Gender differences in experiences of violence and unwanted sexual behaviour in Canada, 2025
Released: 2026-03-31
In 2025, certain types of violence, such as intimate partner violence, sexual assault and unwanted behaviours in public, were more prevalent among women than men. Other types, like physical assault by someone other than an intimate partner, were more common among men.
Several forms of violence disproportionately impact women and girls. Furthermore, many populations—such as Indigenous women, women with disabilities and lesbian, gay or bisexual individuals—are at greater risk of experiencing violence. These intersecting characteristics can also influence other factors related to victimization, such as levels of reporting to police. In addition, among certain populations, the availability of appropriate support services may also be limited.
Gender-based violence—defined as violence that is committed against someone based on their gender identity, gender expression or perceived gender—includes a broad range of behaviours, from those that may not meet the criminal threshold (e.g., unwanted sexual attention while in public) to criminal acts (e.g., physical and sexual assault). These experiences often have significant short-, medium- and long-term consequences on the health and well-being of victims.
In 2025, the Survey of Safety in Public and Private Spaces (SSPPS) was conducted for the second time, following its initial cycle in 2018. The Juristat article "Gender differences in experiences of violence and unwanted sexual behaviour in Canada, 2025," released today, focuses on the relationship between gender and the prevalence, nature and severity of violence.
More than 4 in 10 people living in Canada have been physically or sexually assaulted in their lifetime
A considerable proportion of people aged 15 years and older in Canada have been victims of violent crime at some point in their life. According to the 2025 SSPPS, nearly 15 million people have been physically or sexually assaulted since the age of 15 years, representing 44% of the population aged 15 years and older.
This proportion varied depending on the type of violence and individual characteristics. For instance, in 2025, almost half (49%) of all women aged 25 to 34 years reported having been sexually assaulted in their lifetime, and over half of Indigenous women reported having been sexually assaulted (52%) or physically assaulted (57%) in their lifetime.
Lifetime experiences of violence were also more common among women and men who were lesbian, gay or bisexual, and among those with a disability.
Prevalence of physical and sexual assault is similar to 2018
Just over 2 million people living in Canada, or 5.8% of people aged 15 years and older, were victims of physical or sexual assault in the 12 months preceding the 2025 SSPPS. This was statistically similar to 2018, when 6.2% of the population indicated that they had been physically or sexually assaulted in the previous 12 months.
In 2025, the prevalence of sexual assault in the previous 12 months was three times higher among women (3.2%) than men (1.1%). Sexual assault was more common among women than men both in the context of intimate partner violence (2.0% among women compared with 0.4% among men) and when the violence was not committed by an intimate partner (2.4% compared with 0.9%).
Chart 1
Women's experiences of physical and sexual assault in the past 12 months, by context of victimization, 2018 and 2025
Chart 2
Men's experiences of physical and sexual assault in the past 12 months, by context of victimization, 2018 and 2025
Outside incidents that occurred in an intimate relationship, physical assault was more prevalent among men (3.7%) than women (2.6%) in 2025. Meanwhile, the prevalence of physical assault by an intimate partner was the same among women and men (both at 2.5%).
In addition to physical and sexual assault, intimate partner violence includes emotional, psychological and financial abuse. In 2025, 13% of women experienced at least one of these types of violence on at least one occasion in the previous year, slightly higher than the proportion of men (12%).
Prevalence of violent victimization higher in the Northwest Territories and Alberta, and lower in New Brunswick and Quebec
When comparing provinces and territories, the overall prevalence of physical and sexual assault was higher than average in the Northwest Territories (10.2%) and Alberta (6.9%) in 2025. In the Northwest Territories, differences relative to the rest of the country were seen in the prevalence of victimization among women, particularly for physical assault. In Alberta, the difference was primarily attributable to a higher level of physical assault among men.
In contrast, the prevalence of victimization recorded in New Brunswick (4.5%) and Quebec (4.4%) was significantly lower than the national average in 2025. In New Brunswick, this was attributable to a lower prevalence of sexual assault, while in Quebec, it was the result of both physical and sexual assault being less prevalent among both women and men.
Certain populations more at risk of physical and sexual assault
In addition to gender, many intersecting characteristics increase the likelihood of experiencing certain types of violent victimization. Consistent with previous findings, in 2025, both women and men were more likely to be victims of physical or sexual assault if they were younger, were lesbian, gay or bisexual, were First Nations, Métis or Inuit (Indigenous), or had a disability.
Compared with 2018, the prevalence of physical and sexual assault in 2025 was similar among most demographic groups. Among the few exceptions, there was a decline in the prevalence of sexual assault among single women. Likewise, a smaller proportion of single men and men aged 15 to 24 years were physically assaulted.
Sexual assault continues to be underreported to police
In 2025, fewer than 1 in 10 victims of sexual assault (9%) stated that the most serious incident they experienced was reported to police, well below the proportion for victims of physical assault (28%).
