Social connection statistics show that loneliness is widespread, but not evenly distributed. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that 15.8% of people worldwide reported feeling lonely during 2014–2023. In the United States, a 2022 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) analysis found that 32.1% of adults reported loneliness and 24.1% reported lacking social and emotional support.
Contents
- Global loneliness and social isolation
- U.S. patterns by age and sex
- Differences by race and ethnicity
- Education and income
- Marital status and connection
- How to interpret these statistics
Global loneliness and social isolation
The WHO estimate for 2014–2023 placed worldwide loneliness at approximately 15.8%. Rates varied substantially by age and national income level. About 21% of adolescents worldwide reported feeling lonely, the highest age-group rate in the estimate, while about 17.4% of people aged 18–29 reported loneliness. These figures describe loneliness, which is different from social isolation: loneliness concerns a person’s felt connection, while social isolation concerns the absence or limitation of social relationships.
Income level also corresponded with different reported rates. About 24.3% of people in low-income countries reported feeling lonely, compared with about 11% in high-income countries. These are WHO estimates for 2014–2023, not a single-year global survey and not causal estimates. The measurement period and the broad country groupings matter when comparing them with U.S. figures from 2022. WHO, “Social connection”
The WHO’s 2025 report estimated that social isolation affected up to 1 in 3 older adults worldwide and up to 1 in 4 adolescents worldwide. Those estimates concern social isolation rather than the worldwide loneliness percentage above. The report also linked loneliness to an estimated 100 deaths per hour, or more than 871,000 deaths annually, using evidence from 2014–2019. This mortality figure is an estimate associated with the report’s evidence base; it should not be read as a count of deaths measured in 2025. WHO, “Social connection linked to improved health and reduced risk of early death”
U.S. patterns by age and sex
The CDC estimates below come from the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Social Determinants and Health Equity module plus the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity module in 26 states. The analytic sample included 218,915 adults. In this analysis, loneliness was measured indirectly through frequent feelings of social isolation. Lack of social and emotional support meant sometimes, rarely, or never receiving needed support.
Age differences were clear in the 2022 U.S. estimates. Adults aged 18–34 had the highest reported loneliness rate among the listed age groups: 43.3%. The rate was 31.9% for adults aged 35–49, 27.8% for adults aged 50–64, and 23.8% for adults aged 65 or older. Lack of support followed a similar pattern: 29.7% among adults aged 18–34, 24.6% among those aged 35–49, 22.0% among those aged 50–64, and 19.1% among those aged 65 or older.
| U.S. adult group, 2022 | Reported loneliness | Lacked social and emotional support |
|---|---|---|
| All adults | 32.1% | 24.1% |
| Ages 18–34 | 43.3% | 29.7% |
| Ages 35–49 | 31.9% | 24.6% |
| Ages 50–64 | 27.8% | 22.0% |
| Ages 65 or older | 23.8% | 19.1% |
The difference between adults aged 18–34 and adults aged 65 or older was 19.5 percentage points for loneliness and 10.6 percentage points for lack of support. These comparisons describe the CDC survey populations; they do not establish that age itself caused the differences.
The sex-specific estimates showed a different pattern across the two measures. Among U.S. women, 33.5% reported loneliness and 22.3% lacked social and emotional support. Among U.S. men, 30.7% reported loneliness and 26.1% lacked social and emotional support. Thus, the listed loneliness prevalence was higher for women, while the listed lack-of-support prevalence was higher for men. CDC, “Loneliness, Lack of Social and Emotional Support, and Mental Health Issues — United States, 2022”
The same CDC analysis reported mental-health-related prevalence ratios among adults reporting loneliness, compared with adults not reporting loneliness. The adjusted prevalence ratio was 3.6 for stress, 3.0 for frequent mental distress, and 2.4 for a history of depression. These are adjusted prevalence ratios, not probabilities that loneliness caused any of those outcomes.
Differences by race and ethnicity
The 2022 CDC estimates varied across the reported racial and ethnic groups. Among American Indian or Alaska Native adults, 37.9% reported loneliness and 28.1% lacked social and emotional support. Among Asian adults, the corresponding figures were 32.0% and 31.6%.
