Drunk Driving Statistics in the US

The consequences of drunk driving are severe. Beyond being a major traffic violation, it often results in fatal outcomes. In 2022 alone, over 13,000 fatalities occurred in crashes where at least one driver was alcohol-impaired, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Drunk driving, also known as alcohol-impaired driving, occurs when a driver's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is .08 grams per deciliter (g/dL) or higher. Beyond the tragic loss of life, drunk driving imposes a substantial financial toll. In 2019, motor vehicle crashes cost the U.S. an estimated $340 billion, with $58 billion attributed to alcohol-impaired driving. These costs include medical expenses, lost productivity, legal fees, emergency services and property damage.

In 2022, alcohol-impaired driving crashes resulted in 13,524 deaths in the United States, slightly fewer than the 13,617 fatalities in 2021. Fatalities have fluctuated over the years, with motor vehicle deaths involving alcohol-impaired drivers generally staying below 11,000 per year from 2011 until 2020. In 2020, this count exceeded 11,000 for the first time, with a notable 14% increase, reaching 11,727 deaths. The following year saw an even larger increase, rising to 13,617 fatalities — a jump of around 16%.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Not all people who died in alcohol-impaired driving crashes were drivers, although they made up 59% of the fatalities. Out of over 13,500 deaths, 8,012 were alcohol-impaired drivers. Another 12% (1,684 fatalities) were passengers riding with these drivers.

The remaining 29% included individuals outside the impaired driver's vehicle. This group consisted of 2,193 passengers of other vehicles (16%) and 1,635 nonoccupants (12%), such as pedestrians and cyclists.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

The highest percentage of alcohol-impaired drivers were aged 21 to 24, making up 29% of the group (1,546 drivers). Drivers aged 25 to 34 made up the next-highest percentage, numbering 3,485 (28%), followed by drivers 35 to 44 at 2,476 (24%). Together, these three age groups represented over half of alcohol-impaired drivers in fatal accidents. The age group with the lowest involvement in fatal traffic crashes was 75 and older, comprising 8% of alcohol-impaired drivers or 265 individuals.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Male drivers made up the majority of alcohol-impaired driving fatalities in 2022. Nearly four times as many male drivers (9,914) were involved in fatal crashes with a BAC of 0.08 or higher, compared to 2,562 female drivers.

Men generally drive more miles than women and are more likely to engage in risky behaviors, such as not wearing seat belts, speeding and driving while impaired. Crashes involving male drivers also tend to be more severe. However, women are more likely than men to be killed or injured in crashes of similar severity.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Alcohol-impaired drivers operate all types of vehicles, which fall into four main categories: passenger cars, light trucks, motorcycles and large trucks.

Passenger cars had the highest percentage of alcohol-impaired drivers at 25% (4,911), although their total count was lower than that of light trucks. Light trucks had the highest count overall, with 5,406 alcohol-impaired drivers representing 21% of incidents. Among the subgroups of light trucks, SUVs led in drunk-driving fatalities at 2,791.

However, motorcycles had the highest rate of alcohol impairment relative to their total involvement in fatal crashes. Of the 6,349 motorcyclists involved in deadly crashes, 1,808 were alcohol-impaired or 28%.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

At 1,869, Texas had the highest number of alcohol-impaired fatalities in 2022. California followed with 1,479 and Florida with 940. In contrast, Alaska had the fewest fatalities at just 20. When considering percentages, Rhode Island and South Carolina led with 43% of traffic fatalities involving alcohol-impaired drivers — 22 fatalities in Rhode Island and 474 in South Carolina.

Fatal crashes involving drunk driving vary widely across states. Use MoneyGeek's map to view total drunk driving fatalities by state. Areas with higher counts of drunk driving deaths are shaded darker, whereas lighter shades indicate fewer fatalities.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

July had the highest percentage of alcohol-impaired driving crashes — making up 10% of all incidents — with August close behind at 9%. These summer months saw more drunk-driving crashes than any other time of the year, likely due to increased travel and social events. In contrast, February recorded the lowest percentage of alcohol-impaired crashes at 7%.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Fatal alcohol-impaired driving crashes were more common in urban areas, with 62% of incidents occurring there compared to 38% in rural locations. Regarding weather conditions, most crashes happened under clear or cloudy skies, with 92% of incidents occurring in these conditions, while only 6% occurred in rainy weather and 2% in other conditions. The vast majority (69%) of alcohol-impaired crashes happened in the dark, 27% in daylight, 3% at dusk and just 1% at dawn.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Some roads are more dangerous than others. Most of these crashes (87%) occurred on non-interstate roads, while only 13% occurred on interstate highways. Most alcohol-impaired crashes (33%) occurred on non-interstate principal arterial roads, which are major routes connecting cities and regions. Minor arterial roads, which link smaller areas, made up 22% of drunk driving crashes, while collector roads, which gather traffic from local streets, were involved in 21% of cases.

Explore the crash percentages and descriptions of each road type below.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Alcohol-impaired driving crashes were much more frequent on weekends than on weekdays. About 29% of drunk driving incidents occurred on weekends, with 36% of these crashes happening at night. Weekdays saw fewer alcohol-impaired crashes overall, with 17% occurring at night.

Daytime crashes were less common regardless of the day. Only 9% of alcohol-impaired crashes happened during the day on weekdays, while weekends had a slightly higher daytime rate of 15%. Considering more drunk driving fatalities happen when it's dark, knowing how to drive safely at night is essential.

Source: National Highway Safety Administration

Drunk driving statistics reinforce how imperative driving sober is for operating a vehicle safely. MoneyGeek gathered the most commonly asked questions about alcohol-impaired driving to provide more information.

Drunk driving is only one of the risky driving behaviors people engage in when behind the wheel. Others include speeding, driving while distracted and driving while tired. Here are online resources that may help you explore these areas further.

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