National Statistics

THE NUMBERS TELL A STORY — BUT THEY DON'T TELL THE WHOLE STORY

Every statistic represents a person. A loved one. A family searching for answers. These numbers come from the FBI's National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and reflect missing-person records in the United States.

2024 AT A GLANCE

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533,936
Missing-person records entered into NCIC during 2024.
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93,447
Missing-person records active in NCIC as of December 31, 2024.
18
25,493 (27%)
Of active records involved juveniles under age 18.
21
34,256 (37%)
Of active records involved juveniles under age 21.
CIRCUMSTANCES OF MISSING-PERSON RECORDS — 2024

Of the 533,936 missing-person records entered in 2024, circumstances were reported for 258,849 records.

95% RUNAWAY
245,818 (95%) — Runaway
2,366 (0.9%) — Abducted by a non-custodial parent
293 (0.1%) — Abducted by a stranger
10,372 (4%) — Adult, federally required entry
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"Runaway" is a classification describing the circumstances surrounding a disappearance. It does not establish that a young person is safe. Missing youth can still be at risk of exploitation, trafficking, violence, homelessness and other dangers.

IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND

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During 2024, NCIC recorded 537,446 purged records. These include people who were located, returned, or records removed as invalid.

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NCIC also recorded 63,080 locate transactions during 2024.

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These numbers represent records and transactions, not a simple count of unresolved people.

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BEHIND EVERY NUMBER IS A PERSON.

Behind every active record is a family waiting for answers. Missing is missing. Every person deserves to be searched for, documented and remembered.

SOURCE

FBI — 2024 NCIC Missing and Unidentified Person Statistics

View Full Report (PDF) →