Pool Drowning Statistics by State: Deaths and Rates, 2018 to 2024

Pool drowning statistics by state: deaths and rates, 2018 to 2024

Pool drowning deaths are concentrated in a handful of warm-weather states, but the ranking changes once population is taken into account. Florida leads on both counts, Arizona has almost the same rate with a third of Florida’s deaths, and 36 of 51 jurisdictions have enough deaths for a reliable rate.

Florida recorded 1,027 pool drowning deaths of state residents from 2018 to 2024, the most of any state and 18.3% of the US total, according to CDC WONDER.

Florida’s pool drowning rate of 6.65 deaths per 1 million residents per year (2018 to 2024) was the highest in the United States and 2.7 times the national rate of 2.42 (CDC WONDER).

Arizona had the second-highest rate, 6.15 per 1 million per year, from 317 deaths in 2018 to 2024. Nevada (4.58), Hawaii (3.90), Alabama (3.59) and Louisiana (3.40) followed (CDC WONDER).

California (805 deaths) and Texas (639 deaths) ranked second and third by count, but their rates of 2.93 and 3.07 per 1 million per year placed them ninth and eighth by rate in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

Florida, California, Texas and Arizona together accounted for 2,788 pool drowning deaths, or 49.6% of the 2018 to 2024 US total (CDC WONDER).

The lowest reliable rate was in Massachusetts, at 0.86 deaths per 1 million per year in 2018 to 2024, so Florida’s rate was 7.7 times higher (CDC WONDER).

Child pool drowning rates by state: children under 5

Young children carry most of the pool drowning risk. Florida and Arizona have nearly identical under-5 rates, both about 2.7 times the national figure, and the pool share of toddler drownings is far higher than the pool share at other ages.

Across the United States, 1,871 children under 5 died in pool drownings from 2018 to 2024, a rate of 1.41 deaths per 100,000 children under 5 per year (CDC WONDER).

Florida’s under-5 pool drowning rate was 3.84 per 100,000 children per year in 2018 to 2024, and Arizona’s was 3.79, the two highest of the 24 states with a reliable under-5 rate (CDC WONDER).

Alabama (2.59), Louisiana (2.52) and Oklahoma (2.35) had the next-highest under-5 rates per 100,000 in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

New York had the lowest reliable under-5 rate, 0.56 per 100,000, so Florida’s rate was 6.9 times New York’s in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

In Arizona, 80.7% of unintentional drowning deaths among children ages 1 to 4 in 2018 to 2024 were coded as pool drownings (109 of 135). The share was 67.1% in Florida and 67.9% in California (CDC WONDER).

How pool drownings compare with all drownings in each state

Nationally, about one in five unintentional drowning deaths is coded to a swimming pool. The pool share ranges from roughly 40% in Arizona to under 10% in states where lakes, rivers and coasts dominate, and part of the variation reflects how precisely death certificates record the place of drowning.

Pool drownings (W67-W68) made up 19.9% of the 28,268 unintentional drowning deaths (W65-W74) among US residents from 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

Arizona had the highest pool share among states with reliable counts: 39.5% of its unintentional drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024 were pool drownings. Florida (32.5%) and Nevada (30.0%) followed (CDC WONDER).

Washington had the lowest pool share among states with reliable counts, 8.0% in 2018 to 2024, followed by Wisconsin (9.6%) (CDC WONDER).

Hawaii illustrates the difference between pool and total drowning: its all-drowning toll of 322 deaths in 2018 to 2024 was mostly non-pool, and only 12.1% were pool drownings (CDC WONDER).

Regional patterns: Sun Belt states versus the rest of the US

The pool drowning burden is regional. The South holds just over half of US pool drowning deaths with under two-fifths of the population, and a 15-state Sun Belt grouping has a rate 2.6 times that of the remaining states. The gap narrows but holds without Florida.

The Census South region recorded 2,930 pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, 52.2% of the US total, while holding 38.5% of the population (CDC WONDER; regions per the U.S. Census Bureau).

The South Atlantic division had the highest divisional rate, 3.54 per 1 million per year, and New England had the lowest, 0.94 (CDC WONDER).

