Mental Illness in the United States: 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) · 2025 NSDUH Key Indicators Report
SAMHSA's national survey estimates of how many U.S. adults had a mental illness in the past year, and how many of them received treatment.
- In 2025, an estimated 20.6% of U.S. adults (54.6 million) had any mental illness in the past year.
- About half of those adults (50.9%) received any mental health treatment in the past year.
- An estimated 6.9% of adults (18.2 million) had serious mental illness; 67.7% of them received treatment.
- Young adults aged 18 to 25 had the highest rate of any mental illness (28.6%).
Why it matters
These numbers are the baseline for understanding why higher levels of care — including residential treatment — exist. They also show that about half of U.S. adults with a mental illness did not receive treatment in the past year.
Limitations
These are population-level survey estimates; they describe the size of the problem but not which level of care is most effective for any individual. NSDUH covers the civilian, noninstitutionalized population; mental illness estimates come from a statistical model and exclude developmental and substance use disorders. SAMHSA updated its mental illness model in 2025 and re-estimated 2021–2024 with it, so these figures should not be compared with estimates published before 2026.
Original source
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SAMHSA's National Helpline
For free, confidential information and referrals to local treatment options — not affiliated with this site.
Call 1-800-662-HELP (4357)In an immediate mental health crisis, call or text 988.