Data / Rankings / Traffic fatality rate / US states

US states by traffic fatality rate

Montana had the highest traffic fatality rate of 51 states in 2013, at 22.5 per 100,000 people. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 3.1 per 100,000 people. The median was 10.8 per 100,000 people and the figure for the United States was 10.4 per 100,000 people. Source: NHTSA and BEA.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest22.5Montana
Lowest3.1District of Columbia
Median10.851 states
United States10.4History

Map of states, 2013

Alabama: 17.5 per 100,000 peopleAlaska: 6.9 per 100,000 peopleArizona: 13 per 100,000 peopleArkansas: 16.9 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia: 8.1 per 100,000 peopleColorado: 9.2 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut: 7.9 per 100,000 peopleDelaware: 10.7 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia: 3.1 per 100,000 peopleFlorida: 12.3 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia: 11.8 per 100,000 peopleHawaii: 7.2 per 100,000 peopleIdaho: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleIllinois: 7.6 per 100,000 peopleIndiana: 11.9 per 100,000 peopleIowa: 10.2 per 100,000 peopleKansas: 12.1 per 100,000 peopleKentucky: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana: 15.2 per 100,000 peopleMaine: 10.8 per 100,000 peopleMaryland: 7.8 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts: 5.2 per 100,000 peopleMichigan: 9.5 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota: 7.1 per 100,000 peopleMississippi: 20.5 per 100,000 peopleMissouri: 12.5 per 100,000 peopleMontana: 22.5 per 100,000 peopleNebraska: 11.3 per 100,000 peopleNevada: 9.6 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey: 6 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico: 14.8 per 100,000 peopleNew York: 6 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota: 20.3 per 100,000 peopleOhio: 8.5 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma: 17.6 per 100,000 peopleOregon: 8 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania: 9.4 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island: 6.1 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina: 16.2 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota: 16.1 per 100,000 peopleTennessee: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleTexas: 12.8 per 100,000 peopleUtah: 7.6 per 100,000 peopleVermont: 10.9 per 100,000 peopleVirginia: 8.9 per 100,000 peopleWashington: 6.3 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia: 17.9 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin: 9.4 per 100,000 peopleWyoming: 15 per 100,000 people
  • Under 7.3
  • 7.3 to 9.1
  • 9.1 to 11
  • 11 to 13
  • 13 to 16
  • 16 and over
per 100,000 people, 2013. Source: Invokely calculation with data from NHTSA, BEA. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2013

