Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental conditions in the United States, and after decades of rising diagnosis it now reaches millions of households across every age group. Yet the question people ask most often is also the most basic: how many people actually have it?
Here is the direct answer. About 7 million U.S. children ages 3-17 have ADHD — 11.4% had ever been diagnosed as of 2022, and 11.7% had a current diagnosis in the 2024 National Survey of Children’s Health (CDC, 2024). Among adults, an estimated 15.5 million — 6.0% of U.S. adults — have ADHD, according to the CDC’s 2023 National Center for Health Statistics Rapid Surveys System (Staley et al., 2024). In short, ADHD is a lifelong condition affecting a substantial share of both children and adults, not a childhood phase people simply outgrow.
This article breaks those figures down by age, sex, race and ethnicity, severity, and treatment, and traces how diagnosis has climbed over the past two decades. For a full clinical overview of symptoms, causes, and care, see our ADHD condition page.
How Many Children Have ADHD?
ADHD is most visible in childhood, when symptoms tend to affect school performance and behavior. As of 2022, 11.4% of U.S. children ages 3-17 — an estimated 7.1 million — had ever been diagnosed with ADHD (Danielson et al., 2024). The more recent 2024 survey put the current-diagnosis rate at 11.7%, or roughly 7 million children (CDC, 2024). These are among the highest childhood ADHD figures ever recorded in national surveillance.
ADHD in children by sex
ADHD is diagnosed far more often in boys than in girls, a gap that holds across nearly every dataset. Boys are diagnosed at nearly twice the rate of girls.
| Group | Ever diagnosed with ADHD |
|---|---|
| Boys | 13% |
| Girls | 7% |
The reasons for this gap are debated. Boys more often present with the hyperactive-impulsive symptoms that draw adult attention, while girls more frequently show inattentive symptoms that can go unrecognized. This pattern has clear downstream effects, contributing to later diagnosis among many women and teens whose symptoms were missed in earlier grades (CDC, 2024).
ADHD in children by race and ethnicity
Diagnosis rates also vary by race and ethnicity, reflecting a mix of true differences and unequal access to evaluation.
| Group | Diagnosed with ADHD |
|---|---|
| Black children | 11% |
| White children | 11% |
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 8% |
| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander | ~6% |
| Asian children | 3% |
| Non-Hispanic children | 11% |
| Hispanic children | 8% |
Asian children have consistently the lowest recorded diagnosis rates, while Black and White children have the highest (CDC, 2024).
Severity and co-occurring conditions
ADHD rarely travels alone. Among children with ADHD in 2022, roughly 6 in 10 had moderate or severe ADHD, and about 78% had at least one co-occurring condition (CDC, 2024). The most common companions were behavioral or conduct problems, anxiety, and depression. This high rate of co-occurrence is one reason ADHD care so often requires more than a single treatment.
How Many Children With ADHD Get Treatment?
Diagnosis does not guarantee treatment. Among U.S. children with a current ADHD diagnosis in 2022 (CDC, 2024):
- 53.6% were currently taking ADHD medication
- About 32% received both medication and behavioral treatment
- About 30% received neither medication nor behavioral treatment
- Nearly 2 million children received no ADHD-specific treatment at all
That last figure is the one worth sitting with: even for a condition with well-established treatments, close to 2 million diagnosed children were going without ADHD-specific care.
The Rise in ADHD Diagnoses Over Time
One of the most striking features of ADHD data is how steadily diagnosis has climbed. At the turn of the century, childhood diagnosis rates sat in the 6-8% range; by 2018 they had reached roughly 9-10%, and by the 2020s they crossed 11% (CDC, 2024).
| Approximate year | Childhood ADHD diagnosis rate |
|---|---|
| 2000 | ~6-8% |
| 2018 | ~9-10% |
| 2022 | 11.4% (ever diagnosed) |
| 2024 | 11.7% (current diagnosis) |
Whether this reflects a true increase in the condition, better recognition and screening, broadened diagnostic criteria, or greater help-seeking is an open question — most researchers point to a combination. What the trend does not appear to be is a plateau.
How Many Adults Have ADHD?
For years, ADHD was framed as a childhood disorder. The data now tell a different story. In late 2023, an estimated 15.5 million U.S. adults — 6.0% — had a current ADHD diagnosis (Staley et al., 2024). ADHD is very much an adult condition, and for many people it is diagnosed only in adulthood.
