The population of living veterans in the US — nearly 16 million people — is both shrinking in size and growing more diverse.
What is a veteran, and who is considered one?
Title 38 of the United States Code defines a veteran as “a person who served in the active military, naval, or air service, and who was discharged or released therefrom under conditions other than dishonorable.”
The code also outlines who qualifies for veteran status beyond active duty to include service members such as reservists, members of the National Guard, cadets and midshipmen at military academies, commissioned officers outside the Armed Forces, and those in training for military service. The Department of Veteran Affairs is responsible for determining veteran status and maintaining veteran benefit eligibility.
What is a protected veteran?
The Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 prohibits discrimination against certain veterans. Protected veterans meet the Title 38 qualifications but are afforded additional consideration due to disability, recent discharge, participation in wartime, or service recognition.
How many veterans are in the US?
According to the Census Bureau, 6.1% of the adult American population, or 15.8 million people, identified as veterans in 2023. This number has been steadily declining for decades. Between 2010 and 2023, the total number of veterans fell by more than 5.9 million, or more than 25%.
When did living American veterans serve?
In 2023, over half of living American veterans, over 8.4 million, had served during one of two Gulf Wars — first between August 1990 and August 2001 (3.9 million), then between September 2001 and later (4.4 million). One-third of living veterans, more than 5.2 million, served in Vietnam. The bureau also reports about 638,800 living veterans who served in the Korean War or World War II.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of American veterans?
In 2023, 74.1% of living veterans identified as white. In 2023, Black Americans were the second largest veteran racial group (12.6%), while 8.6% of veterans were Hispanic or Latino Americans ethnicity. Meanwhile, 7.5% of living veterans identified as two or more races.
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The racial and ethnic makeup of the veteran population differs from the country as a whole. Combined, white and Black Americans are 74.7% of the US population but 86.7% of the veteran population. Meanwhile, Asian Americans (6.2% of the US population) are underrepresented among veterans (2.0%).
How old are US veterans?
The veteran population is aging. In 2023, almost half of veterans (49.0%) were 65 or older, while 27.9% were 75 or older; in 2013, 47.3% were 65 and older. 8.3% of veterans in 2023 were 34 or younger.
What is the share of veterans by gender?
More than one in 10 living veterans are women. Women veterans have steadily increased over the past decade — in 2010, 7.2% of veterans were women, compared to 10.9% in 2023. (The Census Bureau does not provide data on the number of transgender or nonbinary veterans.)
How has the education status of the veteran population changed?
Veterans’ education levels have also shifted. 69.1% of veterans in 2023 had at least some college experience, an associate’s degree, or a bachelor's degree or higher. In 2010, the rate of veterans with some college was 62.0%, up 7.1 percentage points.
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Page sources and methodology
All of the data on the page was sourced directly from government agencies. The analysis and final review was performed by USAFacts.
Census Bureau
American Community Survey
Department of Veterans Affairs
Determining Veteran Status
