---
title: Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year, Australia
resource: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/
publisher: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
licence: CC BY 4.0
licence_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
version: 2026-05-27
rows: 3726
fields: 5
source: https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/3b28804a-27e5-41a9-9914-473a26b09750/AIHW_suicide-and-self-harm-monitoring_NMD_suicide.xlsx
source_sha256: d349e47795520d6369ca2566ab91998c911c88cec7b7d0429a91a3986954f27b
language: en-AU
operator: National Digital
not_endorsed: true
---

# Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year, Australia

Deaths by suicide and age-standardised suicide rates for each state and territory by sex and year since 1979, from the AIHW National Mortality Database tables. Updated yearly.

Published by Australian Institute of Health and Welfare under CC BY 4.0 and republished here in other formats, with cells typed and suppressed values made null. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has not endorsed this site.

Also called: Suicide statistics Australia by state, Suicide rate by state and year, Deaths by suicide National Mortality Database, AIHW suicide monitoring NMD 3a.

## Download

Latest version, redirects to `https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/`:

- csv: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.csv (211 KB)
- xlsx: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.xlsx (95 KB)
- json: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.json (429 KB)
- parquet: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.parquet (20 KB)
- sqlite: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.sqlite (414 KB)
- duckdb: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.duckdb (200 KB)
- ndjson: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.ndjson (425 KB)
- arrow: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.arrow (47 KB)
- csv.gz: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.csv.gz (24 KB)

Pinned version 2026-05-27: `https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/data.<format>`. Dated versions never change.

## Query

The query API returns only the rows you ask for, as JSON, NDJSON or CSV, from the same typed rows as the files. It needs no key. Rows: https://publicdata.au/api/v1/datasets/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/rows. Counts and sums: https://publicdata.au/api/v1/datasets/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/aggregate.

- Rows: https://publicdata.au/api/v1/datasets/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/rows?measure=eq.Age-standardised%20rate%20%28per%20100%2C000%29&sex=eq.Persons&year=eq.2024&limit=5
- Aggregate: https://publicdata.au/api/v1/datasets/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/aggregate?group=state&metric=avg.value&measure=eq.Age-standardised%20rate%20%28per%20100%2C000%29&sex=eq.Persons&year=eq.2024

Each filter is `field=operator.value` in the query string, and every filter must match. A number or date field compares as a number or date, and a text field compares as text. Values are case-sensitive except with `ilike`. Prefix `not.` to negate a filter, as `not.eq.value`. Operators: `eq.value`, `neq.value`, `gt.value`, `gte.value`, `lt.value`, `lte.value`, `like.*text*`, `ilike.*text*`, `in.(a,b,c)`, `is.null`.

- `select`: Fields to return, comma-separated. Every field when absent.
- `order`: `field.asc` or `field.desc`, comma-separated. The publisher's row order when absent.
- `limit`: Rows per page, 1 to 10,000. 100 when absent.
- `offset`: Rows to skip. The `next` URL in each answer sets it for you.
- `group`: On `aggregate`, fields to group by, comma-separated.
- `metric`: On `aggregate`, `count`, `sum.field`, `avg.field`, `min.field` or `max.field`, comma-separated. `count` when absent.
- `format`: `json`, `ndjson` or `csv`. JSON carries the provenance header, and the others carry it in response headers.

Without a version the API answers from the newest loaded version, and that answer changes when the publisher releases again. Put `versions/<date>/` before `rows` or `aggregate` for an answer that never changes. `/api/v1/datasets/<slug>/versions` lists the loaded versions. The API allows 60 requests in 10 seconds from one address. Above that it answers 429 for 10 seconds with a `Retry-After` header, a `RateLimit-Policy` header and a JSON body that gives the limit. Every API answer carries the same `RateLimit-Policy`. A client should wait the `Retry-After` seconds, or read the files, which have no limit. OpenAPI for this dataset: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/openapi.json

## Explore

Charts and dashboards in the browser: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/explore/. A dashboard can be shared as a link or embedded.

## Smaller files

- by `measure`: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/by/measure/index.json lists 3 files

## Fields

| field | type | publisher's header | note |
|---|---|---|---|
| `sex` | string | (row header 1) |  |
| `year` | integer | (row header 2) |  |
| `measure` | string | (row header 3) |  |
| `state` | string | (column header 1) |  |
| `value` | number | (cell) | The number of deaths or the rate, as the measure names. The Institute writes an em dash where a figure is not applicable; it is null here. |

Key: `sex, year, measure, state`.

