Back pain statistics 2026
Back pain statistics, with a source on every line.
The numbers we trust, in plain words. Each one links to where it came from. Last updated October 2, 2026.
The Good Back Days summary
Back pain is common, it's more common in women, and about 9 in 10 cases can't be traced to a specific problem in the spine. Scans of people with no pain often look "worn". In a University of Colorado trial, 2 out of 3 people who learned to retrain their brain were pain-free or close to it after four weeks. Results vary.
How common it is
619 million people worldwide had low back pain in 2020. The World Health Organization expects 843 million by 2050.
World Health Organization, Low back pain fact sheet · June 19, 2023
Low back pain is the single leading cause of disability worldwide.
World Health Organization, Low back pain fact sheet · June 19, 2023
39% of US adults had back pain in the past three months (2019).
CDC, NCHS Data Brief No. 415 · July 2021
24.3% of US adults had chronic pain in 2023, and 8.5% had pain that frequently limited their life or work.
CDC, NCHS Data Brief No. 518 · November 2024
Back pain in women
40.6% of US women had back pain in the past three months, compared with 37.2% of men (2019).
CDC, NCHS Data Brief No. 415, data tables · July 2021
Low back pain is more common in women than in men, worldwide.
World Health Organization, Low back pain fact sheet · June 19, 2023
What scans show, and what they don't
About 90% of low back pain is "non-specific": it can't be traced to a specific disease or structural problem in the spine.
World Health Organization, Low back pain fact sheet · June 19, 2023
37% of 20-year-olds with no back pain at all show disc degeneration on an MRI. By age 80 it's 96%.
Brinjikji et al., American Journal of Neuroradiology (review of 3,110 people) · 2015
What retraining the brain did in studies
In a University of Colorado trial of 151 adults with about 10 years of back pain, 66% (2 out of 3) were pain-free or nearly pain-free after four weeks of learning to retrain their brain. 20% of the placebo group and 10% of the usual-care group were.
In that trial, the improvement was largely maintained one year later.
In a small pilot at a Harvard teaching hospital (35 adults), 64% were pain-free at six months, compared with 17% on usual care.
Donnino et al., PAIN Reports · 2021
What it costs
Low back and neck pain had the highest US health care spending of 154 conditions: an estimated $134.5 billion in 2016.
Dieleman et al., JAMA · March 2020
One physical therapy session costs about $50 to $350 without insurance, depending on the setting.
Questions people ask
How common is back pain in women?
In 2019, 40.6% of US women had back pain in the past three months, compared with 37.2% of men (CDC, NCHS Data Brief 415). The World Health Organization also reports that low back pain is more common in women.
How many people have low back pain worldwide?
619 million people in 2020, and the World Health Organization projects 843 million by 2050. It is the leading cause of disability worldwide.
Can an MRI explain chronic back pain?
Often not on its own. In a 2015 review of 3,110 people with no back pain, 37% of 20-year-olds and 96% of 80-year-olds showed disc degeneration on MRI. About 90% of low back pain is non-specific, according to the WHO.
Does retraining the brain help chronic back pain?
In a 2022 University of Colorado trial of 151 adults, 66% were pain-free or nearly pain-free after four weeks of pain reprocessing, compared with 20% after a placebo injection and 10% with usual care. Results vary, and a doctor should rule out serious causes first.
Does your pain fit the pattern? A quick safety check, then five questions about your life. Free, about two minutes.
Good Back Days is education, not medical advice. Studies describe what happened to the people in them. A doctor should rule out serious causes of back pain first. You're welcome to cite this page; please link to it.