The 15 Sun Belt states in this report recorded 3,929 pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, 70.0% of the US total, with 47.3% of the population. Their rate of 3.57 per 1 million per year compares with 1.38 in the other 35 states and DC (CDC WONDER).

Excluding Florida, the Sun Belt rate was 3.07 per 1 million per year, still 2.2 times the rest of the US in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

Which ages drown in pools: toddlers first, older adults second

Children ages 1 to 4 make up 4.6% of the population but one-third of pool drowning deaths. The rate falls to its lowest point in young adulthood, then rises steadily with age and passes the rate for ages 5 to 14 from age 65, a pattern that child-focused statistics tend to hide.

CDC reports that drowning kills more US children ages 1 to 4 than any other cause of death, and CDC states that most drownings at those ages happen in swimming pools.

Children ages 1 to 4 accounted for 1,857 of the 5,616 US pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, or 33.1% (CDC WONDER).

The ages 1 to 4 pool drowning rate was 1.73 per 100,000 children per year (17.31 per 1 million), 7.2 times the all-ages rate, in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

Age 2 was the peak single year of age: 719 two-year-olds died in pool drownings in 2018 to 2024, a rate of 2.70 per 100,000 per year and 38.7% of all deaths at ages 1 to 4 (CDC WONDER).

Adults 65 and older accounted for 1,338 pool drowning deaths, 23.8% of the 2018 to 2024 total. The rate reached 5.72 per 1 million per year at ages 85 and older (CDC WONDER).

Males accounted for 69.3% of pool drowning deaths in the United States in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).

Are pool drownings increasing? The national trend, 2018 to 2025

Recorded pool drowning deaths rose by about 13.8% between 2018 to 2020 and 2022 to 2024, and 2024 was the highest year in the series. Part of that rise coincides with fewer deaths coded as unspecified drowning, so the true increase is likely smaller than the raw counts suggest.

US pool drowning deaths rose from 746 in 2018 to 881 in 2024, an increase of 135 deaths or 18.1% (CDC WONDER).

The pool drowning rate rose from 2.28 to 2.59 deaths per 1 million between 2018 and 2024 (CDC WONDER).

Provisional data count 872 pool drowning deaths in 2025, a rate of 2.56 per 1 million, close to the 2024 level (CDC WONDER provisional data, as of 2026-09-27).

Over the same years, deaths coded as unspecified drowning (W74) fell from 541 to 370, a drop of 171 deaths, and the W74 share of unintentional drownings fell from 14.6% to 8.8% (CDC WONDER).

Pool drowning deaths among children ages 1 to 4 were 262 in 2018 and 289 in 2024, a rate of 1.64 and 1.93 per 100,000 children respectively. The provisional 2025 count is 267 (CDC WONDER provisional data).

CDC’s broader drowning series shows a similar post-2019 rise: unintentional drowning deaths including boating rose from 4,067 in 2019 to 4,509 in 2022, and the ages 1 to 4 rate rose 28.3%, from 2.4 to 3.1 per 100,000 (CDC MMWR).

What month do most pool drownings happen

Pool drowning deaths follow the swimming season closely. July is the peak month in every year of the series except 2024, when June was slightly higher, and the three summer months hold more than half of all deaths.

July accounted for 22.0% of US pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, an average of 176.3 deaths per July, compared with 22.3 per January (CDC WONDER).

June, July and August together accounted for 55.6% of pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, and May through September for 74.5% (CDC WONDER).

In the provisional 2025 data, June to August held 58.6% of pool drowning deaths (CDC WONDER provisional data).

Where child drownings happen: homes, backyard pools and visitors

For young children the risk sits mostly at home. CPSC case reports place most child pool and spa deaths at residences, Texas child fatality tracking points to backyard pools, and Florida, Arizona and Nevada record more pool drowning deaths by place of occurrence than by residence.

From 2021 to 2023, 71% of reported pool or spa drowning deaths of children under 15 occurred in residential settings, and 51% at the child’s own home (CPSC 2026 report).

For children under 5, 60% of reported pool or spa drowning deaths in 2021 to 2023 occurred at the child’s home and 19% at the home of family, friends or acquaintances (CPSC 2026 report).

For children 5 to 9, public, community or business locations accounted for 35% of reported pool or spa drowning deaths in 2021 to 2023 (CPSC 2026 report).

