All seven years pooled in one CDC WONDER query per place, so more cells can be published. Deaths, not rates. The table shows every age group.
Source: CDC WONDER (opens in a new tab). Retrieved .
Show the data table
| Age group | Natural water (lakes, rivers, oceans) | Swimming pool | Bathtub | Other or unspecified place | Boating-related (water transport) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | Suppressed (1-9 deaths) | 14 | 199 | 39 | 0 |
| 1-4 years | 607 | 1,857 | 298 | 358 | 18 |
| 5-14 years | 717 | 597 | 101 | 165 | 58 |
| 15-24 years | 2,183 | 339 | 224 | 459 | 290 |
| 25-34 years | 2,114 | 305 | 475 | 567 | 333 |
| 35-44 years | 1,964 | 335 | 511 | 574 | 363 |
| 45-54 years | 1,759 | 352 | 537 | 527 | 398 |
| 55-64 years | 1,928 | 477 | 715 | 574 | 442 |
| 65-74 years | 1,507 | 565 | 792 | 506 | 403 |
| 75-84 years | 812 | 516 | 528 | 289 | 147 |
| 85+ years | 251 | 257 | 253 | 105 | 17 |
Adults and swimming skills
In a 2023 CDC survey, adults said how well they can swim. Not knowing how to swim is common at every age.
Adults who say they cannot swim, by age, 2023
Percent of U.S. adults, self-reported
Self-reported, adults 18 and older, NCHS Rapid Surveys System (October-November 2023). Black, White and Other are non-Hispanic. "Other" includes Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Middle Eastern or North African, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and multiracial adults.
Source: CDC MMWR Vital Signs, May 2024 (opens in a new tab). Retrieved .
Show the data table
| Group | Does not know how to swim (%) | 95% CI, cannot swim | Has ever taken a swimming lesson (%) | 95% CI, ever taken a lesson |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All adults | 15.4% | 14.3 to 16.6 | 45.3% | 43.8 to 46.8 |
| Women | 19.4% | 17.8 to 21.2 | 44.8% | 42.9 to 46.8 |
| Men | 11.2% | 9.8 to 12.7 | 45.8% | 43.6 to 48.0 |
| Ages 18-29 | 12.4% | 9.9 to 15.3 | 46.9% | 42.9 to 50.9 |
| Ages 30-44 | 15.6% | 13.3 to 18.1 | 47.0% | 44.0 to 50.1 |
| Ages 45-64 | 15.0% | 13.1 to 16.9 | 44.7% | 42.3 to 47.1 |
| Ages 65 and older | 18.6% | 16.6 to 20.7 | 42.6% | 40.1 to 45.1 |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 36.8% | 32.4 to 41.4 | 36.9% | 32.7 to 41.2 |
| White (non-Hispanic) | 6.9% | 6.1 to 7.8 | 51.8% | 50.1 to 53.5 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 25.8% | 22.5 to 29.3 | 28.1% | 24.7 to 31.6 |
| Other (non-Hispanic) | 22.4% | 17.9 to 27.5 | 46.6% | 41.2 to 52.1 |
Methodology
- What counts as a drowning death
- CDC counts deaths by the underlying cause on the death certificate, using ICD-10 codes. W65-W74 is unintentional drowning and submersion (bathtub, pool, natural water, other and unspecified). V90 and V92 add drowning in boating and other water-transport accidents. CDC’s headline figures use W65-W74 plus V90 and V92, so most charts here show that wider definition and say so.
- Age-group rates
- Rates for an age group are deaths per 100,000 people in that group. They are not age-adjusted, because the group already fixes the age.
- Suppressed and unreliable values
- CDC WONDER hides counts of 1 to 9 deaths to protect privacy, and does not publish a rate that is too unstable to trust. We show these as "Suppressed" or "Unreliable", never as a number or a zero. "Not applicable" means there is no population figure, so no rate exists.
- Two sets of age groups
- CDC WONDER uses standard ten-year groups (under 1, 1-4, 5-14, 15-24 and so on). The CDC report on children (NCHS Data Brief 413) uses under 1, 1-4, 5-13 and 14-17. We never mix the two in one chart.
- The swimming survey
- The swimming questions come from CDC’s NCHS Rapid Surveys System (Round 2, October-November 2023). Adults 18 and older described their own skills and lessons, so the answers are self-reported. Black, White and Other are non-Hispanic. Other includes Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Middle Eastern or North African, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and multiracial adults.
Data last checked . We copy numbers exactly as the source publishes them. We do not estimate, model or add up numbers. Found a mistake? Tell us and we will check it against the source.
Sources
- CDC WONDER: Underlying Cause of Death (final data, 1999-2024) (opens in a new tab) CDC, National Center for Health Statistics
- NCHS Data Brief 413: Unintentional Drowning Deaths Among Children Aged 0-17 Years, 1999-2019 (opens in a new tab) CDC, National Center for Health Statistics
- NCHS Data Brief 413: data tables (PDF) (opens in a new tab) CDC, National Center for Health Statistics
- Vital Signs: Drowning Death Rates, Self-Reported Swimming Skill, Swimming Lesson Participation, and Recreational Water Exposure, 2019-2023 (opens in a new tab) CDC, MMWR
- Drowning Facts (opens in a new tab) CDC
What you can do today
- Make a family water safety plan
Pick a water watcher, set the rules and know what to do in an emergency.
- Check your home for water hazards
Bathtubs, buckets and pools: the layers of protection for young children.
- Find swimming lessons near you
It is never too late to learn. Lessons help children and adults.
- Learn the signs of drowning
Drowning is often quiet. Know what it looks like and what to do.