Breastfeeding statistics show that most U.S. children receive breast milk, but fewer continue to 6 and 12 months. According to the CDC, 86.1% of children born in 2023 were ever breastfed, 62.8% were still breastfed at 6 months, and 29.8% received breast milk alone through 6 months. If breastfeeding is painful or worrying you, talk to your provider or an IBCLC.
This page brings together selected breastfeeding statistics, each linked to its primary source and labeled with the year and population it describes. It covers U.S. rates for children born from 2016 to 2023, state estimates, the 2025 global scorecard, and research on nipple pain, stopping earlier than planned, expressing milk and mastitis, with the limits of each study stated plainly. You can download the U.S. data as a CSV file and cite any figure using the box at the end.
The latest CDC National Immunization Survey-Child national rates cover children born in 2023. Separate CDC birth-certificate data cover breastfeeding initiation for 2023 and 2024 births by county (California is not included); they do not measure how long breastfeeding lasted or whether it was exclusive. Global figures come from the 2025 WHO and UNICEF scorecard, and the clinical figures come from individual peer-reviewed studies with the limits noted below.
Key Breastfeeding Statistics at a Glance
Breastfeeding statistics fall into two groups: how many children receive breast milk at all, and how long breastfeeding continues. The nine figures below are a quick overview. Each card links to its primary source, and each is explained with its limits further down the page.
86.1%
of U.S. children born in 2023 were ever breastfed.
62.8%
were still breastfed at 6 months (any breastfeeding).
40.8%
were still breastfed at 12 months (any breastfeeding).
29.8%
received breast milk only through 6 months. The Healthy People 2030 goal is 42.4%.
47%
of infants under 6 months worldwide are exclusively breastfed. The 2030 target is at least 60%.
20.9 pts
gap between the highest (Hawaii) and lowest (Alabama) state estimates for ever breastfed.
72%
of first-time mothers in a Melbourne study reported nipple pain in week 1.
~60%
of 1,177 U.S. study mothers who had stopped breastfeeding said they stopped earlier than they wanted.
85%
of breastfeeding mothers of 1.5 to 4.5 month olds in a U.S. study had expressed milk.
U.S. Breastfeeding Rates (2016 to 2023)
For children born in 2023, exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months rose to 29.8% from 27.9% for 2022 births, the highest of any birth year since 2016. Breastfeeding at 12 months held steady at 40.8%. Year-to-year changes in the other measures were within the survey's margin of error.
U.S. breastfeeding rates are the share of children, grouped by the year they were born, who received any breast milk, were still breastfed at set ages, or received breast milk only for a set period. According to CDC data for children born in 2023, 86.1% were ever breastfed, 62.8% were still breastfed at 6 months and 40.8% at 12 months.
Two measures are easy to mix up. "Any breastfeeding" counts children who received some breast milk, even alongside formula or solid food. "Exclusive breastfeeding" means breast milk only, with no formula, water, other liquids or solid food. By that stricter standard, 48.5% of children born in 2023 were exclusively breastfed through 3 months and 29.8% through 6 months. The CDC collects this information by telephone interview when children are 19 to 35 months old, so feeding at earlier ages is reported looking back (CDC survey methodology).
| Measure | 2016 | 2020 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ever breastfed | 83.8% | 83.1% | 86.1% |
| Breastfed at 6 months | 57.3% | 58.2% | 62.8% |
| Breastfed at 12 months | 36.2% | 37.6% | 40.8% |
| Exclusive through 3 months | 47.5% | 45.3% | 48.5% |
| Exclusive through 6 months | 25.4% | 25.4% | 29.8% |
| Formula before age 2 days* | 16.9% | 20.8% | 22.6% |
*Formula supplementation before age 2 days, among infants breastfed before that age. This row uses a different denominator; all other rows cover all children in the survey.
