The number one cause of death for teens (ages 15–19) in the U.S. is unintentional injuries , with motor vehicle crashes and drug overdoses/poisonings being the biggest contributors within that category.

What “unintentional injuries” means

  • This category includes car crashes, falls, drownings, and poisonings (including drug overdoses and alcohol‑related incidents).
  • In recent years, drug‑related poisonings have grown faster than traffic‑related deaths, but car crashes are still a major piece of the unintentional‑injury total.

How it compares to other causes

For teens 15–19, the top three causes of death are roughly:

  • Unintentional injuries (about one‑third to nearly half of teen deaths).
  • Homicide (often firearm‑related).
  • Suicide (also frequently firearm‑related or by other means).

Some analyses of all children and adolescents (ages 1–19) show firearm‑related injuries as the leading cause, but when focusing specifically on teens 15–19 , unintentional injuries remain on top.

Quick snapshot table (teens 15–19)

Cause of death (broad category)| Typical share of teen deaths*| Notes
---|---|---
Unintentional injuries (accidents)| ~35–48%| Includes car crashes, drug overdoses, falls, drownings. 135
Homicide| ~13–22%| Often firearm‑related; higher in some racial/ethnic groups. 135
Suicide| ~10–17%| Second or third leading cause; rising concern for mental‑health services. 137

*Percentages are approximate and vary slightly by year and data source.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.