In-ground pools accounted for 52% of reported child pool or spa drowning deaths in 2021 to 2023 and above-ground pools for 15% (CPSC 2026 report).

In Texas, 49 of the 88 child drownings tracked by the state in 2025 (55.7%) happened in pools, 36 of them in backyard pools (Texas DFPS; PC&S count of the published incident list).

Pool drowning deaths that occurred in Florida in 2018 to 2024 (1,178) exceeded deaths of Florida residents (1,027) by 151, or 14.7% (CDC WONDER, place of occurrence).

The reverse held for New York: 130 pool drowning deaths occurred in the state in 2018 to 2024, 51 fewer than the 181 deaths of New York residents (CDC WONDER, place of occurrence).

State profiles: Florida, Arizona, Nevada, Texas and California

The five profiles cover the two highest-rate states, the third-highest rate, and the two largest states by deaths. Residential pool barrier law status is shown only where PC&S could read the statute on the state legislature’s website; other states’ laws were not verified and are not listed.

Florida. Florida recorded 1,027 resident pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024 (146.7 a year), a rate of 6.65 per 1 million per year (95% CI 6.24 to 7.05) (CDC WONDER).

Florida’s under-5 pool drowning rate was 3.84 per 100,000 children per year, and pool drownings were 32.5% of the state’s unintentional drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER). Provisional data count 162 Florida pool drowning deaths in 2025 (CDC WONDER provisional data).

The Florida Department of Health reports that more than 500 Floridians died from unintentional drowning in 2023. Florida’s Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act requires a new residential pool to have at least one of five listed safety features, such as a barrier, an approved safety cover or door alarms, to pass final inspection (Florida Statutes s. 515.27).

Arizona. Arizona recorded 317 resident pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, a rate of 6.15 per 1 million per year (95% CI 5.48 to 6.83), and an under-5 rate of 3.79 per 100,000 (CDC WONDER).

Arizona’s pool drowning deaths rose from 113 in 2018 to 2020 to 158 in 2022 to 2024, an increase of 39.8% (CDC WONDER). The Arizona Department of Health Services reports a 2023 drowning rate (all water types) of 4.6 per 100,000 children ages 0 to 4.

Arizona’s pool enclosure statute requires a barrier at least five feet high around a residential pool, with exemptions that include homes where all residents are at least six years old and areas with their own equal or stricter local ordinances (Arizona Revised Statutes s. 36-1681).

Nevada. Nevada recorded 101 resident pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, a rate of 4.58 per 1 million per year, the third-highest. Pool drownings occurring in Nevada numbered 117, 15.8% more than resident deaths (CDC WONDER; occurrence data from CDC WONDER D176).

Texas. Texas recorded 639 resident pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, the third-highest count, at a rate of 3.07 per 1 million per year (CDC WONDER). Texas also had 479 deaths coded as unspecified drowning, 17.3% of its unintentional drownings, above the national 11.2%, so the Texas pool count is likely an undercount (CDC WONDER).

Texas DFPS lists 68 child drownings in Texas for 2026 as of September 17, 2026 (Texas DFPS).

California. California recorded 805 resident pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, the second-highest count, but a rate of 2.93 per 1 million per year and an under-5 rate of 1.36 per 100,000 (CDC WONDER).

California’s Swimming Pool Safety Act requires a new or remodeled pool or spa at a private single-family home to have at least two of seven drowning prevention safety features (California Health and Safety Code s. 115922).

Two federal counts of child pool drownings: CDC death records and CPSC reports

Journalists often quote the CPSC child count and the CDC death-certificate count side by side. They measure different things, and in 2021 to 2023 the CPSC count of child pool and spa deaths was slightly higher than the CDC count of coded pool drownings.

CPSC counted 1,128 reported pool- or spa-related drowning deaths of children under 15 in 2021 to 2023, an average of 376 a year (CPSC 2026 report).

CDC death certificates coded 1,091 pool drowning deaths (W67-W68) among children under 15 in the same three years, an average of 363.7 a year, 37 fewer than CPSC (CDC WONDER).

For children under 5, CPSC reported 872 pool or spa drowning deaths in 2021 to 2023, an average of 291 a year (CPSC 2026 report), and CDC data coded 840 pool drowning deaths under 5 over those three years (CDC WONDER).