Comparing 2016 with 2023, every main measure is higher, though not every year in between rose. The change in exclusive breastfeeding through 3 months (47.5% to 48.5%) is within the survey's margin of error. Exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months went from 25.4% to 29.8%, and any breastfeeding at 6 months from 57.3% to 62.8%. Formula supplementation before age 2 days, among breastfed infants, went from 16.9% to 22.6%. These data describe how often early supplementation occurred; they do not explain the reasons for individual feeding decisions, and early formula is sometimes medically needed.
The Healthy People 2030 goal for exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months is 42.4% (objective MICH-15), 12.6 percentage points above the 2023 figure. Population targets are public health goals, not a measure of an individual family's success. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for about the first 6 months. It supports continued breastfeeding, alongside complementary foods introduced at about 6 months, for as long as mother and child both want, for 2 years or beyond.
How long do moms breastfeed?
About 6 in 10 U.S. babies born in 2023 were still getting some breast milk at 6 months, and about 4 in 10 at 12 months. These CDC figures show how many babies were breastfed at each age; they do not give an average duration.
For the basics behind these numbers, our guide to how breastfeeding works explains supply and demand, and our positioning and latch guide covers the technique behind comfortable feeds.
Breastfeeding Rates by State
Breastfeeding rates by state are CDC estimates for children in each state who were born in 2023, based on smaller samples than the national figures. For children born in 2023, the estimated share ever breastfed ranged from 94.4% in Hawaii to 73.5% in Alabama, a difference of 20.9 percentage points between the two point estimates.
| State | Ever breastfed |
|---|---|
| Hawaii | 94.4% (±3.7) |
| Vermont | 94.3% (±3.5) |
| California | 93.7% (±2.9) |
| Louisiana | 74.2% (±7.0) |
| Mississippi | 74.0% (±6.8) |
| Alabama | 73.5% (±6.6) |
Values are estimates ± half the width of the 95% confidence interval. Rankings describe point estimates and do not establish statistically significant differences between states.
For exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months, the highest estimates were in Minnesota, Idaho and Maine, and the lowest in Mississippi, Alabama and West Virginia.
| State | Exclusive to 6 months |
|---|---|
| Minnesota | 41.0% (±6.5) |
| Idaho | 40.3% (±6.3) |
| Maine | 38.1% (±6.8) |
| Mississippi | 21.1% (±5.3) |
| Alabama | 19.9% (±4.8) |
| West Virginia | 19.0% (±5.0) |
Values are estimates ± half the width of the 95% confidence interval. Rankings describe point estimates and do not establish statistically significant differences between states.
Because state samples are small, the margins of error are wide, and states with similar estimates may not differ in a statistically meaningful way. These tables also do not show why rates differ. The full table for every state is on the CDC state estimates page.
Breastfeeding by WIC participation, education and race/ethnicity
National rates also differ between groups of families. For children born in 2023, the share ever breastfed ranged from 74.2% when the mother had not finished high school to 92.6% among families not eligible for WIC (CDC sociodemographic estimates).
| Group | Ever breastfed | Exclusive to 6 months |
|---|---|---|
| All U.S. children | 86.1% (±0.9) | 29.8% (±1.2) |
| Receiving WIC | 80.4% (±1.5) | 23.4% (±1.8) |
| WIC-eligible, not receiving | 86.6% (±3.4) | 37.2% (±4.3) |
| Not eligible for WIC | 92.6% (±0.8) | 35.5% (±1.6) |
| Mother did not finish high school | 74.2% (±4.0) | 22.6% (±3.7) |
| Mother is a college graduate | 92.2% (±0.9) | 34.4% (±1.6) |
| Hispanic | 85.6% (±1.8) | 28.0% (±2.5) |
| Non-Hispanic White | 88.2% (±1.0) | 31.8% (±1.5) |
| Non-Hispanic Black | 79.4% (±3.3) | 26.2% (±3.2) |
| Non-Hispanic Asian | 91.0% (±2.8) | 32.2% (±5.0) |
Values are estimates ± half the width of the 95% confidence interval. These figures show differences in who is breastfed, not why. The survey does not measure barriers such as work schedules, hospital practices or access to lactation support.
