Domestic violence statistics worldwide

Updated October 2026

If you are in danger now, contact your local emergency number or a domestic violence service. Our list of helplines and crisis lines worldwide includes services in many countries.

Domestic violence is common: the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that a large share of women worldwide have experienced violence from a partner or sexual violence from someone else ¹. The key figures below show how many, and how it affects mental health. Domestic violence is abuse within a home or family. Intimate partner violence is the most common form: physical, sexual or psychological harm, including controlling behaviour, by a current or former partner. It affects people of every age, background and gender, and most of the harm, worldwide, falls on women.

Figures differ with what a survey counts. Some count physical or sexual violence only. Others add emotional abuse, stalking or controlling behaviour. Some ask about a whole lifetime, others about the past year. Each figure below names what it counts, the people it covers, and the year. An odds ratio compares how likely something is in one group with another: above one means more likely, below one less likely. A meta-analysis, or pooled estimate, combines the results of many studies into one figure.

Getting help

If something on this page reflects what you are going through, you do not have to manage it alone. Our guide to finding the right therapist explains how to choose someone qualified, and the TherapyRoute directory lists therapists in many countries.

If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, our list of helplines and crisis lines worldwide gives free services by country. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.

Leaving or changing an abusive situation is hard, and safety comes first. Specialist domestic violence services can help with safety planning, shelter, legal protection and support for children. Most professionals regard ongoing violence as a reason not to begin couples therapy, because joint sessions can put the person experiencing abuse at risk. Individual support is the usual first step.

After violence, therapy with a psychologist or counsellor who understands trauma can help with fear, low mood, sleep problems and the effects on relationships. Our PTSD statistics page covers trauma more widely.

Worldwide estimates

The World Health Organization pools national surveys into estimates for every region. Its figures cover women and girls, because few countries survey men in the same way. The two worldwide figures for ever-partnered women come from separate World Health Organization estimate rounds, an earlier one and a newer one, and they differ slightly.

• WHO estimates that 840 million women and girls worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence by a partner, or sexual violence by someone else, in their lifetime. (modelled estimate, published 2023, data year not stated) ¹
• A WHO-led study estimated that 27% of ever-partnered women aged 15 to 49 worldwide had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner in their lifetime. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• WHO estimates that 8% of women aged 15 and older worldwide have experienced sexual violence by someone other than a partner since the age of fifteen. (modelled estimate, published 2023, data year not stated) ¹

Young women and girls

Partner violence often starts early. The estimates show it already in the youngest age group surveyed.

• WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered girls aged 15 to 19 worldwide who had already experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a partner at 24%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• In Canada, 29% of women aged fifteen to twenty-four experienced violence or abuse by a partner in the past year, far above the share among women aged twenty-five to forty-four. (survey, past 12 months, 2018 data) ⁶
• In England and Wales, 8.7% of people aged sixteen to nineteen experienced domestic abuse in the past year, more than people aged fifty-five and over. (survey, past 12 months, 2023/24 data) ⁷
• In the United States, 27.1% of women who had experienced partner violence said it first happened before they turned eighteen. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³

Differences between regions and countries

Levels vary widely between regions and countries. Figures labelled modelled are World Health Organization model estimates built from each country's surveys, so they can be read on the same basis. The other figures come from separate national surveys, whose definitions differ. They are not a ranking.

