Anxiety Statistics.
U.S. prevalence of anxiety disorders by type, sex, age, and the conditions that travel with them. Citations on every number.
We pull these numbers from the canonical U.S. sources, mainly the National Institute of Mental Health's reporting of the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. The headline figure most people cite is that about 19.1 percent of U.S. adults had any anxiety disorder in the past year, and about 31.1 percent will meet criteria at some point in their lives. Those are population estimates from diagnostic interviews, not a count of who has a chart diagnosis.
Key numbers at a glance
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The data in detail
Prevalence by disorder
Past-year and lifetime prevalence among U.S. adults, from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication as reported by the National Institute of Mental Health. Disorder-specific rates don't add up to the any-disorder rate because many people meet criteria for more than one.
| Disorder | Past-year prevalence | Lifetime prevalence |
|---|---|---|
| Any anxiety disorder | 19.1% | 31.1% |
| Specific phobia | 9.1% | 12.5% |
| Social anxiety disorder | 7.1% | 12.1% |
| Post-traumatic stress disorder | 3.6% | 6.8% |
| Generalized anxiety disorder | 2.7% | 5.7% |
| Panic disorder | 2.7% | 4.7% |
| Obsessive-compulsive disorder | 1.2% | 2.3% |
| Agoraphobia | 0.9% | 1.3% |
Source: NIMH mental health statistics pages, reporting NCS-R diagnostic-interview estimates (Kessler et al., 2005).
Past-year prevalence by sex
Any anxiety disorder in the past year, split by sex, from the same NCS-R estimates. The gap between women and men is one of the most consistent findings in the prevalence literature.
| Group | Any anxiety disorder, past-year |
|---|---|
| U.S. adults overall | 19.1% |
| Women | 23.4% |
| Men | 14.3% |
Source: NIMH, Any Anxiety Disorder (NCS-R).
Source by source
NIMH, Any Anxiety Disorder (NCS-R)
Reports past-year and lifetime prevalence of any anxiety disorder among U.S. adults, with breakdowns by sex and by serious impairment. The underlying interviews are the National Comorbidity Survey Replication, fielded in the early 2000s.
NCS-R disorder-specific estimates
Provide past-year prevalence for individual disorders: specific phobia near 9.1 percent, social anxiety disorder near 7.1 percent, post-traumatic stress disorder near 3.6 percent, and generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder each near 2.7 percent.
CDC Household Pulse Survey
A faster, symptom-screen survey that asks about recent anxiety or depressive symptoms. It captures current distress, not diagnoses, so its numbers run higher and move faster than the diagnostic estimates.
What the data isn't
- ·The NCS-R diagnostic estimates come from interviews fielded roughly two decades ago. They remain the most-cited adult prevalence figures, but they are not a live readout of this year.
- ·Past-year and lifetime numbers answer different questions. Lifetime prevalence counts anyone who has ever met criteria; past-year counts a current window. Quoting one for the other overstates or understates the burden.
- ·Symptom-screen surveys like the Household Pulse Survey and diagnostic interviews are not interchangeable. A screen flags symptoms; a diagnosis requires a clinician-style assessment.
- ·Comorbidity is the rule, not the exception. Many adults meet criteria for more than one anxiety disorder or for anxiety plus depression, so the disorder-specific rates do not add up to the any-disorder rate.
Sources
How to cite
Anxiety statistics, AnxietyResearch.org, drawing on National Institute of Mental Health prevalence estimates from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Accessed 2026-06-24. https://anxietyresearch.org/statistics/anxiety-statistics
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