Global Breastfeeding Statistics
Global breastfeeding statistics track how infants and young children are fed worldwide. According to the 2025 WHO and UNICEF Global Breastfeeding Scorecard, an estimated 47% of infants under 6 months are exclusively breastfed, up 8 percentage points since 2020. That estimate uses national surveys from the past seven years plus China's 2016 to 2017 survey; using only data from the past five years, the estimate is 51%.
In 2025 the World Health Assembly set a new target of at least 60% exclusive breastfeeding by 2030. On the five-year estimate, the world passed the earlier 50% goal for 2025. Continued breastfeeding has also risen, while early initiation within 1 hour of birth has fallen and remains well below its target.
| Measure | 2020 | 2025 | 2030 goal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exclusive, under 6 months | 39% | 47% | 60%+ |
| Breastfed within 1 hour | 52% | 48% | 70% |
| Breastfed at 1 year | 67% | 76% | 80% |
| Breastfed at 2 years | 38% | 50% | 60% |
Estimates use the most recent national data from the previous seven years (2025 estimate: 2018 to 2025, plus China 2016 to 2017). The 60% goal for exclusive breastfeeding was set by the World Health Assembly in 2025; the goals for 1 and 2 years are Global Breastfeeding Collective targets. All 2030 goals are as shown in the 2025 scorecard.
The global and U.S. figures are not directly comparable. The global indicator describes feeding during the previous day among infants aged 0 to 5 months, while the CDC estimates exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months from interviews held when children are 19 to 35 months old.
The 2025 scorecard estimates that breastfeeding prevents nearly 600,000 child deaths worldwide each year, and it cites World Bank analyses showing a 44-to-1 benefit-cost ratio for investing in breastfeeding.
Nipple Pain and Damage: What One Study Found
Nipple pain is a common early breastfeeding challenge, but there is little national data on it. One prospective study, the CASTLE study (Buck et al., Breastfeeding Medicine, 2014), recruited 360 first-time mothers in Melbourne, Australia, in 2009 to 2011; 340 completed the 8-week follow-up. Pain and damage were self-reported. Participants were well educated (77% held a tertiary degree), all planned to breastfeed for at least 8 weeks, and gave birth at two hospitals on one Melbourne site with dedicated lactation support, one of them Baby-Friendly accredited, so the results may not apply to all mothers.
| Time point | Nipple pain | Nipple damage |
|---|---|---|
| In hospital | 79% | Not quantified in the published tables |
| Week 1 | 72% | 58% |
| Week 2 | 59% | 33% |
| Week 3 | 56% | 28% |
| Week 4 | 43% | 24% |
| Week 8 | 20% | 8% |
The number of mothers assessed varied by time point: 360 were recruited, and 336 contributed week 1 data.
In this study, nearly 8 in 10 mothers reported nipple pain before leaving the hospital, and 58% reported nipple damage, such as cracks or grazes, in week 1. By week 8, 20% still reported pain and 8% reported damage. Nipple pain was common, but you do not need to wait for it to resolve. Contact your healthcare professional or an IBCLC if pain is severe, persistent or getting worse; they can check latch and other possible causes.
For information about nipple discomfort and when to seek help, see our guide to cracked nipples.
Why Mothers Stop Breastfeeding Earlier Than They Wanted
Stopping breastfeeding earlier than intended is common. The Infant Feeding Practices Study II (IFPS II), a U.S. study conducted from 2005 to 2007 that was not nationally representative, found that about 60% of 1,177 mothers who had stopped breastfeeding stopped earlier than they wanted (Odom et al., Pediatrics, 2013).