While sexual assault remained far less likely than physical assault to be reported to police, the proportion observed in 2025 marked an increase compared with 2018, when 4% of victims reported the most serious incident of sexual assault they experienced to police. Compared with 2018, sexual assault was more likely to come to the attention of police for both women and men who were victims in 2025. In contrast, there was no statistically significant change in levels of reporting for physical assault from 2018 (29%) to 2025 (28%).
In 2025, about 7 in 10 victims of sexual assault who reported to police said that they were informed about services, programs or resources, were treated with respect, and felt as though they were believed. Despite these generally positive perceptions, when evaluating their overall experience, roughly half felt that speaking to police was not worth the time and effort it took.
Along with the increase in reporting sexual assault to police, the proportion of victims of sexual assault who used or consulted victims' services more than doubled from 2018 (7%) to 2025 (17%). There was no significant change in the use of services by victims of physical assault.
In 2025, women who were sexually assaulted were less likely to contact or use victims' services (17%) than women who were physically assaulted (22%). The opposite was seen among men; a higher proportion of those who were sexually assaulted reached out to victims' services (16%), compared with those who were physically assaulted (10%).
Regardless of the victim's gender and the type of victimization, people who did not use or consult victims' services most commonly stated that they did not access services because they did not want or need help, or they felt that the incident was too minor.
One in five women experiences unwanted behaviour in public spaces
In addition to physical and sexual assault, gender-based violence includes acts or behaviours that may not meet the criminal threshold, such as unwanted sexual attention, unwanted physical contact or unwanted comments about gender or sexual orientation. When looking specifically at experiences of unwanted behaviours in public spaces, 21% of women experienced at least one form of unwanted sexual behaviour measured by the 2025 SSPPS in the 12 months preceding the survey, nearly three times higher than the proportion of men (8%).
Of the eight behaviours measured by the survey in 2025, seven were more likely to be experienced by women than men, with the largest gender gap being for unwanted sexual attention (14% among women compared with 2% among men). The lone exception was being insulted, mistreated, ignored or excluded because of sexual orientation, which was equally likely among women (1.8%) and men (1.6%).
When looking at the subset of behaviours that were measured in both the 2018 and 2025 surveys, the prevalence of experiencing unwanted behaviours in public declined. Among women, the proportion experiencing these behaviours decreased from one in three (32%) in 2018 to one in five (19%) in 2025, while among men, it declined from 13% in 2018 to 7% in 2025.
As with other forms of violence, the prevalence of experiencing unwanted behaviours in public varied considerably depending on demographic characteristics. For both women and men, the patterns observed were similar to those seen for sexual assault, with the prevalence being higher among those who are younger, those who are Indigenous, those who are lesbian, gay or bisexual and those with a disability.
Note to readers
The Juristat article is based on results from the Survey of Safety in Public and Private Spaces (SSPPS), conducted for the second time in 2025, following the initial cycle in 2018. The SSPPS collects information on experiences and characteristics of violent victimization, as well as the continuum of other unwanted sexual experiences while in public, online or at work.
Today's release provides a general overview of results from the 2025 SSPPS. Additional analysis and reports are forthcoming, including a profile of experiences of violence among the gender diverse population, an examination of experiences of victimization among those living in rural areas and detailed analysis of intimate partner violence.
In the SSPPS, physical assault includes:
- experiencing the following from an intimate partner (a current or former spouse, common-law partner, dating partner or other type of intimate partner): being shaken, pushed, grabbed, thrown, hit, bit, kicked, slapped, beaten, choked, or threatened with harm or death; having a weapon used or threatened to be used against them; or having an object thrown at them;
- being threatened, hit, slapped, pushed, grabbed, shot, beaten, or threatened with an attack or a weapon, by anyone other than an intimate partner (e.g., family member, acquaintance, stranger).
Sexual assault includes:
- being forced (or experiencing an attempt to force them) into having sex, or being made to perform sex acts that they did not want to perform, by an intimate partner (a current or former spouse, common-law partner, dating partner or other type of intimate partner);
- experiencing the following from anyone other than an intimate partner (e.g., family member, acquaintance, stranger): being subjected to unwanted touching, grabbing, kissing or fondling; being forced (or experiencing an attempt to force them) into unwanted sexual activity by physical threat; or experiencing any other sexual activity where they were unable to consent because they were drugged, intoxicated, manipulated or forced other than physically.
The questions and definitions used in the SSPPS broadly align with the definitions of physical and sexual assault in the Criminal Code and with those used in other victimization surveys in Canada.
Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is sometimes necessary to protect the confidentiality of responses. In these cases, individuals in the category "non-binary people" are distributed into the other two gender categories. Unless otherwise indicated in the text, the category "men" includes men, as well as some non-binary people and some respondents who did not state their gender, while the category "women" includes women, as well as some non-binary people and some respondents who did not state their gender. A fact sheet on gender concepts, Filling the gaps: Information on gender in the 2021 Census, is also available.
As the survey asked broadly about all experiences of violence, key gender differences in the prevalence, nature and severity of unwanted behaviours and violent victimization were explored to examine gender-based violence in Canada.
Products
The article "Gender differences in experiences of violence and unwanted sexual behaviour in Canada, 2025" is now available as part of the publication Juristat (85-002-X).
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
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