Singapore, 28 July 2026 (Tuesday) – According to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA), the final number of suicide deaths in Singapore for 2024 has been updated to 441 (an increase of 1.6% from 2023). This reflects a 40.4% increase from the provisional figure of 314 reported last year.

While suicide deaths showed a general decline across all other age groups, there was an increase among adults aged 30 to 39 (99 suicide deaths, an increase of 50% from 66). Other key findings from the report that have been finalised for 2024 include:

• Suicide death rate is 8.23 per 100,000 Singaporean residents (an increase of 0.04),
• Suicide is the second leading cause of death amongst adults aged 30 to 39,
• Suicide is the leading cause of death amongst youths aged 10 to 29,
• Among the 441 suicide deaths, 65.8% are male (290 deaths).

Singapore reported a total of 256 suicide deaths in 2025, based on provisional data. The final actual number may differ substantially from the provisional number given the observation for 2024 actual from 2024 provisional.

“These should not just be numbers. Behind each one is a parent who still lies awake wondering what they missed, a friend who wishes they had called back. That grief can last a lifetime. The moments that matter most are rarely dramatic. They are small. Someone noticing a friend has gone quiet, and asking again, even when the answer was ‘I’m fine’. That is where prevention actually happens, in the ordinary moments between people who care enough to ask twice.” said Dr Jared Ng, Medical Director, Psychiatrist and Senior Consultant of Connections MindHealth.

This is why timely support matters. Every 13 hours, Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) de-escalates and prevents one person from imminent risk of suicide through timely crisis intervention. Over the past year, SOS responded to more than 55,000 calls and chats via its 24-hour Hotline and CareText services. Beyond its crisis helplines, SOS also provided in-person counselling services and support groups to more than 1,200 individuals experiencing emotional crisis.

Chief Executive Officer of SOS, Mr Terry Siow, commented, “While we have made meaningful progress in strengthening suicide prevention efforts over the years, the number of suicide deaths is a reminder that our work is far from done. Suicide prevention cannot rest solely with crisis services or mental health professionals. It requires all of us as family members, friends, colleagues, and neighbours, to recognise when someone may be struggling and have the confidence to start a conversation and direct them to the appropriate support resources.”

Age and gender differences impact both suicide deaths and suicide attempts. Through its 24-hour crisis helplines, SOS has observed that adults aged 30 to 39 often face complex pressures and psychosocial stressors related to family, employment, and social isolation while youths aged 10 to 29 struggle with stressors related to family, education and interpersonal relationships. For older persons aged 60 and above, key issues remain medical issues and social isolation, as they experience a decline in physical health, mobility and social connections.

Males account for 65.8% of suicide deaths in 2024. This trend was particularly pronounced among adults aged 60 and above, where there were three times the number of males lost to death by suicide than females. Existing research suggests that males are more socially isolated, more reserved in seeking help when experiencing emotional distress, and are more likely to use highly lethal means in suicide attempts. In contrast, while females accounted for approximately one-third of suicide deaths, 62.5% of suicide-related calls and texts received by SOS in 2024 were from female service users, pointing to higher rates of women’s help-seeking behaviours related to pressures of differing societal roles and norms such as caregiving and gender-based violence.

Suicide is a complex issue influenced by multiple factors, including mental health and social determinants such as unemployment, lower educational outcomes, income equality, housing insecurity, adverse childhood experiences, exposure to violence, physical and mental disabilities, and social isolation. As a result, interventions and solutions addressing suicide prevention should be multi-faceted and intersectional in nature to support persons vulnerable to suicide from diverse communities and backgrounds.

Beyond providing crisis support, SOS seeks to strengthen early intervention through prevention efforts. Its Be A Samaritan (BAS) programme aims to equip more individuals to recognise distress early, start conversations, and guide those in need towards appropriate support. In the past financial year, SOS has trained over 2,000 individuals across workplaces, schools, and communities, with more than 90% reporting increased literacy and confidence in responding to conversations around suicide. SOS continues to develop partnerships with several organisations to customise the BAS programme to specific needs and widen the safety nets in the community.

Recognising that suicide prevention is a shared responsibility, SOS will convene its flagship suicide prevention symposium titled, SONDER: Where Resilience Meets Collective Hope, on 10 September 2026 in conjunction with World Suicide Prevention Day. Bringing together local and international experts, practitioners, and community leaders, the symposium will explore emerging trends, evidence-informed practices, and collaborative approaches to strengthen suicide prevention across Singapore and the region.

[NOTE: Breakdown of Annual Suicide Rates based on ICA’s “Report on Registration of Births and Deaths 2025”. Figures for 2025 are provisional. The finalised figures are to be published only in the following year’s report.]

##########################

About SOS

Samaritans of Singapore Limited (SOS) is a secular, non-profit suicide prevention centre. Since its establishment in 1969, SOS has developed into a professionally run and managed organisation. It adopts a holistic approach to suicide-related topics, focusing on prevention, intervention and postvention, an intervention conducted after a suicide for loved ones and friends. With the mission to be an available lifeline to anyone in crisis, SOS offers emotional support to people in crisis, thinking of suicide, or affected by suicide. All information shared with SOS is treated as confidential and people can choose to remain anonymous.

24-hour Hotline: 1767
24-hour CareText: 9151 1767 (via WhatsApp)