In the United States and in Canada use of cocaine declined among young people until 2024, but not among the general population. Men continue to account for higher levels of use and harms than women, with cocaine-related overdose deaths rising much more sharply for men over the past decade –…
In Australia, multiple drug-related indicators show an increase in cocaine use and associated harm between 2010 and 2021, particularly among men. However, cocaine still plays a relatively small role in overall drug-related harm, with only 2.7 per cent of people in drug-related treatment reporting…
Cocaine is the second most used drug in Europe, after cannabis. However, per capita consumption of the substance tends to be lower than in the Americas.Annual use of cocaine is relatively high in Western and Central Europe (the subregion with the third highest average prevalence in the world) and…
Over the past decade, the prevalence of cocaine use has remained relatively stable in some countries of South America while increasing in others. However, the most recent data from countries where available show signs of stabilization.A wide variety of cocaine products are used in the region,…
The use of amphetamines has distinct regional patterns; past-year use is generally higher among men (0.85 per cent) than women (0.34 per cent) globally.The largest markets for ATS, mainly methamphetamine, remain East and South-East Asia and North America. The highest past-year use of amphetamines…
Though overall drug sales via the dark web appear to be rather resilient, darknet markets are highly volatile and frequently appear only to disappear quickly.Unlike major e-commerce platforms on the clear net, darknet marketplaces typically have short lifespans – averaging just 1 year and 4 months…
Darknet sales, mostly drug related, increased to around US$2.5 billion in 2025 – and are increasingly driven by wholesale sales while the bulk of retail online sales takes place on social media.
Darknet market sales (mostly drug-related) reached some US…
More countries perceived an increase in drug-related deaths in 2024 than a decrease.Toxicological findings reported by 66 countries suggest that opioids are by far the most common substance involved in direct drug-related deaths, with cocaine now ranking second after overtaking (albeit by a small…
Heroin and morphine seizures remain concentrated in Asia.In line with the concentration of opium production in Asia, almost two thirds (64 per cent) of global heroin and morphine seizures occurred in Asia in 2024, notably in South-Western Asia and, to a lesser extent, in East and South-East Asia.In…
Drug mixtures present on the drugs market may cause additional harms alongside those traditionally observed, due to issues such as user-unknown content, varying contents, the presence of harmful ingredients, or possible drug interactions, to name a few.…
Treatment coverage remains low globally, with strong regional and drug-specific differences.Only a small proportion of people with drug use disorders receive treatment, with coverage highest in Europe and lowest in Africa and Asia. Across all regions, the estimated treatment coverage is lower for…
The limited data available suggest that pathways into drug-related treatment and the types of treatment vary between regionsData from 61 countries suggest that pathways of referral vary by (sub)region: for example, in Africa, referral by friends and family or self-referral is most common, while in…
