Global opioid use has remained broadly stable, with strong regional differences in prevalence of use.

• The number of people who use opioids worldwide has remained relatively stable in the last five years, with the estimate for 2024 only slightly higher than the level in 2019.
• Prevalence of past-year use is relatively high in the Near and Middle East and South-West Asia and North America. In absolute numbers, however, South Asia accounts for the largest number of people who use opioids, reflecting the size of the region’s population.