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The prevalence of loneliness across 113 countries: systematic review and meta-analysis
Open accessAbstract
Objectives: To identify data availability, gaps, and patterns for population level prevalence of loneliness globally, to summarise prevalence estimates within World Health Organization regions when feasible through meta-analysis, and to examine temporal trends of loneliness in countries where data exist. Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Data sources: Embase, Medline, PsycINFO, and Scopus for peer reviewed literature, and Google Scholar and Open Grey for grey literature, supplemented by backward reference searching (to 1 September 2021) Eligibility criteria for selecting studies: Observational studies based on nationally representative samples (n≥292), validated instruments, and prevalence data for 2000-19. Two researchers independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist. Random effects meta-analysis was conducted in the subset of studies with relatively homogeneous research methods by measurement instrument, age group, and WHO region. Results: Prevalence data were available for 113 countries or territories, according to official WHO nomenclature for regions, from 57 studies. Data were available for adolescents (12-17 years) in 77 countries or territories, young adults (18-29 years) in 30 countries, middle aged adults (30-59 years) in 32 countries, and older adults (≥60 years) in 40 countries. Data for all age groups except adolescents were lacking outside of Europe. Overall, 212 estimates for 106 countries from 24 studies were included in meta-analyses. The pooled prevalence of loneliness for adolescents ranged from 9.2% (95% confidence interval 6.8% to 12.4%) in South-East Asia to 14.4% (12.2% to 17.1%) in the Eastern Mediterranean region. For adults, meta-analysis was conducted for the European region only, and a consistent geographical pattern was shown for all adult age groups. The lowest prevalence of loneliness was consistently observed in northern European countries (2.9%, 1.8% to 4.5% for young adults; 2.7%, 2.4% to 3.0% for middle aged adults; and 5.2%, 4.2% to 6.5% for older adults) and the highest in eastern European countries (7.5%, 5.9% to 9.4% for young adults; 9.6%, 7.7% to 12.0% for middle aged adults; and 21.3%, 18.7% to 24.2% for older adults). Conclusion: Problematic levels of loneliness are experienced by a substantial proportion of the population in many countries. The substantial difference in data coverage between high income countries (particularly Europe) and low and middle income countries raised an important equity issue. Evidence on the temporal trends of loneliness is insufficient. The findings of this meta-analysis are limited by data scarcity and methodological heterogeneity. Loneliness should be incorporated into general health surveillance with broader geographical and age coverage, using standardised and validated measurement tools. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO CRD42019131448.
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“Data based on nationally representative samples within World Health Organization regions pre-COVID-19 suggest that only 9.2% to 14.4% of adolescents experienced loneliness.16”
From A Longitudinal Study of Loneliness Before the End of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Trajectories, Predictors, and Impact on Chinese Adolescent Mental Health (2024) · cites this paper as [16]
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“It is transdiagnostic and affects people of all ages, with global prevalence rates ranging from 9 to 14% for chronic loneliness [3] and roughly 20% for shorter bouts [4].”
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Friendship: The Most Overlooked Public Health Asset
Krems, J. A., & Kaufman, V. A. (2025) · Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences · doi:10.1177/23727322251404386 · Cited by 3
“Yet connections — and their bene fi ts — seem harder than ever to realize (Peng & Roth, 2021; Surkalim et al., 2022).”
Sugiyama, Y., Watanabe, T., Mutai, R., Hoshimoto, S., Yasuda, M., Kanno, T., Yoshida, S., Tanaka, K., Matsumoto, M., & Matsushima, M. (2026) · Geriatrics and gerontology international/Geriatrics & gerontology international · doi:10.1111/ggi.70316 · Cited by 3
Dehnert, M., Sharabi, L. L., & Tracy, S. J. (2026) · The Journal of Sex Research · doi:10.1080/00224499.2025.2606765 · Cited by 4
Hoff, S. C., & Løvoll, H. S. (2026) · Health & Place · doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2026.103617 · Cited by 4
Loneliness, depression, and generalized anxiety across eight countries
Abdalla, S. M., Banda, B. F., Pickerel, M., Rosenberg, S. B., Sharma, S., & Galea, S. (2026) · Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology · doi:10.1007/s00127-025-03029-5 · Cited by 3
Social Asymmetry and Risk of Morbidity and Mortality
Qin, P., Graham, E. K., Ong, A. D., & Steptoe, A. (2026) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.58214 · Cited by 3
Chen, X.-Y., Zhu, Y., & Shi, X. (2026) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2026.113715 · Cited by 3
Beadle, J., Yuwono, E., Levasseur, M., & Wister, A. (2026) · Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1186/s13643-026-03107-y · Cited by 4
“Social isolation and loneliness are common experiences worldwide, particularly for older adults [1].”