CPSC reported 379 child pool or spa drowning deaths in 2023, up 6% from 359 in 2022 (CPSC).

CDC’s widely quoted figure of more than 4,000 unintentional drowning deaths a year counts boating-related drownings too: CDC’s MMWR analysis defines drowning as W65-W74 plus V90 and V92 (CDC MMWR), and adding those boating codes to W65-W74 reproduces CDC’s 2018 to 2021 average of 4,345 a year (4,344.5 in PC&S’s calculation; CDC; CDC WONDER).

Official pool safety guidance cited by CDC, CPSC and AAP

This report does not give safety advice. The points below restate published guidance from federal agencies and the American Academy of Pediatrics so readers can go to the source.

• The American Academy of Pediatrics lists 4-sided fencing of all residential pools, close supervision of young children and swim lessons when children are ready as key prevention measures.
• CDC states that a four-sided isolation fence reduces a child’s drowning risk by 83% compared with three-sided property-line fencing.
• Pool Safely (CPSC) advises designating an adult Water Watcher whenever children are in or near water.
• CPSC classified 59% of reported under-5 pool or spa drowning deaths in 2021 to 2023 as a lapse in adult supervision and 10% as a barrier problem or circumvented barrier (CPSC 2026 report).

The state picture in numbers

1. Florida recorded 1,027 resident pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, 18.3% of the US total (CDC WONDER).
2. Florida, California, Texas and Arizona accounted for 49.6% of US pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).
3. Massachusetts had the lowest reliable state pool drowning rate in 2018 to 2024, 0.86 per 1 million per year; Florida’s rate was 7.7 times higher (CDC WONDER).
4. New York had the lowest reliable under-5 pool drowning rate in 2018 to 2024, 0.56 per 100,000 children under 5 per year (CDC WONDER).
5. In Arizona, 80.7% of unintentional drowning deaths among children ages 1 to 4 in 2018 to 2024 were pool drownings (CDC WONDER).
6. Pool drownings were 19.9% of the 28,268 unintentional drowning deaths of US residents in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).
7. 719 two-year-olds died in US pool drownings in 2018 to 2024, a rate of 2.70 per 100,000 per year, the highest of any single year of age (CDC WONDER).
8. Adults 65 and older accounted for 1,338 US pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024, or 23.8% (CDC WONDER).
9. Males accounted for 69.3% of US pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024 (CDC WONDER).
10. The Census South region had 52.2% of US pool drowning deaths in 2018 to 2024 and 38.5% of the population (CDC WONDER).
11. 1,178 pool drowning deaths occurred in Florida in 2018 to 2024, 14.7% more than the 1,027 deaths of Florida residents (CDC WONDER).
12. 49 of 88 child drownings tracked in Texas in 2025 (55.7%) happened in pools (Texas DFPS).
13. CPSC received reports of an average of 376 pool or spa drowning deaths of US children under 15 a year in 2021 to 2023, 77% of them under age 5 (CPSC 2026 report).
14. The share of US unintentional drownings coded as unspecified (W74) fell from 14.6% in 2018 to 8.8% in 2024 (CDC WONDER).

State rankings and comparisons we derived

Download the calculation sheet (CSV)

Questions searchers ask

Latest releases used

• 2026-09CDC WONDER provisional mortality data (as of 2026-09-27) count 872 US pool drowning deaths in 2025 (CDC WONDER provisional data).
• 2026-09Texas DFPS lists 68 child drownings in Texas in 2026 as of September 17 (Texas DFPS).
• 2026-06CPSC reported 379 child pool or spa drowning deaths in 2023, up 6% from 2022 (CPSC, June 24, 2026).
• 2026-05CPSC’s 2026 submersion report puts reported child pool or spa drowning deaths at 376 a year for 2021 to 2023 (CPSC 2026 report).
• 2026-02Final 2024 mortality data reached CDC WONDER, showing 881 pool drowning deaths in 2024 (CDC WONDER; release date per CDC WONDER documentation).