Mothers who had stopped rated how important each of 32 possible reasons was. The ones most associated with stopping early were:
- Breastfeeding difficulties, such as latch problems and pain
- Worries about the baby's nutrition or weight, including concerns about milk supply
- The mother's illness or need for medicine, or the baby's illness
- The effort of pumping milk
These are associations from one study, not a ranking of how often each reason occurs today. The study's authors concluded that continued professional support may help mothers reach their own breastfeeding goals. If you are worried about milk supply or your baby's intake, ask your baby's healthcare professional or an IBCLC to assess feeding and weight gain before changing your routine; our guide on milk supply explains common causes of low supply. Many medicines are compatible with breastfeeding, so ask your provider before assuming you need to stop. When you are ready to wean, our guide to stopping breastfeeding explains how to do it gradually.
Pumping and Expressing Milk
Expressing milk means removing breast milk by hand or with a pump, so pumping is one form of expression. In IFPS II, 85% of 1,564 breastfeeding mothers of babies aged 1.5 to 4.5 months had expressed milk since birth. In the previous two weeks, 68% had expressed milk and 25% did so on a regular schedule (Labiner-Wolfe et al., Pediatrics, 2008).
In that study, expressing milk was linked with being employed, and regular expression was linked with employment and using an electric rather than a manual pump. The most common reason given was to provide breast milk for someone else to feed the baby.
The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, signed on December 29, 2022, gives most nursing employees reasonable break time and a private space other than a bathroom to express milk for one year after childbirth. Coverage exceptions apply, for example for airline flight crew and for employers with fewer than 50 employees who can show undue hardship, and state law may add protections (U.S. Department of Labor guidance).
Once you have expressed milk, follow our breast milk storage guidelines.
Mastitis: How Often It Happens
Mastitis is breast inflammation that may occur with or without bacterial infection. A 2020 systematic review (Wilson, Woodd and Benova, Journal of Human Lactation) pooled three cohort studies from Australia, China and Iran. It estimated 11.1 mastitis episodes per 1,000 breastfeeding weeks during the first 25 weeks after birth, with the highest incidence in the first 4 weeks. Results varied widely between studies. The review's authors suggest this could mean roughly 1 in 4 breastfeeding women have mastitis in the first 26 weeks, while noting that the underlying studies were of low quality.
Care advice has changed in recent years. The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine's 2022 protocol describes mastitis as a spectrum and moves away from aggressive massage and extra pumping toward gentler care. Fever, a hot red area on the breast or flu-like symptoms are reasons to contact your provider. Our mastitis guide covers symptoms and when to seek care, and our breast engorgement guide explains a related early-weeks problem.
Download the Data and Cite This Page
You can download the U.S. figures on this page, with a source and denominator note for every row, as a CSV file (CDC national rates 2016 to 2023 with confidence intervals, plus selected 2023 state and sociodemographic estimates). You can also download the trend chart (PNG).
Our charts and the CSV file are licensed under CC BY 4.0: you may reuse them with credit to Go Mommy and a link to this page. For the underlying data, please also cite the original source.
<a href="https://gomommyus.com/blogs/news/breastfeeding-statistics"><img src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0815/7164/3688/files/us-breastfeeding-rates-2016-2023-chart.png?v=1793833808" alt="U.S. breastfeeding rates by birth year, 2016 to 2023" width="900" height="600"></a><br>Chart: <a href="https://gomommyus.com/blogs/news/breastfeeding-statistics">Go Mommy</a>, data from the CDC National Immunization Survey-Child. CC BY 4.0.
Go Mommy Editorial Team. "Breastfeeding Statistics 2026: U.S. and Global Data, Sourced." Go Mommy, November 2026. https://gomommyus.com/blogs/news/breastfeeding-statistics
To cite a single figure, link directly to its card, for example https://gomommyus.com/blogs/news/breastfeeding-statistics#stat-ever-breastfed.
🎯 Key Takeaways
- ✓ Most U.S. children receive breast milk: 86.1% of children born in 2023 were ever breastfed, compared with 83.8% for 2016 births.
