Causes of death
Alzheimer's disease deaths in the US
Alzheimer's disease killed 116,856 people in the United States in 2025, making it the #6 cause of death. Adjusted for the country's aging population, the death rate is 27.3 per 100,000, up 65% from 16.5 in 1999.
Alzheimer's disease deaths per year, 1999 to 2025
Data table
| Year | Deaths | Crude rate per 100,000 | Age-adjusted rate per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 44,536 | 15.96 | 16.474 |
| 2000 | 49,558 | 17.61 | 18.051 |
| 2001 | 53,852 | 18.897 | 19.289 |
| 2002 | 58,866 | 20.466 | 20.811 |
| 2003 | 63,457 | 21.874 | 22.059 |
| 2004 | 65,965 | 22.529 | 22.602 |
| 2005 | 71,599 | 24.228 | 23.989 |
| 2006 | 72,432 | 24.275 | 23.692 |
| 2007 | 74,632 | 24.776 | 23.839 |
| 2008 | 82,435 | 27.108 | 25.787 |
| 2009 | 79,003 | 25.753 | 24.174 |
| 2010 | 83,494 | 27.043 | 25.113 |
| 2011 | 84,974 | 27.271 | 24.731 |
| 2012 | 83,637 | 26.643 | 23.784 |
| 2013 | 84,767 | 26.814 | 23.524 |
| 2014 | 93,541 | 29.336 | 25.441 |
| 2015 | 110,561 | 34.398 | 29.427 |
| 2016 | 116,103 | 35.931 | 30.294 |
| 2017 | 121,404 | 37.273 | 31.044 |
| 2018 | 122,019 | 37.296 | 30.519 |
| 2019 | 121,499 | 37.015 | 29.847 |
| 2020 | 134,242 | 40.743 | 32.45 |
| 2021 | 119,399 | 35.975 | 30.959 |
| 2022 | 120,122 | 36.042 | 28.903 |
| 2023 | 114,034 | 34.049 | 27.747 |
| 2024 | 116,022 | 34.113 | 27.088 |
| 2025 | 116,856 | 34.358 | 27.263 |
It ranked #8 in 1999 and #6 in 2025, and has been as high as #6.
What Alzheimer's disease means here
Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia, a progressive loss of memory and thinking. Age is the biggest risk factor, so deaths rise steeply after 75. Dementia that is not specified as Alzheimer disease is recorded under other categories, and many people with dementia die with a more immediate cause such as pneumonia on the certificate, so this number is a partial count of dementia deaths.
CDC category: Alzheimer disease (G30)
What stands out in the 2025 data
- It accounted for 3.8% of all US deaths in 2025, about 1 in 27.
- Deaths peaked in 2020 at 134,242. 2025 is 13% below it.
- 90% of the people who died of it were 75 or older.
- Women were 68% of the deaths, and their age-adjusted death rate was 1.5 times the rate for men.
Who dies of Alzheimer's disease
| Age | Deaths | Per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1 | under 10 | |
| 1 to 4 | under 10 | |
| 5 to 14 | under 10 | |
| 15 to 24 | under 10 | |
| 25 to 34 | under 10 | |
| 35 to 44 | under 10 | |
| 45 to 54 | 104 | 0.3 |
| 55 to 64 | 1,471 | 3.5 |
| 65 to 74 | 9,550 | 26.9 |
| 75 to 84 | 38,894 | 201.5 |
| 85 and over | 66,827 | 1038.5 |
| Sex | Deaths | Age-adjusted rate |
|---|---|---|
| Women | 79,351 | 31.3 |
| Men | 37,505 | 21.3 |
Common questions
How many people die of Alzheimer's disease in the US each year?
Alzheimer's disease caused 116,856 deaths in the United States in 2025 (CDC provisional data), compared with 44,536 in 1999.
Is the Alzheimer's disease death rate going up or down?
The age-adjusted death rate for Alzheimer's disease was 27.3 per 100,000 in 2025, up 65% from 16.5 in 1999. Age adjustment removes the effect of the population getting older, so it shows whether the risk per person changed, not just the raw count.
Where does Alzheimer's disease rank among causes of death?
It ranked #8 in 1999 and #6 in 2025, and has been as high as #6. The top causes in 2025 were heart disease, cancer and accidents.
Who dies of Alzheimer's disease?
Most deaths, and the highest death rate, were in people aged 85 and over (66,827 deaths in 2025). 37,505 men and 79,351 women died of it.
Where does this data come from?
CDC WONDER, the National Center for Health Statistics death certificate data, using the NCHS list of 113 selected causes. Counts for 2025 are provisional and can be revised slightly upward.
Keep reading
- Parkinson's disease · 43,537 deaths in 2025, #12
- Stroke · 171,516 deaths in 2025, #4
- Aspiration pneumonia · 18,865 deaths in 2025, #16
Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death, NCHS 113 selected causes. 2025 counts are provisional. Explore more on the Causes of Death page, or see what kills people your age.