Among Black or African American adults, 36.4% reported loneliness and 33.6% lacked social and emotional support. Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander adults had reported rates of 38.3% for loneliness and 34.0% for lack of support. Among White adults, 29.6% reported loneliness and 20.1% lacked social and emotional support. Among Hispanic or Latino adults, the figures were 37.5% and 29.9%.
| U.S. adult group, 2022 | Reported loneliness | Lacked social and emotional support |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaska Native | 37.9% | 28.1% |
| Asian | 32.0% | 31.6% |
| Black or African American | 36.4% | 33.6% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 38.3% | 34.0% |
| White | 29.6% | 20.1% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 37.5% | 29.9% |
The largest listed loneliness prevalence was 38.3% among Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander adults, followed closely by 37.9% among American Indian or Alaska Native adults. The largest listed lack-of-support prevalence was 34.0% among Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander adults, followed by 33.6% among Black or African American adults. The CDC figures are weighted prevalence estimates from the specified 26-state modules, so they should not automatically be treated as national estimates for every group.
Education and income
Education and household income showed pronounced gradients in the CDC’s 2022 estimates. Among adults with less than a high school diploma, 41.1% reported loneliness and 36.3% lacked social and emotional support. Among adults with a high school diploma or GED, the rates were 34.7% and 27.5%. Among adults with some college education, they were 33.0% and 24.6%. For adults with college education or above, the figures were 26.0% and 16.5%.
The difference between the lowest and highest listed education groups was 15.1 percentage points for loneliness and 19.8 percentage points for lack of support. These are comparisons between survey categories, not evidence that additional education alone produces stronger social connection.
Household income showed a wider spread. Among adults with household income below $25,000, 47.9% reported loneliness and 39.8% lacked support. The rates were 36.2% and 29.6% for income of $25,000–$49,999; 30.4% and 22.4% for $50,000–$74,999; and 27.0% and 18.5% for $75,000–$99,999. Among adults with income of $100,000–$149,999, 23.6% reported loneliness and 14.6% lacked support. For income of at least $150,000, the figures were 21.2% and 13.8%.
| Annual household income, U.S. adults, 2022 | Reported loneliness | Lacked social and emotional support |
|---|---|---|
| Below $25,000 | 47.9% | 39.8% |
| $25,000–$49,999 | 36.2% | 29.6% |
| $50,000–$74,999 | 30.4% | 22.4% |
| $75,000–$99,999 | 27.0% | 18.5% |
| $100,000–$149,999 | 23.6% | 14.6% |
| At least $150,000 | 21.2% | 13.8% |
The lowest and highest listed income categories differed by 26.7 percentage points for loneliness and 26.0 percentage points for lack of support. The middle categories also differed: loneliness was 30.4% for $50,000–$74,999 compared with 23.6% for $100,000–$149,999, while lack of support was 22.4% compared with 14.6%.
Marital status and connection
Marital-status categories in the 2022 CDC analysis were associated with different reported levels of loneliness and support. Among adults who were married or part of an unmarried couple, 24.9% reported loneliness and 17.2% lacked social and emotional support.
Among previously married adults, 36.3% reported loneliness and 31.1% lacked support. Among never-married adults, 45.9% reported loneliness and 34.7% lacked support. The never-married loneliness rate was 21.0 percentage points higher than the married-or-couple rate, while the lack-of-support rate was 17.5 percentage points higher.
The previously married loneliness rate of 36.3% fell between the married-or-couple rate of 24.9% and the never-married rate of 45.9%. These categories describe relationship status at the time of the survey. They do not show whether marriage, partnership, separation, widowhood, or another factor caused a difference in loneliness or support.
How to interpret these statistics
Several measurement details are essential when reading social connection statistics. First, the global WHO figures cover 2014–2023, while the U.S. CDC estimates describe 2022. Second, loneliness and social isolation are related but distinct concepts, and the WHO figures explicitly distinguish them. Third, the CDC’s loneliness measure was indirect, based on frequent feelings of social isolation, while its support measure captured whether respondents sometimes, rarely, or never received needed social and emotional support.
Finally, the U.S. percentages are weighted prevalence estimates from 26 states and are not causal estimates. A percentage describes the survey population and measurement used; it does not by itself explain why people report loneliness or limited support. For readers looking for encouragement, the most useful takeaway is that social connection varies across life circumstances, and a single statistic should be read with its population, period, definition, and source attached.