• In Papua New Guinea, WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner since age fifteen at 51%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• In Bangladesh, WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner since age fifteen at 50%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• In Kenya, WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner since age fifteen at 38%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• In Peru, WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner since age fifteen at 38%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• In India, WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner since age fifteen at 35%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• In the Philippines, WHO-led estimates put the share of ever-partnered women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, from a male partner since age fifteen at 14%. (modelled, since age 15, 2018 data) ²
• Across the European Union, 18% of women aged eighteen to seventy-four who had ever had a partner experienced physical violence, threats or sexual violence by a partner. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2020-2024 data) ⁸
• Across the European Union, 32% of women aged eighteen to seventy-four who had ever had a partner had experienced psychological, physical or sexual violence by a partner. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2020-2024 data) ⁸
• In Zimbabwe, 35% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine had experienced physical or sexual violence from their current or most recent husband or partner. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2015 data) ⁹
• In Nigeria, 36% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine had experienced physical, sexual or emotional violence by their current or most recent husband or partner. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2018 data) ¹⁰
• In Jordan, 26% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine had experienced physical, sexual or emotional violence by their current or most recent husband. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2017-18 data) ¹¹
• In Bolivia, 58.5% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had ever married or lived with a partner reported physical or sexual violence by their current or most recent partner at some point. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2016 data) ¹²
• In Bolivia, 27.1% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had ever married or lived with a partner reported physical or sexual violence by their current or most recent partner in the past year. (survey, past 12 months, 2016 data) ¹²
• In Ethiopia, 34% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine had experienced physical, sexual or emotional violence by their current or most recent husband or partner. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2016 data) ¹³

Men and women in national surveys

Some national surveys ask men as well as women. They use different questions, so their figures differ, but they show that men experience partner violence too, and that women report more of it.

• In the United States, 4.5% of women had experienced contact sexual violence, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner, with a related impact, in the past twelve months. (survey, past 12 months, 2016/2017 data) ³
• In the United States, 2.8% of men had experienced contact sexual violence, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner, with a related impact, in the past twelve months. (survey, past 12 months, 2016/2017 data) ³
• In Australia, 17% of women aged 18 and over had experienced physical or sexual violence by a partner they lived with, since the age of fifteen. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁴
• In Australia, 5.5% of men aged 18 and over had experienced physical or sexual violence by a partner they lived with, since the age of fifteen. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁴
• In Australia, 23% of women aged 18 and over had experienced emotional abuse by a partner they lived with, since the age of fifteen. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁴
• In Australia, 14% of men aged 18 and over had experienced emotional abuse by a partner they lived with, since the age of fifteen. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁴
• In the 2023/24 crime survey, 6.6% of women aged 16 and over in England and Wales had experienced domestic abuse in the past year. (survey, past 12 months, 2023/24 data) ¹⁵
• In the 2023/24 crime survey, 3.0% of men aged 16 and over in England and Wales had experienced domestic abuse in the past year. (survey, past 12 months, 2023/24 data) ¹⁵
• About one in five people aged 16 and over in England and Wales, 20.5%, had experienced domestic abuse since the age of sixteen. (survey, since age 16, 2023/24 data) ¹⁵
• In a national survey, 57.6% of women aged 14 and over in Germany reported some form of partner violence in their lifetime, psychological violence included. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2020 data) ¹⁶
• In a national survey, 50.8% of men aged 14 and over in Germany reported some form of partner violence in their lifetime, psychological violence included. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2020 data) ¹⁶
• In Canada, 44% of women aged fifteen and over who had ever had a partner reported psychological, physical or sexual violence by a partner since the age of fifteen. (survey, since age 15, 2018 data) ⁶
• In Canada, 36% of men aged fifteen and over who had ever had a partner reported psychological, physical or sexual violence by a partner since the age of fifteen. (survey, since age 15, 2018 data) ⁶

Violence and mental health

Partner violence harms mental health. The World Health Organization lists depression, post-traumatic stress, anxiety, sleep problems and suicide attempts among its effects ¹. In follow-up studies, the link ran both ways.

• Across four follow-up studies, women with depressive symptoms were more likely to later report physical or sexual violence from a partner or dating partner, an association only (pooled odds ratio 1.93). (pooled from cohort studies, published 2013, study years not stated) ⁴
• In the United States, 33.7% of women reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress after violence or stalking by an intimate partner. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In Canada, 37% of women aged fifteen and over who had experienced partner violence or abuse said they had been afraid of a partner because of it, far more than men. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2018 data) ⁶
• Women aged sixteen and over with post-traumatic stress disorder had much higher odds of having experienced partner violence in adulthood than women without a mental disorder (pooled odds ratio 7.34). (meta-analysis of studies, published 2012) ¹⁷
• Women aged sixteen and over with anxiety disorders had higher odds of having experienced partner violence in their adult lifetime than women without a mental disorder, pooling five studies (pooled odds ratio 4.08). (meta-analysis of studies, published 2012) ¹⁷

Forms of abuse beyond physical violence

Partner abuse is not only physical. Surveys also ask about stalking, controlling behaviour, sexual violence and control over money. These questions differ between surveys, so each figure names its survey.

