Homelessness, by the numbers.

Have you ever wanted to better understand trends in homelessness?

Whether you're an advocate, a person with lived experience, a policy maker, or a curious individual, this site is for you.

This site explores 2025 data on homelessness compiled by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It is best viewed on a desktop. All graphics are by Shebani Rao.

Introduction

On one night in January 2025, 745,652 people in the U.S. were unhoused.

How many people is that? To put it into context...

The number of unhoused people in the U.S. is bigger than the entire population of Denver (740,613).

The good news: homelessness actually dropped by 3.3% from 2024!

In 2025, fewer people were living unsheltered (e.g., on the streets, in parks, etc.) as well as in temporary shelters compared to 2024.

However, 745,652 people is still a huge number - and much higher than homelessness has been in the past.

Since 2022, the number of people experiencing homelessness increased by 28.02%.

Keep scrolling to find out how we got these numbers and learn more about the people experiencing homelessness.

The skyline of Denver with mountains in the background.

Denver skyline with mountains in the background with illustrated people.

How is homelessness measured?

Aerial view of a neighborhood with houses and trees.

Volunteers wearing vests with PIT recruitment flyers. The text below says "Every year, volunteers go out on a specific night in January and count all the people experiencing homelessness in their community. (Use the right arrow to keep reading.)"

A person at a shelter with illustrations of spreadsheets. The text says, "Shelters and other temporary housing facilities provide numbers of people staying with them too."

PIT volunteers with a plus sign next to the image of the shelter. The text says, "Together, these numbers make up the unsheltered and sheltered Point-in-Time (PIT) Count in a community, which help determine how much federal funding a community gets."

A person sleeping on a couch with RVs in the background. The text says, "The PIT is an important measure, but it is almost certainly an undercount. For example, it doesn't include people who are doubling up with family and friends, sleeping in their car, or are otherwise hard to find."

Illustrated shelter beds with a photo of housing in the background. The text says, "Every January, communities also provide information on the number of beds they have for people experiencing homelessness. This makes up the Housing Inventory Count (HIC)."

Illustrations of data going to the HUD office building via arrows. The text says, "Every year, communities send their PIT and HIC data to HUD, which then releases national data. That's where the data on this site comes from."

Who is experiencing homelessness?

While homelessness has decreased, it continues to be shaped by racial and ethnic disparities.

The number of people experiencing homelessness overall decreased by 3.3% between 2024-2025, but has increased 28% since 2022. *

The number of white people experiencing homelessness has decreased by 6.2% since 2022.** White people make up 37% of the population experiencing homelessness and 72.3% of the overall population.

The number of Black, African American, or African people experiencing homelessness has increased by 12.1% since 2022. Black, African American, or African people make up 33% of the unhoused population, but Black people are only 13.5% of the overall population.

The number of American Indian, Alaska Native, or Indigenous people experiencing homelessness has increased by 3.1% since 2022. American Indian, Alaska Native, or Indigenous people make up about 3% of the unhoused population and 2.1% of the overall population.

The number of Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander people experiencing homelessness has decreased by 8.9% since 2022. People who identify as Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander make up 1.3% of the unhoused population, but only 0.3% of the overall population.

The number of Asian or Asian American people experiencing homelessness has increased 23.1% since 2022. Asian or Asian American people make up 1.4% of the unhoused population and 6.9% of the overall population. Note that income inequality is greater among Asian Americans than any other racial group, so looking at broad trends can mask the experiences of the most marginalized Asian Americans.

The number of people of Middle Eastern or North African (MENA) descent experiencing homelessness doubled from 2024 - 2025. This group only started being counted in 2024, and now makes up 0.5% of the unhoused population. MENA is not currently a census category, although this will change in 2030. (Based on write-in responses, 3.5 million people were of MENA descent in the 2020 census).

The number of Hispanic or Latina/o people experiencing homelessness decreased by 13.2% between 2024-2025. In 2024, Hispanic or Latina/o was added as a racial category, as opposed to a separate ethnicity category, and people were able to select multiple races. As a result, part of the increase we see in 2024 was likely due to this group having a better option to self-identify. Hispanic or Latina/o people make up 27% of the unhoused population as of 2025, but only 20.5% of the overall population.

*We use 2022 as a baseline in this section to provide additional context. We chose this year because the 2021 numbers were affected by COVID-related data collection issues. However, as we discussed above, the way that race and ethnicity is collected changed in 2024, which influences the trends we present.

** The decrease in the number of white people experiencing homelessness may be an overestimation - it is likely influenced by changes in how demographic information is collected (see above). Research shows that when Hispanic or Latina/o is included as a racial category - which it now is, as of 2024 - fewer people are likely to identify as white or "some other race."

To learn more about the systemic racism and discrimination in housing and other sectors that shapes these disparate outcomes, click here.

Line graph depicting overall change in homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as white experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as Black, African American, or African experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as American Indian, Alaska Native, or Indigenous experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as Asian or Asian American experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as Middle Eastern or North African experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Line graph depicting change in population of people identifying as Hispanic or Latina/o experiencing homelessness 2022-2025

Older adult homelessness is increasing.

Illustration of a man in a wheelchair with houses in the background. , image

Between 2024 and 2025, the number of unhoused people age 65+ increased by 6.8%. Homelessness also increased for people between the ages of 45-54. For most other age groups, homelessness decreased.

Illustration of a man in a wheelchair with houses in the background. The overlaying graph shows how older adult homelessness increased by 6.8% between 2024 and 2025., image

A recent survey of Area Agencies on Agin g (AAAs) found that 94% of AAAs identified lack of affordable housing as a major challenge. The US Interagency Council on Homelessness has also identified that many homelessness systems of care are not equipped to serve older adults.