Frequently asked questions

Source weighting

Tier 1: primary and government sources (20)

• CDC, National Center for Health Statistics: Underlying Cause of Death, 2018-2024, Single Race (CDC WONDER online database; final data released 2026)
• CDC, National Center for Health Statistics: Provisional Mortality Statistics, 2018 through Last Week (CDC WONDER; deaths through 2026-09-19, as of 2026-09-27)
• CDC, National Center for Health Statistics: Underlying Cause of Death documentation: suppression and unreliable rates
• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: Pool or Spa Submersion: Estimated Nonfatal Drowning Injuries and Reported Drownings, 2026 Report (May 2026)
• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: CPSC Report Highlights Persistent Risk of Childhood Drowning (news release, June 24, 2026)
• CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control: Drowning Data (updated Jan. 27, 2026)
• CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control: Drowning Facts (updated Jan. 27, 2026)
• CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control: Drowning Risk Factors
• CDC: Vital Signs: Drowning Death Rates, Self-Reported Swimming Skill, Swimming Lesson Participation, and Recreational Water Exposure, United States, 2019-2023 (MMWR 73(20), 2024)
• Texas Department of Family and Protective Services: 2025 Child Drownings
• Texas Department of Family and Protective Services: 2026 Child Drownings (updated 09/17/26)
• Florida Department of Health: Drowning Prevention
• Florida Legislature: Florida Statutes s. 515.27, Residential swimming pool safety feature options
• Arizona Legislature: Arizona Revised Statutes s. 36-1681, Pool enclosures
• California Legislature: California Health and Safety Code s. 115922 (Swimming Pool Safety Act)
• Arizona Department of Health Services: Table 9-3, Total and age-specific drowning rates by year, Arizona residents, 2013-2023
• American Academy of Pediatrics: Drowning Prevention and Water Safety
• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: Pool Safely: Simple Steps Save Lives (home page)
• U.S. Census Bureau: Census Regions and Divisions of the United States
• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (Pool Safely): Know the Facts: Fatal Child Drownings by State (Oct. 2, 2017)

Works cited

1. CDC, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death, 2018-2024, Single Race (CDC WONDER online database; final data released 2026). Accessed 2026-10-03.
2. CDC, National Center for Health Statistics. Provisional Mortality Statistics, 2018 through Last Week (CDC WONDER; deaths through 2026-09-19, as of 2026-09-27). Accessed 2026-10-03.
3. CDC, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death documentation: suppression and unreliable rates. Accessed 2026-10-03.
4. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Pool or Spa Submersion: Estimated Nonfatal Drowning Injuries and Reported Drownings, 2026 Report (May 2026). Accessed 2026-10-03.
5. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. CPSC Report Highlights Persistent Risk of Childhood Drowning (news release, June 24, 2026). Accessed 2026-10-03.
6. CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Drowning Data (updated Jan. 27, 2026). Accessed 2026-10-03.
7. CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Drowning Facts (updated Jan. 27, 2026). Accessed 2026-10-03.
8. CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Drowning Risk Factors. Accessed 2026-10-03.
9. CDC. Vital Signs: Drowning Death Rates, Self-Reported Swimming Skill, Swimming Lesson Participation, and Recreational Water Exposure, United States, 2019-2023 (MMWR 73(20), 2024). Accessed 2026-10-03.
10. Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. 2025 Child Drownings. Accessed 2026-10-03.
11. Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. 2026 Child Drownings (updated 09/17/26). Accessed 2026-10-03.
12. Florida Department of Health. Drowning Prevention. Accessed 2026-10-03.
13. Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes s. 515.27, Residential swimming pool safety feature options. Accessed 2026-10-03.
14. Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes s. 36-1681, Pool enclosures. Accessed 2026-10-03.
15. California Legislature. California Health and Safety Code s. 115922 (Swimming Pool Safety Act). Accessed 2026-10-03.
16. Arizona Department of Health Services. Table 9-3, Total and age-specific drowning rates by year, Arizona residents, 2013-2023. Accessed 2026-10-03.
17. American Academy of Pediatrics. Drowning Prevention and Water Safety. Accessed 2026-10-03.
18. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Pool Safely: Simple Steps Save Lives (home page). Accessed 2026-10-03.
19. U.S. Census Bureau. Census Regions and Divisions of the United States. Accessed 2026-10-03.
20. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (Pool Safely). Know the Facts: Fatal Child Drownings by State (Oct. 2, 2017). Accessed 2026-10-03.