Montana: 22.5 per 100,000 peopleMontana22.5Mississippi: 20.5 per 100,000 peopleMississippi20.5North Dakota: 20.3 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota20.3West Virginia: 17.9 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia17.9Oklahoma: 17.6 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma17.6Alabama: 17.5 per 100,000 peopleAlabama17.5Arkansas: 16.9 per 100,000 peopleArkansas16.9South Carolina: 16.2 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina16.2South Dakota: 16.1 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota16.1Tennessee: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleTennessee15.3Louisiana: 15.2 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana15.2Wyoming: 15 per 100,000 peopleWyoming15New Mexico: 14.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico14.8Kentucky: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleKentucky14.4Idaho: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleIdaho13.2North Carolina: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina13.2Arizona: 13 per 100,000 peopleArizona13Texas: 12.8 per 100,000 peopleTexas12.8Missouri: 12.5 per 100,000 peopleMissouri12.5Florida: 12.3 per 100,000 peopleFlorida12.3Kansas: 12.1 per 100,000 peopleKansas12.1Indiana: 11.9 per 100,000 peopleIndiana11.9Georgia: 11.8 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia11.8Nebraska: 11.3 per 100,000 peopleNebraska11.3Vermont: 10.9 per 100,000 peopleVermont10.9Maine: 10.8 per 100,000 peopleMaine10.8Delaware: 10.7 per 100,000 peopleDelaware10.7Iowa: 10.2 per 100,000 peopleIowa10.2New Hampshire: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire10.1Nevada: 9.6 per 100,000 peopleNevada9.6Michigan: 9.5 per 100,000 peopleMichigan9.5Wisconsin: 9.4 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin9.4Pennsylvania: 9.4 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania9.4Colorado: 9.2 per 100,000 peopleColorado9.2Virginia: 8.9 per 100,000 peopleVirginia8.9Ohio: 8.5 per 100,000 peopleOhio8.5California: 8.1 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia8.1Oregon: 8 per 100,000 peopleOregon8Connecticut: 7.9 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut7.9Maryland: 7.8 per 100,000 peopleMaryland7.8Illinois: 7.6 per 100,000 peopleIllinois7.6Utah: 7.6 per 100,000 peopleUtah7.6Hawaii: 7.2 per 100,000 peopleHawaii7.2Minnesota: 7.1 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota7.1Alaska: 6.9 per 100,000 peopleAlaska6.9Washington: 6.3 per 100,000 peopleWashington6.3Rhode Island: 6.1 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island6.1New York: 6 per 100,000 peopleNew York6New Jersey: 6 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey6Massachusetts: 5.2 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts5.2District of Columbia: 3.1 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia3.1Montana: 22.5 per 100,000 peopleMontana22.5Mississippi: 20.5 per 100,000 peopleMississippi20.5North Dakota: 20.3 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota20.3West Virginia: 17.9 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia17.9Oklahoma: 17.6 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma17.6Alabama: 17.5 per 100,000 peopleAlabama17.5Arkansas: 16.9 per 100,000 peopleArkansas16.9South Carolina: 16.2 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina16.2South Dakota: 16.1 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota16.1Tennessee: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleTennessee15.3Louisiana: 15.2 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana15.2Wyoming: 15 per 100,000 peopleWyoming15New Mexico: 14.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico14.8Kentucky: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleKentucky14.4Idaho: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleIdaho13.2North Carolina: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina13.2Arizona: 13 per 100,000 peopleArizona13Texas: 12.8 per 100,000 peopleTexas12.8Missouri: 12.5 per 100,000 peopleMissouri12.5Florida: 12.3 per 100,000 peopleFlorida12.3Kansas: 12.1 per 100,000 peopleKansas12.1Indiana: 11.9 per 100,000 peopleIndiana11.9Georgia: 11.8 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia11.8Nebraska: 11.3 per 100,000 peopleNebraska11.3Vermont: 10.9 per 100,000 peopleVermont10.9Maine: 10.8 per 100,000 peopleMaine10.8Delaware: 10.7 per 100,000 peopleDelaware10.7Iowa: 10.2 per 100,000 peopleIowa10.2New Hampshire: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire10.1Nevada: 9.6 per 100,000 peopleNevada9.6Michigan: 9.5 per 100,000 peopleMichigan9.5Wisconsin: 9.4 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin9.4Pennsylvania: 9.4 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania9.4Colorado: 9.2 per 100,000 peopleColorado9.2Virginia: 8.9 per 100,000 peopleVirginia8.9Ohio: 8.5 per 100,000 peopleOhio8.5California: 8.1 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia8.1Oregon: 8 per 100,000 peopleOregon8Connecticut: 7.9 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut7.9Maryland: 7.8 per 100,000 peopleMaryland7.8Illinois: 7.6 per 100,000 peopleIllinois7.6Utah: 7.6 per 100,000 peopleUtah7.6Hawaii: 7.2 per 100,000 peopleHawaii7.2Minnesota: 7.1 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota7.1Alaska: 6.9 per 100,000 peopleAlaska6.9Washington: 6.3 per 100,000 peopleWashington6.3Rhode Island: 6.1 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island6.1New York: 6 per 100,000 peopleNew York6New Jersey: 6 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey6Massachusetts: 5.2 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts5.2District of Columbia: 3.1 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia3.1
per 100,000 people. Source: Invokely calculation with data from NHTSA, BEA. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2013
per 100,000 people		Change on 2012
1Montana22.5+2.1 pts
2Mississippi20.5+1 pts
3North Dakota20.3-3.8 pts
4West Virginia17.9-0.4 pts
5Oklahoma17.6-1 pts
6Alabama17.5-0.3 pts
7Arkansas16.9-2.1 pts
8South Carolina16.2-2.2 pts
9South Dakota16.1+0.1 pts
10Tennessee15.3-0.4 pts
11Louisiana15.2-0.5 pts
12Wyoming15-6.4 pts
13New Mexico14.8-2.7 pts
14Kentucky14.4-2.5 pts
15Idaho13.2+1.7 pts
16North Carolina13.2-0.2 pts
17Arizona13+0.3 pts
18Texas12.8-0.3 pts
19Missouri12.5-1.2 pts
20Florida12.3-0.3 pts
21Kansas12.1-1.9 pts
22Indiana11.9-0 pts
23Georgia11.8-0.2 pts
24Nebraska11.3-0.1 pts
25Vermont10.9-1.3 pts
26Maine10.8-1.5 pts
27Delaware10.7-1.7 pts
28Iowa10.2-1.6 pts
29New Hampshire10.1+2 pts
30Nevada9.6+0.1 pts
31Michigan9.50 pts
32Wisconsin9.4-1.3 pts
33Pennsylvania9.4-0.8 pts
34Colorado9.20 pts
35Virginia8.9-0.5 pts
36Ohio8.5-1.2 pts
37California8.1+0.3 pts
38Oregon8-0.7 pts
39Connecticut7.9+0.6 pts
40Maryland7.8-0.8 pts
41Illinois7.6+0.3 pts
42Utah7.6-0 pts
43Hawaii7.2-1.7 pts
44Minnesota7.1-0.2 pts
45Alaska6.9-1.2 pts
46Washington6.3-0.1 pts
47Rhode Island6.1+0.1 pts
48New York6+0.1 pts
49New Jersey6-0.6 pts
50Massachusetts5.2-0.5 pts
51District of Columbia3.1+0.7 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Traffic fatalities (NHTSA FARS) per 100,000 residents in the same year and place.

