It’s not enough to count sexual violence. RAINN’s mission is to stop it.
Statistics are not the end goal. They are a call to action.
Each number represents real people, real harm, and real opportunities to prevent sexual violence, strengthen accountability, and support survivors.
Data helps communities understand where harm happens, who is most affected, how systems respond, and what must change.
What To Know About Sexual Violence Statistics
Most sexual violence data comes from one of three sources:
- Surveys like the National Crime Victimization Survey, which gathers data from approximately 150,000 participating U.S. households every year.
- Agencies such as police departments or child protective services, which voluntarily submit data to various reporting programs.
- Independent research conducted by reputable experts, sponsored by trusted organizations, and reviewed by peers.
Why the Numbers Don’t Always Line Up
Researchers collect and categorize their data differently, making it difficult to compare results.
For example, much of the data RAINN shares about child sexual abuse comes from three different government-commissioned reports, each of which groups victims by different age ranges:
| Reporting Agency | Where the Data Comes From | Age Groupings | |||
| Federal Bureau of Investigation | National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) | • 0–9 • 10–19 • 20–29 • Etc. | |||
| Children’s Bureau | National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) | • 0–11 • 12-17 | |||
| Bureau of Justice Statistics | National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) | • 12+ | |||
As you can see, the different age groupings alone make it impossible to make an “apples-to-apples” comparison of each agency’s data. This doesn’t mean that the data is inaccurate; it just reflects different methodologies.
Terms & Definitions
Researchers define and measure sexual violence differently, so wording may vary across this page. These differences affect the findings, so statistics from different studies often cannot be directly compared.
Each statistic includes a citation for the original source, and we encourage you to do a deeper dive to review the methodology, terms, and definitions behind the data.
Sources & Citations
Every statistic begins with someone choosing to share what happened to them.
Survivors who participate in research help us better understand the scope of sexual violence, strengthen the case for prevention and accountability, and guide more effective support for survivors.
The data currently published on RAINN’s Facts & Statistics page were developed from these sources:
- CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- NCANDS: National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System
- NCVS: National Crime Victimization Survey
- NIBRS: National Incident-Based Reporting System
- NISVS: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey
- RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline
- Other Sources & Citations
CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
ABOUT CDC DATA
Reports and educational resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention often combine national survey data, including NISVS, with peer-reviewed research, program evaluations, and other best available evidence on risk factors, prevention strategies, health impacts, and what works to reduce sexual violence and support survivors.
Explore the CDC’s references through this citation:
- Basile, K.C., DeGue, S., Jones, K., Freire, K., Dills, J., Smith, S.G., Raiford, J.L. (2016), “Sexual Violence Prevention Resource for Action: A Compilation of the Best Available Evidence” (2023), Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2025)
Revision Notes:
- 2016: The CDC reviewed the best available evidence and published “STOP SV: A Technical Package to Prevent Sexual Violence.”
- 2023: The title of this document was changed to “Sexual Violence Prevention Resource for Action” to align with other prevention resources being developed by the CDC’s Injury Center.
- 2025: The document was revised to comply with Executive Orders 14168 and 14151 issued on January 20, 2025.
NCANDS: National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System
ABOUT NCANDS DATA
The National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System collects annual data from child protective services agencies in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. Unlike surveys that estimate experiences across a population, NCANDS reflects cases that came to the attention of child protective services and were investigated or assessed.
These cited resources used NCANDS data:
- U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau, “Child Maltreatment 2022” (2024)
- Data Source: NCANDS, 2022
- Note: As of June 2026, the 2022 Child Maltreatment report is the most recent to include data about victim age and sex, perpetrator sex, and report source.
- U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau, “Child Maltreatment 2020-2024” (2026)
- Data Source: NCANDS 2020-2024
NCVS: National Crime Victimization Survey
ABOUT NCVS DATA
Since 1973, the National Crime Victimization Survey has gathered crime data from more than 12 million people in the U.S. Every year, nearly 150,000 households contribute to the survey, with each household participating for a three-year period.
These cited resources used NCVS data:
- Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Socio-emotional Impact of Violent Crime” (2014)
- Data Source: NCVS 2009-2012
- Socio-emotional problems are defined as “feelings of moderate to severe distress; significant problems with work or school, such as trouble with a boss, coworkers, or peers; or significant problems with family members or friends, including more arguments than before the victimization.”
- Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Criminal Victimization, 2024” (September 2025)
- Data Source: NCVS 2020-2024
How the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) Defines Perpetration
NCVS Definitions
How does the NCVS define “rape”?
The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) defines rape as:
Coerced or forced sexual intercourse. Forced sexual intercourse means vaginal, anal, or oral penetration by the offender(s).
This category could include incidents where the penetration was from a foreign object, such as a bottle.
It includes attempted rape, threatened rape, male and female victims, and incidents involving victims and offenders who are the same sex or different sexes.
How does the NCVS define “sexual assault”?
The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) defines sexual assault as:
A wide range of victimizations separate from rape, attempted rape, or threatened rape. These crimes include attacks or threatened attacks involving unwanted sexual contact between the victim and offender.
Sexual assaults may or may not involve force and include such things as grabbing or fondling.
NIBRS: National Incident-Based Reporting System
ABOUT NIBRS DATA
The National Incident-Based Reporting System collects detailed data about crimes reported to participating law enforcement agencies. Beginning in 2021, the FBI made NIBRS the national standard for reporting crime data.
Because NIBRS reflects crimes known to law enforcement, it does not capture sexual violence that is never reported to police.
RAINN accessed NIBRS data through the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer:
- Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI Crime Data Explorer, National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), “Crime > Rape, January 2021-December 2025” (Data accessed September 2026)
- Definition: The FBI defines rape as “penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”
NISVS: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey
ABOUT NISVS DATA
The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey is an ongoing CDC survey that measures sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and stalking among adults in the U.S. In 2023/2024, NISVS contacted more than 118,000 households and included responses from 15,609 adults.
These cited resources used NISVS data:
- D’Angelo DV, Liu Y, Basile KC, Smith SG, Chen J, Friar NW, Stevens M (2023), “Rape and Sexual Coercion Related Pregnancy in the United States” (March 2024)
- Data Source: NISVS 2016-2017
- Leemis RW, Zhang Kudon H, Zhu S, Smith SG, Chen J, Friar NW, & Basile KC, “The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2023/2024 Sexual Violence Data Brief“, Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2025)
- Data Source: NISVS 2023-2024
How NISVS Defines Tech-Enabled Sexual Abuse
NISVS Definition
How does NISVS define“technology-facilitated sexual violence”?
The NISVS defines technology-facilitated sexual violence as “unwanted sexual experiences involving technology.” These abuses are included in the definition:
- Someone sent the victim an unwanted sexually explicit message or image through the internet, social media, email, or text message without the victim’s consent. (This excludes spam, phishing, and Bot messages.)
- Someone emailed, texted, or electronically posted a non-consensual revealing or sexual photo or video of the victim.
RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline
ABOUT THIS DATA
RAINN’s Hotline Is Built for Confidentiality
For many survivors, reaching out for help requires an extraordinary act of trust. About 40 percent of the people who contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline do so within seven days of the assault, when support can be especially important.
That’s why RAINN built a proprietary hotline platform designed around anonymity.
Survivor privacy is protected from the start.
Unlike commercial customer service systems, which are built to collect and store user information, RAINN’s hotline technology is designed to protect privacy:
✅ Provides end-to-end encryption
❌ Does not store IP addresses
❌ Does not store personally identifying information
❌ Does not store case notes
❌ Does not store other sensitive records
This approach helps survivors access support with confidence and protects their privacy from the start.
These cited resources used RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline data:
- RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), “RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline: Statistics for TESA & Kids, 2025” (June 2026)
- RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), “2025 Annual Report on RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline (NSAH) Visitors” (May 2026)
- RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), “Impact of RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline, 1994-2026” (June 2026)
Other Sources & Citations
- Hoffman, E. E., Patton, E., & Greeson, M. R. “A Systematic Review of Sexual Assault Case Attrition in the United States from 2000 to 2020“, (2025).
- Data Sources: 2000-2020 PsychINFO and ProQuest records of 288,066 sexual assault cases
- Steel CMS, “Prevalence of generative artificial intelligence sexualized image usage by adolescents in the United States”, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia (2026)
- Cantor, D., Fisher, B., Chibnall, S., Harps, S., Townsend, R., Thomas, G., Lee, H., Kranz, V., Herbison, R., & Madden, K., Association of American Universities, “Report on the AAU Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Sexual Misconduct” (2019) (January 2020)
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you are not alone. RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support in English and en Español.
Call 800.656.HOPE (4673)
Chat at RAINN.org/hotline
Text “HOPE” to 64673
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