About 35% of women ages 15 to 49 in the United States have had anal sex with a male partner at least once in their lifetime, based on CDC data collected between 2017 and 2019. That number has held relatively steady over the past decade, and it represents a significant increase from earlier generations, when reported rates were much lower.
Lifetime vs. Recent Participation
The lifetime figure of 35.1% comes from the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), the CDC’s large, nationally representative survey of sexual behavior. But “ever tried it” tells a different story than “does it regularly.” Among sexually active women, roughly 21% to 23% reported anal sex with a male partner in the past 12 months across multiple NSFG survey cycles from 2011 through 2019. That proportion stayed remarkably stable over the entire period, suggesting this isn’t a rapidly growing trend but rather a consistent part of the sexual repertoire for about one in five sexually active women.
Past-month rates are lower still. In a 2010 national probability study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, only a small fraction of women in any age group reported anal sex in the previous 30 days, indicating that even among women who practice it, anal sex is an occasional rather than routine activity for most.
How Rates Differ by Age
Age plays a clear role in how common anal sex is in a given year. Women in their early twenties report the highest recent participation rates. In the Journal of Sexual Medicine data, 23.4% of women ages 20 to 24 and 21.1% of women ages 25 to 29 had anal sex in the past year. Rates drop off gradually after that: about 16.5% for women in their thirties, 10% for women in their forties, and under 5% for women 60 and older.
Among teenagers, past-year rates are much lower, around 4% to 5% for those 16 and 17, then jumping to 18% by ages 18 to 19. That sharp increase likely reflects broader patterns of sexual debut rather than anything unique to anal sex specifically.
Why Women Say They Try It
Research published by the Guttmacher Institute, based on qualitative interviews with women, found a wide range of motivations. Physical pleasure and curiosity were commonly cited, with many women describing anal sex as a way to try something new or add variety to their sexual relationships. Emotional closeness mattered too. Women frequently said that intimacy with their partner was either the main motivation or a precondition for being willing to try it.
Partner request was another major factor. Many women said they engaged in anal sex primarily to please a male partner, sometimes even when they expected it to be painful. In those cases, women often described their own satisfaction as tied to fulfilling their partner’s desires. Some women also mentioned that anal sex carries no pregnancy risk, which factored into their willingness. The research made clear that coercion exists on this spectrum as well: some women reported engaging in anal sex to avoid conflict or violence in their relationships.
STI Risk Is Higher Than With Vaginal Sex
From a health standpoint, unprotected anal sex carries a meaningfully higher risk of sexually transmitted infections compared to vaginal sex. A study in the American Journal of Public Health found that women who had unprotected anal intercourse were 2.6 times as likely to report an STI diagnosis as women who had only unprotected vaginal sex.
The reason is anatomical. The lining of the rectum is thinner and more fragile than the vaginal lining, making small tears more likely during penetration. The anal sphincter muscle can also contribute to tissue trauma. These micro-tears create easier pathways for bacteria and viruses to enter the bloodstream. Condom use during anal sex substantially reduces this risk, but usage rates are low. NSFG data shows only 15% to 18% of women reported using a condom the last time they had anal sex, compared to higher rates for vaginal intercourse.
Putting the Numbers in Context
Anal sex remains less common than both vaginal and oral sex among American women. In nationally representative surveys, roughly three-quarters of adolescents and young adults report vaginal intercourse, about two-thirds report oral sex, and around 11% report anal intercourse by their late twenties. By midlife, the lifetime figure for anal sex climbs to about one in three women, but it’s still practiced far less frequently than other forms of sex on a week-to-week basis.
These numbers also come with a caveat about reporting. Sexual behavior surveys rely on self-disclosure, and stigma can lead to underreporting. The true prevalence may be somewhat higher than what shows up in survey data, though the NSFG uses audio-assisted self-interviewing specifically to reduce embarrassment and improve accuracy.