Statistics Overview

• Diagnosis of HIV infection: The term refers to persons diagnosed with HIV infection, regardless of the stage of disease at diagnosis (i.e., HIV infection Stage 0, 1, 2, 3 [AIDS], or unknown), from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 6 U.S. dependent areas (American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the Republic of Palau, and the U.S. Virgin Islands).
• HIV infection, stage 3 (AIDS): The term refers specifically to persons with diagnosed HIV whose infection was classified as stage 3 (AIDS) during a given year (for diagnoses) or whose infection has ever been classified as stage 3 (AIDS) (for prevalence and deaths).
• Transmission category: The term for summarizing the multiple risk factors that a person may have had by selecting the one most likely to have resulted in HIV transmission. For surveillance purposes, persons with more than one reported risk factor for HIV infection are classified in the transmission category listed first in a hierarchy of transmission categories, and therefore counted only once. The exception is men who had sexual contact with other men and injected drugs; this group makes up a separate transmission category.
• HIV prevalence: The number of persons with HIV at a given time regardless of the time of infection, whether the person has received a diagnosis (aware of infection), or the stage of HIV disease.

For more definitions and details about how HIV infection and AIDS data are tabulated, read the “Technical Notes” from the HIV Surveillance Report: Diagnoses of HIV Infection in the United States and Dependent Areas, 2017; vol. 29.

For additional details on HIV disease surveillance, view the Kaiser Family Foundation tutorial: Understanding HIV/AIDS Surveillance Data in the United States.

Prevalence is the number of people living with HIV infection at a given time, such as at the end of a given year.

At the end of 2015, an estimated 1.1 million persons aged 13 and older were living with HIV infection in the United States, including an estimated 162,500 (15%) persons whose infections had not been diagnosed.^a

^a CDC. Estimated HIV incidence and prevalence in the United States, 2010-2015. HIV Surveillance Supplemental Report 2018;23(1).

In 2017, the number of new HIV diagnoses in the United States and 6 dependent areas was 38,739.

In 2017, the number of diagnoses of HIV infection in the United States and 6 dependent areas, by age at diagnosis, was as follows:

CDC tracks diagnoses of HIV infection among seven racial and ethnic groups: American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, white, and people of multiple races.

In 2017, the number of diagnoses of HIV infection in the United States and 6 dependent areas was as follows:

^aHispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

For more details on HIV infection and race/ethnicity, see CDC’s populations and surveillance fact sheets.

CDC classifies HIV diagnoses into six transmission categories to which transmission may be attributed: male-to-male sexual contact, injection drug use, male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use, heterosexual contact, mother-to-child (perinatal) transmission, and other (includes blood transfusions and unknown cause).

Following is the number of diagnoses of HIV infection in 2017 among adults and adolescents in the United States and 6 dependent areas, by transmission category. A breakdown by sex is provided, where appropriate.

^a Includes infections attributed to male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use (men who reported both risk factors).
^b Heterosexual contact with a person known to have, or to be at high risk for, HIV infection.
^c Includes hemophilia, blood transfusion, perinatal exposure, and risk factor not reported or not identified.

Following is the number of diagnoses of HIV infection in 2017 among children younger than 13 years at the time of diagnosis in the United States and 6 dependent areas, by transmission category.

^aIncludes hemophilia, blood transfusion, and risk factor not reported or not identified.

These are the 10 states reporting the highest number of HIV diagnoses in 2017:

At the end of 2016, there were 1,008,929 persons with diagnosed HIV infection in the United States and 6 dependent areas.

Because of delays in reporting of deaths, death and prevalence data are only available through the end of 2016. The exclusion of data from the most recent year allows at least 18 months for deaths to be reported and for these deaths to be factored into calculations of prevalence.

The number of persons in the United States and 6 dependent areas whose diagnosed HIV infection was classified as stage 3 (AIDS) in 2017 was 17,803. Of these, 13,462 were adult and adolescent males, 4,308 were adult and adolescent females, and 33 were children younger than 13.

The cumulative number of persons in the United States and 6 dependent areas with diagnosed HIV infection ever classified as stage 3 (AIDS) at the end of 2017 was 1,281,787.

In 2017, the number of stage 3 (AIDS) classifications in the United States and 6 dependent areas, by age at time of classification, was as follows:

CDC tracks AIDS information on seven racial and ethnic groups: American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, white, and people of multiple races.

In 2017, the number of persons in the United States and 6 dependent areas with diagnosed HIV infection classified as stage 3 (AIDS), by race/ethnicity, was as follows:

^a From the beginning of the epidemic through 2017.
^b Includes Asian/Pacific Islander legacy cases.
^c Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

CDC classifies HIV and stage 3 (AIDS) data into six transmission categories, to which infection may be attributed: male-to-male sexual contact, injection drug use, male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use, heterosexual contact, mother-to-child (perinatal) transmission, and other (includes blood transfusions and unknown cause).

Following is the number of persons in the United States and 6 dependent areas with diagnosed HIV whose infection was classified as stage 3 (AIDS) in 2017, by transmission category. A breakdown by sex is provided where appropriate.

^a Includes infections attributed to male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use (men who reported both risk factors).
^b Heterosexual contact with a person known to have, or to be at high risk for, HIV infection.
^c Includes hemophilia, blood transfusion, perinatal exposure, and risk factor not reported or not identified.

^a From the beginning of the epidemic through 2017.
^b Includes infections attributed to male-to-male sexual contact and injection drug use (men who reported both risk factors).
^c Heterosexual contact with a person known to have, or to be at high risk for, HIV infection.
^d Includes hemophilia, blood transfusion, perinatal exposure, and risk factor not reported or not identified.

At the end of 2016, 534,805 persons in the United States and 6 dependent areas were living with diagnosed HIV infection ever classified as stage 3 (AIDS).

Because of delays in reporting of deaths, prevalence data are only available through the end of 2016. The exclusion of data from the most recent year allows at least 18 months for deaths to be reported.

In 2016, there were 15,807 deaths among people with diagnosed HIV in the United States and 6 dependent areas. These deaths may be due to any cause.

• NCHHSTP AtlasPlus
• NCHHSTP State Profiles
• Statehealthfacts.org provides state-by-state information about new and cumulative AIDS diagnoses, AIDS diagnosis rates, persons with an AIDS diagnosis, AIDS deaths, diagnoses of HIV infections, HIV testing statistics and policies, additional AIDS-related state policies, Ryan White funding and other funding for HIV prevention, and AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, including budget, client, and expenditure data from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

HIV disease continues to be a serious health issue for parts of the world. Worldwide, there were about 1.8 million new cases of HIV in 2017. About 36.9 million people are living with HIV around the world. An estimated 940,000 people died from AIDS-related illnesses in 2017. An estimated 35 million people have died from AIDS-related illnesses since the start of the epidemic. Sub-Saharan Africa, which bears the heaviest burden of HIV and AIDS worldwide, accounts for 66% of all new HIV infections. Other regions significantly affected by HIV and AIDS include Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. CDC’s Global HIV website explains what CDC is doing in countries where HIV and AIDS have had great impact.

Other resources for international HIV and AIDS statistics:

• For information on international HIV infection and AIDS statistics, visit the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS.
• For current statistics on the number of reported AIDS cases in North, Central, and South America, please contact the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which also serves as the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization at 525 23rd Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037; telephone: 202-974-3000.
• Other international websites with information on HIV and AIDS are the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).