Deaths are counted where the crash happened and divided by the resident population, so counties with busy highways and few residents can show very high rates. Differs from the WHO road traffic death rate (road_traffic_death_rate).

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

Invokely calculation from NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents. https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

Invokely calculated this figure from the publishers' data, so Invokely is the author and the publishers of the inputs are named.

APA 7

Invokely. (n.d.). NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents (US states by traffic fatality rate, 2013) [Data set]. Calculated from data by NHTSA and BEA. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k

MLA 9

NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents, US states by traffic fatality rate, 2013. Calculated from data by NHTSA and BEA. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Invokely. n.d. NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents. US states by traffic fatality rate, 2013. Dataset. Calculated from data by NHTSA and BEA. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k.

Harvard

Invokely (no date) NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents, US states by traffic fatality rate, 2013 [Dataset]. Calculated from data by NHTSA and BEA. Available at: https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{invokely_us_states_by_traffic_2013,
  author = {{Invokely}},
  title = {{NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents: US states by traffic fatality rate, 2013}},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Calculated from data by NHTSA and BEA. Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatality-rate/us-states?period=2013. Publisher attribution: Invokely calculation from NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents. https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology\#traffic\_fatality\_rate\_per\_100k. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Invokely
TI  - NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents: US states by traffic fatality rate, 2013
PB  - Invokely
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatality-rate/us-states?period=2013
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Calculated from data by NHTSA and BEA.
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatality-rate/us-states?period=2013.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Invokely calculation from NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents. https://invokely.ai/docs/methodology#traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank US states by traffic fatality rate using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k","level":"region","within":"United States","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=traffic_fatality_rate_per_100k&level=region&within=United%20States&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which state has the highest traffic fatality rate?

Montana, with 22.5 per 100,000 people in 2013, according to NHTSA and BEA.

Which state has the lowest traffic fatality rate?

District of Columbia, with 3.1 per 100,000 people in 2013.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Invokely, NHTSA FARS traffic fatalities divided by BEA mid-year population (SAINC1 and CAINC1), per 100,000 residents. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Traffic fatality rate: other rankings

US states: more rankings