New data from the Penington Institute has revealed that 2,272 Australians died of drug-induced deaths in 2023, with the rate of unintentional overdoses increasing to nearly 80 per cent. On average, more than six people were dying per day in 2023, or more than one death every four hours.
People in their 40s and 50s are now the most likely to die from accidental overdose. This new edition of Australia’s Annual Overdose Report sadly shows that this is the tenth year running that over 2,000 overdose deaths have been recorded.
NSW recorded the highest drug-induced fatalities, with 587. Victoria reached 572 and recorded its highest ever rate of unintentional deaths. (Sadly this is not unexpected, given these are the two most populous states.) South Australia recorded 104 unintentional drug-induced deaths, and 144 drug-induced deaths overall.
Opioids, including heroin, were the most common drug, responsible for 877 unintentional deaths, while stimulants like ice were responsible for 772, and benzos for 514. It is important to note when considering these figures that most overdoses involve more than one drug being taken at the same time.
Illicit drug policy researcher Alison Ritter at the University of New South Wales said every one of these deaths were preventable. “The fact that the number of deaths is higher than our annual road toll should make governments stand up and take notice,” she told the ABC. “[And] the majority of them are men, the majority of them are middle-aged […] There is a lot of work to be done in this area.”
Overdose affects people in every part of Australia, in both cities and regional areas. In 2023, there were 6.8 unintentional overdose deaths per 100,000 people outside of capital cities, compared to 6.2 deaths per 100,000 people in greater capital cities.
Sadly, Indigenous people die of overdoses at 2 (benzodiazepines) to more than 4 (stimulants) times the rate of non-Indigenous people.
The annual number of overdose deaths has almost doubled between 2001 and 2023. Since 2001, there have been 42,526 overdose deaths in Australia.
“Pause and consider that figure,” said Penington Institute’s chief executive John Ryan. “It’s as if a Boeing 737 plane full of people crashed every month, or the road toll reverted to the horrific numbers in the 1980s.
“On average, overdose takes six loved ones away from families and communities each day. These are deaths that our political leaders sometimes appear to take as a given. But these deaths are avoidable.
“Much like we’ve adopted an ambitious ‘towards zero’ attitude to comprehensively pushing down the road toll, Australia must now embrace a similarly uncompromising push to stop overdose deaths.”
Naloxone is an overdose treatment available across South Australia. Nasally applied and quick-acting, it can save lives. See here for more information on how you can access it.
Posted 18 June 2026
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