Data / Rankings / Traffic fatalities / US states

US states by traffic fatalities

California had the highest traffic fatalities of 51 states in 2021, at 4,513. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 41. The median was 620 and the figure for the United States was 43,230. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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Highest4,513California
Lowest41District of Columbia
Median62051 states
United States43,230History

Map of states, 2021

Alabama: 983 countAlaska: 70 countArizona: 1,192 countArkansas: 692 countCalifornia: 4,513 countColorado: 691 countConnecticut: 303 countDelaware: 136 countDistrict of Columbia: 41 countFlorida: 3,741 countGeorgia: 1,809 countHawaii: 94 countIdaho: 273 countIllinois: 1,334 countIndiana: 932 countIowa: 356 countKansas: 423 countKentucky: 806 countLouisiana: 971 countMaine: 153 countMaryland: 563 countMassachusetts: 413 countMichigan: 1,137 countMinnesota: 488 countMississippi: 766 countMissouri: 1,016 countMontana: 239 countNebraska: 221 countNevada: 385 countNew Hampshire: 118 countNew Jersey: 692 countNew Mexico: 483 countNew York: 1,156 countNorth Carolina: 1,693 countNorth Dakota: 101 countOhio: 1,354 countOklahoma: 762 countOregon: 599 countPennsylvania: 1,230 countRhode Island: 63 countSouth Carolina: 1,198 countSouth Dakota: 148 countTennessee: 1,327 countTexas: 4,500 countUtah: 332 countVermont: 74 countVirginia: 973 countWashington: 674 countWest Virginia: 282 countWisconsin: 620 countWyoming: 110 count
  • Under 140
  • 140 to 350
  • 350 to 620
  • 620 to 940
  • 940 to 1,200
  • 1,200 and over
count, 2021. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2021

