This is a list of U.S. states by road deaths. Data are for the year 2021. Death data are from NHTSA,[1] mileage figures are from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics[2] and population data are from the US Census.[3]
Per billion vehicle miles, South Carolina had the highest death rate while Massachusetts had the lowest. Mississippi had the most deaths per capita while Rhode Island had the lowest.[4]
One third of fatal accidents involve alcohol.[5] Deaths from speeding exceeded 12,000, half of which involved drivers not wearing a seatbelt, and a third of which involved male drivers aged 15 to 20.[6] Most deaths were occupants of cars, but 17% were pedestrians, 14% were motorcyclists and 2% were cyclists.[5]
| Location | Road deaths |
Deaths / bil. miles |
Deaths / 100k people |
Deaths / 100k drivers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 42,939 | 13.7 | 12.9 | 18.4 |
 South Carolina |
1,198 | 20.8 | 23.1 | 30.0 |
 Mississippi |
772 | 18.9 | 26.2 | 38.0 |
 Arkansas |
693 | 18.0 | 22.9 | 30.0 |
 New Mexico |
481 | 17.9 | 22.7 | 32.6 |
 Louisiana |
972 | 17.8 | 21.0 | 28.3 |
 Montana |
239 | 17.7 | 21.6 | 27.9 |
 West Virginia |
280 | 17.4 | 15.7 | 24.6 |
 Florida |
3,738 | 17.2 | 17.1 | 23.2 |
 Oklahoma |
762 | 17.0 | 19.1 | 29.3 |
 Kentucky |
806 | 16.8 | 17.9 | 27.0 |
 Oregon |
599 | 16.3 | 14.1 | 19.8 |
 Tennessee |
1,327 | 16.1 | 19.1 | 26.5 |
 Arizona |
1,180 | 16.0 | 16.2 | 20.4 |
 Texas |
4,498 | 15.8 | 15.2 | 24.6 |
 Georgia |
1,797 | 14.9 | 16.7 | 23.4 |
 South Dakota |
148 | 14.8 | 16.5 | 22.1 |
 Nevada |
385 | 14.2 | 12.2 | 17.9 |
 North Carolina |
1,663 | 14.1 | 15.7 | 21.4 |
 Idaho |
271 | 14.0 | 14.2 | 20.2 |
 California |
4,285 | 13.8 | 10.9 | 15.8 |
 Illinois |
1,334 | 13.7 | 10.5 | 15.9 |
 Delaware |
136 | 13.4 | 13.5 | 16.0 |
 Kansas |
424 | 13.4 | 14.4 | 20.3 |
 Colorado |
691 | 12.8 | 11.9 | 15.7 |
 Missouri |
1,016 | 12.7 | 16.5 | 23.8 |
 District of Columbia |
41 | 12.6 | 6.1 | 8.0 |
 Alabama |
983 | 12.4 | 19.5 | 24.2 |
 Virginia |
973 | 12.1 | 11.2 | 16.5 |
 Ohio |
1,354 | 12.0 | 11.5 | 16.3 |
 Pennsylvania |
1,230 | 12.0 | 9.5 | 13.5 |
 Indiana |
932 | 11.9 | 13.7 | 20.1 |
 Michigan |
1,136 | 11.7 | 11.3 | 14.2 |
 Alaska |
67 | 11.6 | 9.1 | 12.9 |
 Washington |
670 | 11.6 | 8.7 | 11.4 |
 Vermont |
74 | 11.2 | 11.4 | 15.8 |
 North Dakota |
101 | 10.9 | 13.0 | 18.4 |
 New York |
1,157 | 10.8 | 5.8 | 9.7 |
 Iowa |
356 | 10.8 | 11.1 | 15.2 |
 Maine |
153 | 10.5 | 11.1 | 14.5 |
 Nebraska |
221 | 10.4 | 11.3 | 15.4 |
 Connecticut |
298 | 10.3 | 8.3 | 11.4 |
 Wyoming |
110 | 9.9 | 19.0 | 25.6 |
 Maryland |
561 | 9.9 | 9.1 | 12.6 |
 Utah |
328 | 9.8 | 9.8 | 14.9 |
 Wisconsin |
620 | 9.5 | 10.5 | 14.3 |
 New Jersey |
699 | 9.5 | 7.5 | 10.8 |
 Hawaii |
94 | 9.4 | 6.5 | 10.2 |
 New Hampshire |
118 | 9.0 | 8.5 | 10.0 |
 Minnesota |
488 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 11.8 |
 Rhode Island |
63 | 8.4 | 5.7 | 8.3 |
 Massachusetts |
417 | 7.1 | 6.0 | 8.5 |
