America
LGBTQ+ identification skyrockets in recent decades
LGBTQ+ identification has trended upwards astronomically in the U.S. A survey released by Gallup on March 13, 2024 shows that LGBTQ+ Identification in the U.S. is now at 7.6%, with more than one in five Gen Z adults identifying as LGBTQ+. In Gen Z adults, it is as high as 20.8%.
Bill Maher talks about this trend in 2022U.S. Transgender Identification: Estimated Prevalence by Year
It’s not just the full alphabet. Trans in particular has skyrocketed over the past few decades at a rate only explainable by social contagion.
| Year | Estimated % of U.S. adults identifying as transgender (18+) |
|---|---|
| 1980 | Data not available—gender identity was generally not surveyed. |
| 1990 | Same: no consistent national surveys asking about this identity. |
| 2000 | Still not regularly surveyed—likely under 0.1%. |
| 2006–2011 | Meta-analysis estimates ~0.3% by 2011 (based on early community and population surveys) PMC | PMC. |
| 2014 | Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and other surveys suggest ~0.5% of adults identify as transgender PMC | Williams Institute. |
| 2016 | Williams Institute estimates 0.5–0.6% of adults (≈1.3 million) identify as transgender; same year youth (ages 13–17) at 1.4% (≈300,000) Williams Institute | Williams Institute. |
| 2017–2020 | Estimates remain around 0.5–0.6% of adults, and overall 0.6% among those ages 13 and older Williams Institute | Williams Institute. |
| 2021–2022 | Williams Institute: 0.5% adults, 1.4% youth → total ~0.6% ages 13+; Pew: ~1.6% adults/nonbinary combined Williams Institute | Pew Research Center. |
| 2023 | Pew/Gallup: among Gen Z (~18–22), 3–5% identify as transgender or non‑binary; overall adults ~1% identify as transgender TIME | USAFacts | Pew Research Center. |
| 2024 | Census Household Pulse Survey: ~0.95% of adults identify as transgender (~2.3 million); Gallup: 1.3% of adults identify as transgender in the broader LGBTQ+ survey USAFacts | Gallup.com. |
| 2025 | Gallup latest: 1.3% of U.S. adults identify as transgender as part of 9.3% LGBTQ+ total in early 2025 Gallup.com | Wikipedia. |