U.S. adults prior cocaine use in 2021 and 2022, by state

In 2021/2022, the states with the highest share of people who had used cocaine in the past year were Colorado, Vermont, the District of Columbia, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. In Colorado, around 3.06 percent of the population were estimated to have used cocaine in the past year at that time, compared to the U.S. average of 1.95 percent. The states with the lowest past-year cocaine consumption rates were New Hampshire and Wyoming. 

Cocaine use in the United States

As of 2022, cocaine was the second most used illicit drug in the United States, behind marijuana. At that time around 42.2 million people in the U.S. had used cocaine at least once in their lifetime. In comparison, around 29.5 million people reported using LSD in their lifetime and 22.1 million had used ecstasy. In 2022, almost 5.2 million people were estimated to have used cocaine in the past year.

How many people in the U.S. die from cocaine every year?

The number of drug poisoning deaths involving cocaine has increased significantly over the past couple decades. In 2021, there were around 24,486 overdose deaths involving cocaine, compared to just 3,800 in the year 1999. However, it is important to note that many overdose deaths involving cocaine also involve other drugs, namely opioids. The increase in overdose deaths involving cocaine is directly related to the ongoing opioid epidemic in the United States. Rates of overdose death involving cocaine are twice as high for men than women, but death rates for both men and women have increased in recent years.