• In the United States, 13.5% of women reported that an intimate partner had stalked them at some point in their lives. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In the United States, 5.2% of men reported that an intimate partner had stalked them at some point in their lives. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In the United States, 46.2% of women reported coercive control by a partner in their lifetime, such as tracking where they went or deciding things for them. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In the United States, 42.8% of men reported coercive control by a partner in their lifetime, such as tracking where they went or deciding things for them. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In the United States, 19.6% of women reported sexual violence involving physical contact by an intimate partner at some point in their lives. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In Australia, 16% of women aged eighteen and over had experienced economic abuse by a cohabiting partner since age fifteen: control of their money or resources that caused emotional harm or fear. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁸
• In Jordan, 15% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine said their current or most recent husband showed three or more of five listed controlling behaviours. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2017-18 data) ¹¹
• In Ethiopia, 16% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine said their current or most recent husband or partner showed at least three of five listed controlling behaviours. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2016 data) ¹³

Pregnancy, disability and other groups

Some groups face partner violence more often, or at times of particular risk such as pregnancy. Children often see or hear it too. An adjusted figure allows for other differences between the groups compared, such as age.

• Across studies worldwide, a pooled 25.0% of pregnant women experienced some form of violence by an intimate partner during pregnancy. (pooled from prevalence studies, published 2021) ¹⁹
• Across studies worldwide, a pooled 9.2% of pregnant women experienced physical violence by an intimate partner during pregnancy. (pooled from prevalence studies, published 2021) ¹⁹
• In Nigeria, 6% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had ever been pregnant had experienced physical violence during a pregnancy. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2018 data) ¹⁰
• In Australia, some women aged eighteen and over had a former partner who was violent while they lived together and were pregnant during that relationship. Of these women, 42% experienced violence during the pregnancy. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁸
• In Canada, 61% of First Nations, Métis and Inuit women aged fifteen and over who had ever had a partner had experienced violence or abuse by a partner since age fifteen, more than non-Indigenous women. (survey, since age 15, 2018 data) ⁶
• In seven violence-prevention programmes in Ghana, Rwanda, South Africa, Nepal and Afghanistan, partnered adult women with disabilities had higher odds of past-year physical or sexual partner violence (adjusted odds ratio 1.93). (secondary analysis of trials, published 2020, data year not stated) ²⁰
• In Australia, 69% of women aged eighteen and over who had children in their care said the children saw or heard violence by their most recently violent former partner while they lived together. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁸

Injuries and deaths

Partner violence causes injuries, and at its most extreme it ends in death. Homicide figures come from police and justice records, not surveys, and each figure says which records it uses.

• In the United States, 35.3% of women said an intimate partner's violence or stalking had injured them at some point in their lives. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In the United States, 21.1% of men said intimate partner violence had injured them at some point in their lives. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• In Zimbabwe, 37% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence from their current or most recent husband or partner reported physical injuries. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2015 data) ⁹
• In Nigeria, 29% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence by their current or most recent husband or partner reported injuries. (survey, ever, by current or most recent partner, 2018 data) ¹⁰
• UNODC and UN Women estimate that worldwide in 2023, intimate partners or other family members killed 60% of all women and girls who died by intentional homicide. (modelled, 2023 data) ⁵
• In Europe in 2023, intimate partners committed 64% of the killings of women and girls by a partner or family member. (modelled, 2023 data) ⁵
• In 2023, Africa had the highest rate of women and girls killed by a partner or family member: 2.9 per 100,000 women and girls. (modelled, 2023 data) ⁵
• In France, in 2019-2022, intimate partners or other family members committed 79% of all recorded homicides of women and girls. (administrative records, 2019-2022 data) ⁵
• In Canada in 2019, an intimate partner killed 47% of women who died by homicide in solved cases, compared with a small share of men. (administrative records, 2019 data) ⁶
• In England and Wales, 65.4% of people aged sixteen and over killed in domestic homicides in the three years ending March 2023 were female, while most people killed in other homicides were male. (administrative records, year ending March 2021 to year ending March 2023 data) ⁷
• In England and Wales, a male partner or former partner was the suspect in 74.9% of domestic homicides of women in the three years ending March 2023. (administrative records, year ending March 2021 to year ending March 2023 data) ⁷

