Military family suicide rate rose slightly in 2023

April 16, 2026

Summary

A Defense Department report said 146 military family members died by suicide in 2023, while the rate increased slightly as the population fell.

Why this matters

The report offers one of the federal government’s main measures of suicide among military spouses and children, information that can guide prevention efforts. It also highlights demographic patterns, including higher rates among male spouses and young adult dependents.

Nearly 150 military family members died by suicide in 2023, unchanged from 2022, while the rate rose slightly as the total military family population declined, according to a recent Defense Department report.

The report said the number of deaths among military family members has fallen 22% over the past six years, but data the department received in 2024 showed the suicide rate has increased steadily since 2011. The increase was driven in part by male spouses, who accounted for nearly two-thirds of spouse suicides despite making up 14% of the military spouse population.

Among the 98 spouses who died by suicide in 2023, 67 were married to active-duty personnel, 18 to Reserve members, and 13 to National Guard members. More than one-third were on active duty themselves in dual-military marriages, and about one-quarter were veterans. Firearms were used in nearly 70% of spouse suicide deaths, and 81% of spouses who died were younger than 40.

The report said 48 dependents died by suicide in 2023, down from 53 in 2022. That rate fell to 3.2 per 100,000 from 3.5. Of those deaths, 31 were younger than 18, and 17 were ages 18 to 22, a group that makes up about 7% of the dependent population but accounted for 35% of dependent suicides. More than 60% of dependents who died were male. Asphyxiation, or hanging, accounted for 44% of dependent deaths, followed by firearms.

In 2023, the rate of suicide among family members rose to 6 deaths per 100,000 people from 5.8 per 100,000 the previous year. In 2023, the U.S. general population suicide rate was 14.1 per 100,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Carla Stumpf Patton of Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors said tracking family suicides can help shape prevention efforts. She also said death certificate data may undercount suicides because causes of death are not always recorded accurately.

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