LLM-“Friends” are Hostile Scaffolds in the Age of Loneliness
Sahebi, S., & Parvizi-Wayne, D. (2026) · Minds and Machines · doi:10.1007/s11023-026-09765-0 · Cited by 3
“…as we noted in the introduction, many currently, already find themselves (again see Office of the Surgeon General, 2023; see also Johnson, 2023; Surkalim et al., 2022 ), given that seeking out and forming new friendships (or even maintain - ing current ones) will be seen as a particularly…”
Social disconnection and health among refugees in a low-resource setting: A longitudinal study
Kurt, G., Specker, P., Liddell, B. J., Keegan, D. J., Nandyatama, R. W., Yuanita, A., Rachmah, R. A., Hoffman, J., & Nickerson, A. (2026) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2026.117171 · Cited by 3
Ren, J., Qiu, J., Cai, J., Li, Y. M., Huang, L., & Li, X. (2026) · Age and Ageing · doi:10.1093/ageing/afag122 · Cited by 3
A wandering mind reflects a lonely mind: A cross-cultural study
Liu, S., Zhao, M., Li, R., Huang, C., Du, J., Schad, D. J., & Heinzel, S. (2024) · Current Research in Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.crbeha.2024.100153 · Cited by 3
Hoang, P., & Conn, D. (2024) · Geriatrics · doi:10.3390/geriatrics9050117 · Cited by 4
“European and American prevalence estimates of loneliness have reported that this issue affects up to one third of older adults [3,13,14].”
BackgroundShould Loneliness Be a Treatment Target?
Krieger, T., & Seewer, N. (2024) · Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics · doi:10.1159/000540988 · Cited by 3
“Although loneliness is often associated with old age, it is not only prevalent in this age-group [9, 10].”
Heard, E. M., Bartleet, B., Spence, J. M., Dean, K. I., Eyles, S., Martinelli, J., & McGuire, K. (2024) · Community Health Equity Research & Policy · doi:10.1177/2752535x241304084 · Cited by 6
Tareque, M. I., Rakibuzzaman, M., Alam, M. J., Manierre, M. J., Malhotra, R., Sarker, B. K., & Mamun, M. A. A. (2024) · Cogent Gerontology · doi:10.1080/28324897.2024.2438058 · Cited by 3
Liu, Y., Song, J., Jin, Y., Brown, R., & Yang, R. (2025) · Geriatric Nursing · doi:10.1016/j.gerinurse.2025.01.045 · Cited by 3
Karababa, A. (2025) · The Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1080/00223980.2025.2466100 · Cited by 3
“In parallel, judged by scientific evidence, a substantial proportion of people across many different countries suffer from loneliness (Holt-Lunstad, 2017; Surkalim et al., 2022).”
Kulari, G., & de Castro, M. P. (2025) · Anthrozoös · doi:10.1080/08927936.2025.2476293 · Cited by 4
“The instrument has a very good reliability coefficient (0.94), and it is the most used loneliness scale worldwide (Kretzler et al., 2022; Surkalim et al., 2022).”
InfluentialCorrelates of Loneliness and Social Isolation Among Korean Adults
Song, I. (2025) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare13070806 · Cited by 4
“A meta-analysis revealed that the prevalence of loneliness ranged from 2.7% to 9.6% for middle-aged adults and from 5.2% to 21.3% for older adults in European countries prior to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic [8].”
InfluentialOkajima, I., & Hiruma, S. (2025) · Sleep and Biological Rhythms · doi:10.1007/s41105-025-00586-9 · Cited by 3
“In particular, young adults aged 18–22 are most likely to feel lonely [4].”
Stein, G. N., Phillips, N. J., Nyathi, M. N., & Hoare, J. (2025) · International Journal of Adolescence and Youth · doi:10.1080/02673843.2025.2495877 · Cited by 4
“A recent systematic review including studies from 113 countries found loneliness to be a ubiquitous problem (Surkalim et al., 2022).”
Llaberia, R. P., Gallisà, T. B., Martínez‐Torres, S., Rodríguez-Soler, S., Pallejà-Millán, M., Buscemi, A., Rey‐Reñones, C., & Martín‐Luján, F. (2025) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare13101125 · Cited by 3
“That study reports that the prevalence of loneliness in Spain is around 9%, similar to the 11.5% in our study, and 21.2% among those over 65, which aligns with rates found in Eastern European countries [22].”