California: 4,513 countCalifornia4,513Texas: 4,500 countTexas4,500Florida: 3,741 countFlorida3,741Georgia: 1,809 countGeorgia1,809North Carolina: 1,693 countNorth Carolina1,693Ohio: 1,354 countOhio1,354Illinois: 1,334 countIllinois1,334Tennessee: 1,327 countTennessee1,327Pennsylvania: 1,230 countPennsylvania1,230South Carolina: 1,198 countSouth Carolina1,198Arizona: 1,192 countArizona1,192New York: 1,156 countNew York1,156Michigan: 1,137 countMichigan1,137Missouri: 1,016 countMissouri1,016Alabama: 983 countAlabama983Virginia: 973 countVirginia973Louisiana: 971 countLouisiana971Indiana: 932 countIndiana932Kentucky: 806 countKentucky806Mississippi: 766 countMississippi766Oklahoma: 762 countOklahoma762Arkansas: 692 countArkansas692New Jersey: 692 countNew Jersey692Colorado: 691 countColorado691Washington: 674 countWashington674Wisconsin: 620 countWisconsin620Oregon: 599 countOregon599Maryland: 563 countMaryland563Minnesota: 488 countMinnesota488New Mexico: 483 countNew Mexico483Kansas: 423 countKansas423Massachusetts: 413 countMassachusetts413Nevada: 385 countNevada385Iowa: 356 countIowa356Utah: 332 countUtah332Connecticut: 303 countConnecticut303West Virginia: 282 countWest Virginia282Idaho: 273 countIdaho273Montana: 239 countMontana239Nebraska: 221 countNebraska221Maine: 153 countMaine153South Dakota: 148 countSouth Dakota148Delaware: 136 countDelaware136New Hampshire: 118 countNew Hampshire118Wyoming: 110 countWyoming110North Dakota: 101 countNorth Dakota101Hawaii: 94 countHawaii94Vermont: 74 countVermont74Alaska: 70 countAlaska70Rhode Island: 63 countRhode Island63District of Columbia: 41 countDistrict of Columbia41California: 4,513 countCalifornia4,513Texas: 4,500 countTexas4,500Florida: 3,741 countFlorida3,741Georgia: 1,809 countGeorgia1,809North Carolina: 1,693 countNorth Carolina1,693Ohio: 1,354 countOhio1,354Illinois: 1,334 countIllinois1,334Tennessee: 1,327 countTennessee1,327Pennsylvania: 1,230 countPennsylvania1,230South Carolina: 1,198 countSouth Carolina1,198Arizona: 1,192 countArizona1,192New York: 1,156 countNew York1,156Michigan: 1,137 countMichigan1,137Missouri: 1,016 countMissouri1,016Alabama: 983 countAlabama983Virginia: 973 countVirginia973Louisiana: 971 countLouisiana971Indiana: 932 countIndiana932Kentucky: 806 countKentucky806Mississippi: 766 countMississippi766Oklahoma: 762 countOklahoma762Arkansas: 692 countArkansas692New Jersey: 692 countNew Jersey692Colorado: 691 countColorado691Washington: 674 countWashington674Wisconsin: 620 countWisconsin620Oregon: 599 countOregon599Maryland: 563 countMaryland563Minnesota: 488 countMinnesota488New Mexico: 483 countNew Mexico483Kansas: 423 countKansas423Massachusetts: 413 countMassachusetts413Nevada: 385 countNevada385Iowa: 356 countIowa356Utah: 332 countUtah332Connecticut: 303 countConnecticut303West Virginia: 282 countWest Virginia282Idaho: 273 countIdaho273Montana: 239 countMontana239Nebraska: 221 countNebraska221Maine: 153 countMaine153South Dakota: 148 countSouth Dakota148Delaware: 136 countDelaware136New Hampshire: 118 countNew Hampshire118Wyoming: 110 countWyoming110North Dakota: 101 countNorth Dakota101Hawaii: 94 countHawaii94Vermont: 74 countVermont74Alaska: 70 countAlaska70Rhode Island: 63 countRhode Island63District of Columbia: 41 countDistrict of Columbia41
count. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2021
count		Change on 2020
1California4,513+13.4%
2Texas4,500+16.1%
3Florida3,741+12.4%
4Georgia1,809+9.1%
5North Carolina1,693+10.1%
6Ohio1,354+10.1%
7Illinois1,334+11.8%
8Tennessee1,327+9%
9Pennsylvania1,230+8.9%
10South Carolina1,198+12.4%
11Arizona1,192+13.2%
12New York1,156+10.6%
13Michigan1,137+4.7%
14Missouri1,016+2.9%
15Alabama983+5.2%
16Virginia973+14.5%
17Louisiana971+17.3%
18Indiana932+3.9%
19Kentucky806+3.3%
20Mississippi766+2.4%
21Oklahoma762+16.7%
22Arkansas692+6.3%
22New Jersey692+18.1%
24Colorado691+11.1%
25Washington674+17.4%
26Wisconsin620+1.3%
27Oregon599+18.1%
28Maryland563-1.7%
29Minnesota488+23.9%
30New Mexico483+21.4%
31Kansas423-0.7%
32Massachusetts413+20.4%
33Nevada385+15.6%
34Iowa356+3.8%
35Utah332+20.3%
36Connecticut303+1.3%
37West Virginia282+5.6%
38Idaho273+27.6%
39Montana239+12.2%
40Nebraska221-5.2%
41Maine153-6.7%
42South Dakota148+5%
43Delaware136+17.2%
44New Hampshire118+13.5%
45Wyoming110-13.4%
46North Dakota101+1%
47Hawaii94+10.6%
48Vermont74+19.4%
49Alaska70+9.4%
50Rhode Island63-6%
51District of Columbia41+13.9%

Other periods

About this ranking

People killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes during the year. FARS counts people who die within 30 days of a crash involving a motor vehicle travelling on a public road, by the place of the crash, not of residence.

A police-based count of deaths. It differs from death certificate counts (CDC) and from the WHO road traffic death rate (road_traffic_death_rate), which is modelled for international comparison.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2026). Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states (US states by traffic fatalities, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip

MLA 9

Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states, US states by traffic fatalities, 2021. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 24 June 2026, https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/us-states?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 2026. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. US states by traffic fatalities, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/us-states?period=2021.

Harvard

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (2026) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states, US states by traffic fatalities, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/us-states?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{national_us_states_by_traffic_2021,
  author = {{National Highway Traffic Safety Administration}},
  title = {{Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states: US states by traffic fatalities, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/us-states?period=2021. Publisher attribution: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
TI  - Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states: US states by traffic fatalities, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/24
PB  - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/us-states?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/us-states?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest traffic fatalities?

California, with 4,513 in 2021, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Which state has the lowest traffic fatalities?

District of Columbia, with 41 in 2021.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv), United States and states. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Traffic fatalities: other rankings

US states: more rankings