Traffic deaths by topic

Drunk driving deaths in the United States

In 2024, 11,904 people died in crashes involving an alcohol-impaired driver in the United States, 30% of all traffic deaths and 3.5 per 100,000 people. That was down 3.9% from 12,382 in 2023, the fewest since 2020.

Deaths, 2024
11,904
Share of all traffic deaths
30%
Per 100,000 people
3.5
Change from 2023
-3.9%

Trend

Drunk driving deaths by year

Drunk driving deaths by year, 1982–2024
Category Deaths
1982 21,113
1983 20,049
1984 19,637
1985 18,128
1986 19,555
1987 18,813
1988 18,609
1989 17,519
1990 17,701
1991 15,827
1992 14,046
1993 13,741
1994 13,391
1995 13,480
1996 13,451
1997 12,760
1998 12,548
1999 12,559
2000 13,323
2001 13,290
2002 13,472
2003 13,094
2004 13,098
2005 13,580
2006 13,491
2007 13,035
2008 11,714
2009 10,761
2010 10,137
2011 9,866
2012 10,335
2013 10,086
2014 9,944
2015 10,277
2016 10,966
2017 10,879
2018 10,713
2019 10,194
2020 11,727
2021 13,599
2022 13,458
2023 12,382
2024 11,904

Comparable figures start in 1982.

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Where

Drunk driving deaths by state, 2024

State
Texas 1,676 5.4 40% 0.0%
California 1,311 3.3 34% -0.4%
Florida 769 3.3 25% -9.3%
North Carolina 449 4.1 28% +6.1%
Ohio 424 3.6 37% -6.6%
Arizona 419 5.5 34% -4.1%
South Carolina 417 7.6 40% -2.6%
Illinois 338 2.7 29% -15.9%
Tennessee 332 4.6 28% -10.3%
Georgia 325 2.9 23% -23.9%
Michigan 306 3.0 28% +7.0%
New York 300 1.5 27% -11.0%
Pennsylvania 290 2.2 26% -10.2%
Alabama 277 5.4 29% +1.1%
Missouri 263 4.2 28% -7.7%
Virginia 252 2.9 27% -4.5%
Washington 239 3.0 33% -17.6%
Oklahoma 225 5.5 35% +27.1%
Indiana 209 3.0 25% -15.7%
Colorado 204 3.4 30% -4.7%
Wisconsin 197 3.3 33% +5.3%
Louisiana 192 4.2 26% -16.9%
Oregon 178 4.2 33% -9.6%
Mississippi 171 5.8 23% +8.2%
Kentucky 169 3.7 24% -12.0%
Maryland 167 2.7 29% -1.8%
Arkansas 154 5.0 26% -1.9%
New Jersey 150 1.6 22% +6.4%
Nevada 138 4.2 33% +8.7%
Iowa 119 3.7 33% -13.1%
Kansas 117 3.9 35% +8.3%
New Mexico 115 5.4 28% -4.2%
Minnesota 109 1.9 23% +10.1%
Connecticut 105 2.9 34% -7.1%
Massachusetts 100 1.4 28% -10.7%
West Virginia 78 4.4 30% +32.2%
Montana 75 6.6 36% +5.6%
Nebraska 75 3.7 30% +8.7%
Utah 73 2.1 26% +15.9%
Idaho 72 3.6 30% +16.1%
Maine 49 3.5 28% +25.6%
South Dakota 43 4.6 29% +13.2%
New Hampshire 39 2.8 29% +14.7%
Hawaii 34 2.4 33% -10.5%
Wyoming 34 5.8 32% -2.9%
Delaware 32 3.0 25% -15.8%
North Dakota 27 3.4 30% -28.9%
Vermont 24 3.7 41% +41.2%
Rhode Island 19 1.7 37% -24.0%
District of Columbia 14 2.0 30% -6.7%
Alaska 13 1.8 19% -18.8%

Rates use Census population estimates. Small states can swing a lot from year to year. Download CSV

When and where

When these crashes happen, 2020–2024

These charts count crashes where police reported a drinking driver, which is narrower than the estimated BAC .08+ total above.

Fatal crashes by hour of day
Category Fatal crashes
12am 3,518
1am 3,490
2am 3,755
3am 2,348
4am 1,585
5am 1,169
6am 964
7am 743
8am 522
9am 421
10am 507
11am 569
12pm 748
1pm 938
2pm 1,228
3pm 1,568
4pm 1,866
5pm 2,296
6pm 2,877
7pm 3,133
8pm 3,338
9pm 3,643
10pm 3,550
11pm 3,661
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Fatal crashes by month
Category Fatal crashes
Jan 3,336
Feb 3,237
Mar 3,646
Apr 3,816
May 4,463
Jun 4,644
Jul 4,782
Aug 4,759
Sep 4,469
Oct 4,423
Nov 3,769
Dec 3,673
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States with the most fatal crashes
Category Fatal crashes Deaths
California 5,357 6,046
Texas 4,865 5,528
Florida 3,113 3,490
Ohio 1,830 1,981
North Carolina 1,754 1,937
South Carolina 1,649 1,858
Georgia 1,489 1,636
Tennessee 1,454 1,625
Michigan 1,437 1,562
Illinois 1,373 1,566
Pennsylvania 1,356 1,475
Missouri 1,301 1,426
Virginia 1,276 1,362
Louisiana 1,195 1,317
Colorado 1,126 1,251
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Explore these crashes in more charts

Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 1982–2024. Methodology