An illustration of a man in a wheelchair with houses in the background and text clippings from reports., image

Homelessness continues to decrease for veterans.

32,495 unhoused veterans were counted in 2025, which the lowest recorded number (excluding 2021 for COVID-related data quality issues).

Veteran homelessness has been dropping since 2011, when 65,455 unhoused veterans were recorded. This decrease reflects an ongoing commitment to ending veteran homelessness.

However, homelessness did not drop for all veterans. The following racial groups saw increases in veteran homelessness since 2024:

American Indian, Alaska Native, or Indigenous: + 32%
Asian or Asian American: +15.8%

A veteran with his back turned in front of a housing complex. The overlaying graph shows how veteran homelessness has been decreasing since 2007.

Other key changes from 2024-2025.

Chronic homelessness increased.

Since 2024, the number of individuals experiencing extended or recurring periods of homelessness (what HUD calls chronic homelessness) increased by 2.1%.

Family homelessness dropped.

Homelessness among families (defined as households with at least one adult and one child) dropped by 11.2% between 2024 and 2025.

Individual homelessness increased.

The number of unhoused individuals rose by 0.6% to 515,286 in 2025, which is the highest number ever recorded.

HUD excluded gender from the dataset.

Other data shows that trans people experience homelessness at high rates and that homelessness is rising for women of color in LA.

Where are people experiencing homelessness?

The text says "homelessness went down in 21 states since 2024., These states had the biggest decreases." It then lists 5 states: Illinois, Hawaii, Florida, Colorado, Maine., image

A graph of the 5 states with the biggest decreases in homelessness: Illinois, Hawaii, Florida, Colorado, and Maine. , image

On the left, a graph of the 5 states with the biggest decreases in homelessness: Illinois, Hawaii, Florida, Colorado, and Maine. On the right, the text says "Homelessness went up in 28 states since 2024. These states had the biggest increases." The states listed are: North Carolina, Mississippi, Oregon, Utah, and Maryland., image

Biggest changes by state

These graphs show the states with the biggest increases and decreases in homelessness. Sharp year-over-year changes can be driven by one-time events, like disasters that temporarily fills emergency shelters, shifts in migration or resettlement patterns, or simply a small base population where a handful of additional people produces a large percentage swing.

As a result, changes at the state level may be attributable to a combination of these factors rather than a change in the effectiveness of local housing policy. A single year's change is best read alongside the multi-year trend and the specific factors a community reports.

On the left, a graph of the 5 states with the biggest decreases in homelessness: Illinois, Hawaii, Florida, Colorado, and Maine. On the right, a graph of the 5 states with the biggest increases in homelessness: North Carolina, Mississippi, Oregon, Utah, and Maryland., image

The severity and type of homelessness varies across the country.

Overview of regional shifts

Over the past 10 years, there have been significant regional shifts in where people experience homelessness.

Homelessness is increasingly concentrated in the West and Northeast regions of the United States.

(The regional boundaries we use in this section are defined by the US Census Bureau. Visit this page to see which states are in each region.)

West Coast

Nearly 1 in 3 people experiencing homelessness in 2025 lived in just three states: California, Oregon and Washington.

Northeast

30% of people experiencing homelessness live in the Northeast. However, only 6% of all unsheltered people live here, which illustrates the strong and functional shelter system in the Northeast.

South Region

In 2009, the South region had the second highest rate of per capita homelessness, lagging just behind the West. The per capita count has gone down consistently throughout the 2010s and early 2020s. It is now the second lowest of all the regions - the per capita count in the West is more than 2.5 times as high.

Territories

In addition to the states, US territories such as America Samoa, Guam, The Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are included on the Point in Time count.

Homelessness has been generally trending down in the territories over the past several years and saw an 11% decrease from 2024 to 2025.

What resources exist to address homelessness?

A rural landscape with hills and houses.

Click below to learn more about the types of resources that exist to address homelessness.

Emergency shelter (ES)

Programs that provide a nighttime residence for homeless families and individuals during their transition to permanent housing.

Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH)

Community-based housing without a designated length of stay and with supportive services.

Transitional Housing (TH)

A type of program offering temporary housing accommodations and supportive services.

Rapid Rehousing (RRH)

A type of program offering rental housing subsidies and tailored supportive services for up to 24 months, with the goal of helping people to transition to permanent housing.

Save Haven (SH)

A type of housing for hard-to-reach unhoused people with severe mental illness that provides 24-hour residence and some services.

Other Permanent Housing (OPH)

OPH refers to a range of permanent housing programs with varying levels of support. A disability is not required to qualify.

A collage of photos of different types of housing.

Temporary housing resources

Both temporary and permanent housing resources are funded and counted on the Housing Inventory Count to provide necessary resources to people experiencing homelessness. These graphs show the change in both from 2022-2025 to explore trends over the last few years.

A stacked bar chart showing different types of temporary housing resources (Emergency Shelter, Transitional Housing, and Safe Haven) in 2022 and 2023., image

Starting in 2024, we start to see movement away from investing in temporary housing resources, which intensified in 2025.

A stacked bar chart showing different types of temporary housing resources (Emergency Shelter, Transitional Housing, and Safe Haven) in 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025., image

Permanent housing resources

Permanent housing resources, such as Permanent Supportive and Rapid Re-housing, are counted each year as well.

A stacked bar chart showing different types of permanent housing resources (Permanent Supportive Housing, Rapid Rehousing, and Other Permanent Housing) in 2022 and 2023., image

There has been consistent growth in the total number of permanent housing resources since 2022. Studies show that permanent supportive housing is the most effective way to improve housing stability and reduce chronic homelessness.