California Abortion Statistics
State abortion statistics from the leading public and private sources.
Collective state abortion statistics are gathered privately by the Guttmacher Institute and federally by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Because of reporting lag, their most recent data is often 2-3 years old. In most cases, state-level abortion facts are more current than the numbers reported by Guttmacher or the CDC. Guttmacher’s abortion statistics are estimates built on surveys of all known and suspected abortion providers; the CDC totals are made up of the actual abortion counts reported to the state health department by each abortion facility.
To learn more, visit: Prenatal Development, Abortion Procedures or Abortion Pictures
To read abortion stories from California, visit: Abortion Stories (California)
GUTTMACHER DATA
Estimated Total Abortions (2020): 154,060
The Guttmacher Institute estimates that approximately 154,060 abortions took place in California during 2020. This number includes abortions performed on out-of-state residents but does not include abortions performed on California residents in other states. The table below compares California abortion totals by selected year.
| 2020 | 2017 | 2014 | 2011 | 2008 | 2005 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 154,060 | 132,680 | 157,350 | 181,730 | 214,190 | 208,430 |
Estimated Abortion Percentage (2020): 26.9%
In 2020, an estimated 26.9% of pregnancies in California ended in abortion. This number does not take into account miscarriages. It was arrived at by dividing Guttmacher's abortion estimate by the sum total of live births—as reported by the CDC—and estimated abortions.
Estimated Abortion Rate* (2020): 19.2
The Guttmacher Institute estimates that the 2020 abortion rate for California was 19.2. The 2020 abortion rate across the entire United States was 14.4. The table below compares California abortion rates by selected year.
| 2020 | 2017 | 2014 | 2011 | 2008 | 2005 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 19.2 | 16.4 | 19.5 | 23 | 27.6 | 27.1 |
| U.S. | 14.4 | 13.5 | 14.6 | 16.9 | 19.4 | 19.4 |
*The abortion rate is the number of abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years.
Percentage of All U.S. Abortions (2020): 16.6%
In 2020, approximately 16.6% of all U.S. abortions occurred in California.
Abortion Clinics in California (2017): 161
In 2017, the Guttmacher Institute reports that there were 161 abortion clinics in California and 419 facilities that performed abortion. The table below compares total California abortion facilities by selected year.
| 2017 | 2014 | 2011 | 2008 | 2005 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 419 | 512 | 512 | 522 | 424 |
State Abortion Restrictions (2022):
- An abortion cannot be performed after viability unless the mother's life or health is endangered.
SOURCE: https://www.guttmacher.org/fact-sheet/state-facts-about-abortion-california
CDC DATA
California did not provide state abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control for the last reporting period.
Parent Page:
- State Abortion Statistics: Comparative state abortion stats by rank, total, percentage, and clinics.
Related Entries:
- U.S. Abortion Statistics: Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in the United States.
- U.S. Abortion Law: An overview of the history and legality of abortion in the United States.
- U.S. Abortion History: The 200-year history of abortion in America goes back well before 1973.
For Further Study:
- The Remarkably High Cost of Cheap Sex (Abort73 Blog)
- Does Poverty Lead to Abortion, or Does Abortion Lead to Poverty? (Abort73 Blog)
- The Law Can’t Make Abortion Safe; Birth Control Can’t Make Abortion Rare (Abort73 Blog)
- It’s All the Same: Why Early and Late-Term Abortion are Moral Equivalents (Abort73 Blog)
- The Moral Dilemma of Repeat Abortion (Abort73 Blog)
- Who is Most at Risk to Have an Abortion? (Abort73 Blog)
- Marriage, Contraception, and Unplanned Pregnancy (Abort73 Blog)
