What we count
The number of people without a safely managed drinking-water service under the WHO and UNICEF definition.
People without safely managed drinking water
How many people still lack drinking water that is available at home, safe and accessible when needed.
Published value
WORLDRelated numbers in context
2,482,191,781freshwater withdrawn this year
3,400,000,000people without safely managed sanitation
What lies behind this number
The number of people without a safely managed drinking-water service under the WHO and UNICEF definition.
How the source derives it
The source harmonises national observations and surveys to make the global figure as comparable across countries as possible.
What one number cannot show
This is the latest published global estimate, not a count changing every second; national data quality varies.
Source value
The displayed value is the latest global figure reported by WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for 2024.
How the value is used: The value remains unchanged until a new aggregate figure is published.
Published value2,100,000,000people
- Period
- 2024
- Status
- published
- Primary data source
- WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme
How the number is calculated
We display the latest published global figure without a time-based calculation.
Formula used
V = latest published valueReference value2,100,000,0002024
Data typeunchangedwithout time calculation
DisplaypublishedWHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme
Source value
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme reports the latest published figure used on this page for 2024.
Value period
We display the latest published global figure without a time-based calculation.
Display
The published value is shown without moving final digits.
Where the data comes from
The source value comes from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme and refers to 2024. It is the latest figure published by this source. The source harmonises national observations and surveys to make the global figure as comparable across countries as possible.
Latest published and verified source value
- Publisher
- WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme
- Data period
- 2024
- Verified
- 12 August 2026
- Coverage
- Worldwide
- Use
- Direct display of the latest figure