## Versions

- 2026-05-27: 3726 rows, 5 fields, sha256 d349e4779552. https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/

Machine-readable: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/versions.json, https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/changes.json, https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/datapackage.json, https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/schema.json, https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/history.tar.zst

## Same subject, other publishers

- [Deaths registered per month, Victoria](https://publicdata.au/d/vic-deaths-registered-by-month/) (Vic)
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- [Elective surgery by specialty and hospital, Queensland, September quarter 2025](https://publicdata.au/d/qld-elective-surgery-by-specialty/) (Qld)
- [Elective surgery by urgency category and hospital, Queensland, September quarter 2025](https://publicdata.au/d/qld-elective-surgery-by-category/) (Qld)
- [Public hospital emergency departments and minor injury clinics, Queensland, live list](https://publicdata.au/d/qld-emergency-department-facilities/) (Qld)
- [People waiting and median waits in emergency departments, Queensland, live](https://publicdata.au/d/qld-emergency-department-waits-now/) (Qld)
- [Public hospital locations, South Australia](https://publicdata.au/d/sa-public-hospitals/) (SA)
- [Private hospital locations, South Australia](https://publicdata.au/d/sa-private-hospitals/) (SA)

## Attribution and citation

Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, Suicide and self-harm monitoring, National Mortality Database table NMD 3a, sourced 30 September 2026, https://www.aihw.gov.au/suicide-self-harm-monitoring/resources/download-data-tables, licensed under CC BY 4.0.

The licence requires the publisher's attribution. We ask that you also name publicdata.au and link to the version you used.

Plain text: Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, Suicide and self-harm monitoring, National Mortality Database table NMD 3a, sourced 30 September 2026, https://www.aihw.gov.au/suicide-self-harm-monitoring/resources/download-data-tables, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au, https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/

Harvard: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2026) Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year, Australia, version 2026-05-27 [data set], CC BY 4.0, sourced 30 September 2026. Serialised and versioned by National Digital at publicdata.au. Available at: https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/

Markdown: Data: [Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year, Australia](https://www.aihw.gov.au/copyright), Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), sourced 30 September 2026. Files: [publicdata.au](https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/) by [National Digital](https://nationaldigital.com.au/).

## Questions

### How do I download Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year as a CSV file?

Open https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/latest/data.csv. It redirects to the newest dated version, which is https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/data.csv today. The same path serves Excel, JSON, Parquet, SQLite, DuckDB, NDJSON, Arrow. A dated URL never changes, so use it when the file must stay the same.

### Can I open Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year in Excel?

Yes. https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/data.xlsx is a workbook with the 3,726 rows on a records sheet, the field list on a second sheet and the provenance on a third. The CSV also opens in Excel. https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/data.csv.gz is the CSV at about a tenth of the size.

### What years does Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year cover?

The current version covers 1979 to 2024. Each release from AIHW becomes a new dated version here, and earlier versions stay online.

### How often is Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year updated?

AIHW releases it yearly. This site checks the portal every week and adds a dated version when the file changes.

### Can I use Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year commercially?

Yes. CC BY 4.0 allows commercial use, redistribution and derived works as long as the attribution is kept. The attribution string is in this page's side column and inside every file.

### Is this the official source for Deaths by suicide by state, sex and year?

No. The publisher is Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, and its page is https://www.aihw.gov.au/copyright. This site republishes the publisher's file without changing its content. The original sits beside every version as source.xlsx with its SHA-256, so the two can be compared.

### How do I get only the rows for one measure?

Every version has one JSON file per value of measure, 3 files in the current version, listed with row counts at https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/by/measure/index.json. For example https://publicdata.au/d/au-suicide-deaths-by-state/v/2026-05-27/by/measure/age-standardised-rate-per-100-000.json holds the 1,242 rows where measure is Age-standardised rate (per 100,000).

### What is in each row?

Deaths by suicide for one sex, one year from 1979 and one state or territory, as the number of deaths, the age-standardised rate per 100,000 or the crude rate per 100,000, whichever the measure column names. The Australia column of the Institute's table is kept as a state value named Australia.

### Where do the figures come from?

The Institute's Suicide and self-harm monitoring data tables, built from the National Mortality Database, which holds the causes of death the ABS codes from registrations. The Institute writes n.p. where a figure is not published because the count is small, and those cells are null here with a suppressed flag. Year of death is the year the death was registered.

### Why does the attribution say "based on" AIHW material?

The Institute publishes its data tables under CC BY 4.0 and asks that material adapted from them, which republishing in other formats is, carry the words "Based on Australian Institute of Health and Welfare material". Every file here carries them. The Institute has not endorsed this site.

## What this site did to the data

Cells were typed, headers were renamed to snake_case and the encoding was made UTF-8. Rows were left alone. Nothing is derived. The publisher's file is beside every version as `source.xlsx`.

## Improve this dataset

This page is built from [register/au-suicide-deaths-by-state.yaml](https://github.com/National-Digital/publicdata.au/blob/main/register/au-suicide-deaths-by-state.yaml) on GitHub, and a fix to it is welcome as a pull request. https://publicdata.au/contribute/ explains how.