InfluentialBauer, K. L., Eskew, S. K., Tung, G. J., Leiferman, J. A., Fort, M. P., McManus, B. M., & Johnson-Koenke, R. A. (2025) · International Journal of Qualitative Methods · doi:10.1177/16094069251346264 · Cited by 4
“Prevalence of serious loneliness in adult populations varies based on age and country, with higher estimates found to range roughly between 10% up to 40% (Surkalim et al., 2022).”
Joint association of loneliness and anxiety on atrial fibrillation risk
Liu, S., Tang, H., Wang, J., Li, Y., Meng, C., Wu, J., Wang, W., Yuan, H., & Lu, Y. (2025) · Heart Rhythm · doi:10.1016/j.hrthm.2025.02.050 · Cited by 4
Cao, J., Shevrin, S., An, L. M., Wong, J. A., Choi, S., Yi, S. S., Trinh‐Shevrin, C., & Lim, S. (2025) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0317322 · Cited by 4
“Loneliness, defined as the distressing experiences that arises from unmet social needs through inadequate support from their current social connections [28,29], is a global epidemic [30] with significant detrimental effects on mental health [31,32].”
Kalseth, J., Ådnanes, M., Ose, S. O., Lassemo, E. I., Kaspersen, S. L., & das Nair, R. (2023) · Quality of Life Research · doi:10.1007/s11136-023-03350-z · Cited by 3
“Because the relationship between change in social contact and change in psychological wellbeing may differ between population groups [26], we investigated the differences between age groups; therefore, all analyses were stratified by age.”
BackgroundMethodBadcock, J. C., Christiansen, J. A., Badcock, A. C., & Lasgaard, M. (2023) · Current Research in Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.crbeha.2023.100136 · Cited by 3
Disparities in severe loneliness between adults with and without a serious mental illness.
Nagata, S., McCormick, B. P., Brusilovskiy, E., Townley, G., & Salzer, M. S. (2023) · Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal · doi:10.1037/prj0000591 · Cited by 4
Sasaki, N., Tabuchi, T., Okubo, R., & Nishi, D. (2023) · BMJ Public Health · doi:10.1136/bmjph-2023-000341 · Cited by 4
Understanding the Sociocultural Dynamics of Loneliness in Southern Spanish Youth
Cala, V. C., & Ortega, F. (2024) · Culture Medicine and Psychiatry · doi:10.1007/s11013-024-09861-9 · Cited by 4
“Nevertheless, the meta-analysis by Surkalim et al. (2022) revealed that young people are still the age group for which the least statistical information is available.”
BackgroundMcDonald, B., Reiter, A. M. F., & Kanske, P. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1364509 · Cited by 3
Floyd, K., Hesse, C., Ray, C. D., & Mikkelson, A. C. (2024) · The Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1080/00223980.2024.2378418 · Cited by 3
“According to a 2022 meta-analysis by Surkalim et al. (2022), the global prevalence rates for loneliness range from 9.2% to 14.4% for adolescents and reach up to 24.2% for adults.”
InfluentialOltean, L.-E., Canache, M., PATRICHI, A., Rîmbu, R., SÎNTOMA, D., Miu, A. C., & SZENTÁGOTAI-TĂTAR, A. (2024) · Journal of Evidence-Based Psychotherapies · doi:10.24193/jebp.2024.2.14 · Cited by 3
Opariuc‐Dan, C., Maftei, A., & Merlici, I.-A. (2024) · Computers in Human Behavior Reports · doi:10.1016/j.chbr.2024.100530 · Cited by 8
Metadata
- Authors
- Surkalim, D. L., Luo, M., Eres, R., Gebel, K., van Buskirk, J., Bauman, A., & Ding, D.
- Affiliations
- The University of Sydney (AU)
- Royal Children's Hospital (AU)
- University of Technology Sydney (AU)
- Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, Australia
- Corresponding author
- Ding, Ding
- ORCID
- Venue
- BMJ
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2022-02-09
- Volume
- 376
- Pages
- e067068
- ISSN
- 1756-1833 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8826180
- OpenAlex
- W4211106541
- Cited by
- 821
- References
- 87
- Citations by year
- 2026: 220 · 2025: 236 · 2024: 183 · 2023: 138 · 2022: 44
- FWCI
- 20.76
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- BMJ (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- RMIT Research Repository (RMIT University Library) (acceptedVersion, other-oa)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Keywords
- loneliness, prevalence of loneliness, cross-national comparison, adolescents, young adults, middle-aged adults, older adults, temporal trends, WHO regions, loneliness and isolation
- MeSH terms
- Demography, Humans, Loneliness, Global Health, Prevalence
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