- ✓ Continuing is where the numbers fall: 40.8% were still breastfed at 12 months, and 29.8% received breast milk only through 6 months, below the 42.4% Healthy People 2030 goal.
- ✓ State estimates range from 94.4% ever breastfed in Hawaii to 73.5% in Alabama; margins of error are wide, and the data do not explain the differences.
- ✓ Globally, 47% of infants under 6 months are exclusively breastfed, against a World Health Assembly target of at least 60% by 2030.
- ✓ Nipple pain was very common early on in one Australian study of first-time mothers, but you do not need to wait for it to pass: ask for help if pain is severe, persistent or worsening.
- ✓ In an older U.S. study, about 60% of mothers who stopped breastfeeding stopped earlier than they wanted; feeding difficulties and worries about their baby's intake were among the reasons most linked to stopping early.
- ✓ If you want support, a lactation consultant (IBCLC) or your baby's healthcare professional can assess feeding before you change your routine.
Frequently Asked Questions About Breastfeeding Statistics
What percentage of U.S. babies are breastfed?
According to CDC National Immunization Survey data, 86.1% of U.S. children born in 2023 were ever breastfed, up from 83.8% for children born in 2016. "Ever breastfed" means the child received breast milk at some point; it does not show when breastfeeding began or how long it lasted.
How long do most moms breastfeed?
For U.S. children born in 2023, 62.8% were still breastfed at 6 months and 40.8% at 12 months, according to the CDC. These figures show how many children were breastfed at each age; they do not provide an average breastfeeding duration.
Which state has the highest breastfeeding rate?
For children born in 2023, Hawaii had the highest estimated share ever breastfed at 94.4%, followed by Vermont at 94.3% and California at 93.7%. The lowest estimates were in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, between 73.5% and 74.2%. State estimates have wide margins of error, so close rankings are not definitive.
What percentage of babies are exclusively breastfed?
For U.S. children born in 2023, 48.5% were exclusively breastfed through 3 months and 29.8% through 6 months. The Healthy People 2030 goal for exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months is 42.4%. This is a public health goal, not a measure of any individual family's success.
Why do mothers stop breastfeeding earlier than they wanted?
In the 2005 to 2007 Infant Feeding Practices Study II, which was not nationally representative, about 60% of 1,177 mothers who had stopped breastfeeding said they stopped earlier than they wanted. The reasons most linked to stopping early were breastfeeding difficulties, worries about the baby's nutrition or weight, the mother's illness or need for medicine, the baby's illness, and the effort of pumping.
How common is nipple pain when breastfeeding?
In a study that recruited 360 first-time mothers in Melbourne, Australia, in 2009 to 2011, 79% of those assessed reported nipple pain before leaving the hospital and 72% in week 1. By week 8, 20% still reported pain. Contact your healthcare professional or an IBCLC if pain is severe, persistent or getting worse.
How many breastfeeding mothers pump or express milk?
In the 2005 to 2007 Infant Feeding Practices Study II, 85% of 1,564 breastfeeding mothers of babies aged 1.5 to 4.5 months had expressed milk since birth. In the previous two weeks, 68% had expressed milk and 25% did so on a regular schedule. The study was not nationally representative.
How common is mastitis?
A 2020 systematic review pooled three cohort studies from Australia, China and Iran and estimated 11.1 mastitis episodes per 1,000 breastfeeding weeks during the first 25 weeks after birth, with the highest rates in the first 4 weeks. The authors suggest this could mean roughly 1 in 4 breastfeeding women have mastitis in the first 26 weeks, but the underlying studies were of low quality. Contact your healthcare professional if you develop fever, a hot red area on the breast, or flu-like symptoms.
What are global breastfeeding rates?
The 2025 WHO and UNICEF Global Breastfeeding Scorecard estimates that 47% of infants under 6 months worldwide are exclusively breastfed. Using only the most recent five years of data, the estimate is 51%. The World Health Assembly target is at least 60% by 2030.