In fact, 55.9% of adults with ADHD were first diagnosed at age 18 or older (Staley et al., 2024). That means most adults living with ADHD today did not receive the diagnosis as children — a pattern consistent with the childhood sex gap, in which milder or inattentive presentations were routinely overlooked.
The sex breakdown among adults with ADHD deserves a careful reading. Among adults who have ADHD, 55.8% are male and 44.2% are female (Staley et al., 2024). This is a composition figure — it describes the makeup of the diagnosed adult population, not the rate of ADHD within each sex. It is not directly comparable to the childhood boys-versus-girls rates above, and the narrower adult gap likely reflects the many women and men who reach a diagnosis only later in life. The relatively larger share of women among adults, compared with girls among children, is consistent with delayed recognition.
How Many Adults With ADHD Get Treatment?
Treatment gaps persist into adulthood, and they are compounded by a supply problem. Among adults with ADHD in 2023 (Staley et al., 2024):
| Treatment measure | Share of adults with ADHD |
|---|---|
| Received no treatment | 36.5% |
| Prescribed medication in prior 12 months | 50.4% |
| Took a prescription stimulant | 33.4% |
| Received both medication and counseling | 35.2% |
More than a third of adults with ADHD received no treatment at all. And for those who did rely on medication, access was often precarious: 71.5% of adults taking a prescription stimulant reported difficulty filling their prescription in the past year because the medication was unavailable (Staley et al., 2024). The national stimulant shortage turned a routine refill into a recurring obstacle for a large majority of treated adults.
ADHD Around the World
ADHD is not unique to the United States. Global reviews cited in the CDC’s 2024 analysis estimate that roughly 2% to 5% of adults worldwide experience ADHD symptoms (Staley et al., 2024). U.S. adult figures sit within that international range, while the higher U.S. childhood rates reflect, in part, differences in screening, diagnostic practice, and survey methods across countries.
For a broader view of how ADHD fits alongside other conditions in the national picture, explore our national mental health statistics overview.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many people have ADHD in the US?
About 7 million U.S. children ages 3-17 have ADHD (11.4% ever diagnosed as of 2022; 11.7% current diagnosis in 2024), and an estimated 15.5 million U.S. adults — 6.0% — have ADHD as of 2023 (CDC, 2024; Staley et al., 2024). ADHD affects both children and adults, not children alone.
What percentage of children have ADHD?
As of 2022, 11.4% of U.S. children ages 3-17 had ever been diagnosed with ADHD, and the 2024 survey reported an 11.7% current-diagnosis rate — roughly 7 million children (CDC, 2024). These are among the highest childhood rates recorded in national data.
Is ADHD more common in boys or girls?
In childhood, yes — boys are diagnosed at about 13% versus 7% for girls (CDC, 2024). Among adults with ADHD, the population is 55.8% male and 44.2% female, but that is a composition of the diagnosed group rather than a rate within each sex, and the narrower gap reflects how many women are diagnosed only in adulthood (Staley et al., 2024).
Can you be diagnosed with ADHD as an adult?
Yes, and it is common. Among adults with ADHD, 55.9% were first diagnosed at age 18 or older, meaning most adults living with ADHD today were diagnosed in adulthood rather than childhood (Staley et al., 2024).
Are ADHD rates increasing?
Childhood diagnosis has risen steadily, from roughly 6-8% around 2000 to about 9-10% by 2018 and 11.4% by 2022 (CDC, 2024). Researchers attribute the increase to a mix of better recognition, broadened criteria, greater help-seeking, and possibly a real rise in prevalence.
How many people with ADHD go untreated?
Among diagnosed children in 2022, nearly 2 million received no ADHD-specific treatment, and about 30% received neither medication nor behavioral therapy (CDC, 2024). Among adults with ADHD in 2023, 36.5% received no treatment, and 71.5% of those taking a stimulant had difficulty filling their prescription due to shortages (Staley et al., 2024).
Sources
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Data and Statistics on ADHD. CDC; 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/adhd/data/index.html
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Danielson ML, et al. ADHD Prevalence Among U.S. Children and Adolescents in 2022. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol. 2024;53(3):343-360. https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/160350/cdc_160350_DS1.pdf
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Staley BS, et al. ADHD Diagnosis, Treatment, and Telehealth Use in Adults — NCHS Rapid Surveys System, United States, October-November 2023. MMWR. 2024;73(40):890-895. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7340a1.htm