Telling someone and getting help

Many people never tell the police or a service about partner violence. Support is available, and telling someone you trust can be a first step.

• In Nigeria, 55% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence had never sought help or told anyone about it. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2018 data) ¹⁰
• In Jordan, only 19% of ever-married women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical violence, or sexual violence by a husband, sought help to stop it. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2017-18 data) ¹¹
• In Canada, only 13% of women aged fifteen and over who had experienced partner violence used or contacted a victims' service because of violence or abuse in the past twelve months. (survey, past 12 months, 2018 data) ⁶
• In Australia, 68% of women aged eighteen and over who had experienced violence by a former live-in partner since age fifteen had never told the police about their most recently violent former partner. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁸
• In Australia, 73% of men aged eighteen and over who had experienced violence by a former live-in partner since age fifteen had never told the police about their most recently violent former partner. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁸
• In Australia, 44% of women who had experienced violence by a former live-in partner since age fifteen had sought advice or support from a formal source about their most recently violent former partner. (survey, since age 15, 2021-22 data) ¹⁸
• In the United States, 6.1% of women had talked to a crisis hotline operator because of intimate partner violence at some point in their lives. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2016-2017 data) ³
• Averaged across household surveys from twenty-four countries, only 7% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced gender-based violence reported it to a formal source such as police or health services. (survey, 2004-2011 data) ²¹
• In household surveys from twenty-four countries, 40% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced gender-based violence had told anyone about it. (survey, 2004-2011 data) ²¹
• In Zimbabwe, 39% of women aged fifteen to forty-nine who had experienced physical or sexual violence had sought help. (survey, lifetime (ever), 2015 data) ⁹

Psychological help: one trial

The trial tested a short programme delivered by trained lay health workers. Lay health workers are people without professional health training who learn to deliver one programme. An effect size shows how big a change or a difference is, on a common scale across studies; the further it is from zero, the bigger the change. Enhanced usual care, the comparison group in this trial, meant basic information about depression and anxiety and a referral to other care. The Nairobi trial also recorded how many women took up the offer of the programme.

• In a Nairobi trial, up to five sessions from trained lay health workers eased distress three months after treatment more than enhanced usual care (effect size 0.57). The women had experienced gender-based violence and had distress and impaired functioning. (randomised trial, 2015 data) ²²
• In a trial in Nairobi, Kenya, 21.5% of women with a history of gender-based violence and psychological distress, offered a brief psychological programme from lay community health workers, attended none of its sessions. (randomised trial, 2015 data) ²²

National figures side by side

These rows count different things in different surveys and years. The model estimates for women aged fifteen to forty-nine share one method; the survey rows do not. Read each row with its label, and do not rank the countries.

How to read these figures

Violence is under-reported. People may not disclose it to an interviewer, especially if the abuser is nearby or if speaking out is unsafe. The World Health Organization says the real levels are likely to be higher than surveys show.

Surveys define violence differently. A figure that includes emotional abuse or controlling behaviour will be higher than one that counts only physical or sexual violence.

Most worldwide estimates cover women and girls only. Fewer countries measure men's experience, and they use different questions.

The WHO country estimates come from a statistical model that adjusts for differences between surveys. They are estimates with a range of uncertainty, not counts.

The figures on mental health show that violence and depression go together over time. They do not show that every person who experiences violence will become depressed.

Cite this page: TherapyRoute. Domestic violence statistics worldwide. https://www.therapyroute.com/article/domestic-violence-statistics-worldwide-by-therapyroute. Last updated 26 October 2026.

References

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