How many illegal crossings are attempted at the US-Mexico border each month?
Data updated March 15, 2025
About 8,000 attempted crossings were detected in February 2025, 94.1% fewer than in February 2024. These attempted crossings, sometimes referred to as “encounters,” are instances when the US Border Patrol (USBP) apprehended or expelled someone attempting to illegally cross into the US between official ports of entry. This number does not necessarily represent individual people, as one person may be counted several times if they make multiple attempts to cross the border.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, USBP intercepted an estimated 80% of attempted border crossings along the US-Mexico border in 2021, the most recent data available.
8K
illegal border crossings detected at the US-Mexico border (February 2025)
94.1%
fewer illegal border crossings detected (February 2025 vs. February 2024)
Detected crossing attempts decreased at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Encounter levels during this time were similar to the lows reported between 2010 and 2015.
Around September 2020, the number of detected crossings began to increase and remained high along the southwest US border. During this time and into 2021, the recidivism rate — the likelihood that an individual attempted to cross into the US more than once in a single year — nearly quadrupled compared to pre-pandemic levels. A 2023 Congressional Research Service report attributed this primarily to Title 42, a policy active from March 2020 to May 2023, which made it easier for the government to expel migrants at the border, but did not penalize repeated crossing attempts.
The total number of detected crossings, which do not differentiate between a new and repeat crossing, continued to rise from 2020 through 2023. They peaked in December 2023 at 249,740 before decreasing throughout 2024.
Attempted illegal border crossings increased to record high during the COVID-19 pandemic
Detected monthly crossings between official ports of entry along the US-Mexico border
The US-Mexico border is nearly 2,000 miles long and spans five states. Attempted border crossings are detected at different rates along the entire border. The USBP divides this area into nine regions, each managed as a single border patrol sector.
In February 2025, attempted illegal border crossings were highest in the El Paso Border Patrol Sector
Detected monthly crossings between official ports of entry along the US-Mexico border
Subscribe to get unbiased, data-driven insights sent to your inbox weekly.
In February 2025, the number of detected crossing attempts in all nine sectors declined compared to 12 months earlier, indicating decreased activity along the border. The drop was largest in the Tucson sector, where crossings decreased by 97.3% between February 2024 and February 2025. These changes may reflect fluctuating migration routes or policy shifts.
Attempted illegal border crossings decreased the most in the Tucson border patrol sector
Detected monthly crossings between official ports of entry along the US-Mexico border
Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
US Customs and Border Protection
Nationwide Encounters
