How common is detransition among trans people?
Executive summary
Recent studies and reviews show detransition is uncommon but estimates vary by definition and method: a Tel Aviv clinic cohort found a 1.87% cumulative detransition rate over ~5 years (95% CI 0.86–2.88%) [1]. Large surveys that ask whether people ever detransition report higher lifetime proportions (8–13% in major U.S. surveys), often including temporary reversions and social factors [2] [3].
1. Why “how common” depends on the question you ask
“Detransition” is not a single, uniform outcome: it can mean temporarily stopping hormones, legally or socially reverting, or fully reversing surgeries. Academic reviews stress that detransition and regret are different concepts and that prevalence depends on whether studies count temporary changes, social detransition, medical discontinuation, or surgical regret [3] [4]. Because definitions vary, headline rates range from well below 1% in some clinic follow-ups to several percent or higher in broad surveys [1] [2] [4].
2. Clinic follow-ups and medical cohorts point to low rates
A recent systematic follow-up of 709 adults treated at a major Tel Aviv gender clinic tracked outcomes for a median of 58.4 months and — after actively following people who left clinic care — identified 13 detransitions among 694 people with known outcomes, a cumulative rate of 1.87% (95% CI 0.86–2.88%) [1]. Long-term surgical cohort data historically report extremely low surgical regret after gonadectomy (e.g., 0.6% for transwomen, 0.3% for transmen in cited cohorts), though loss to follow-up may underestimate rare events [3] [5].
3. Large surveys capture a broader, more varied picture
Population and community surveys ask different questions and therefore produce higher, lifetime-based estimates. The U.S. Transgender Survey asked if respondents had ever detransitioned and found about 8% had done so at least temporarily; earlier syntheses reported 11% for transgender women and 4% for transgender men in some samples [2]. The 2022 U.S. Trans Survey reported 9% of respondents had gone back to living as their sex assigned at birth at some point, and many of those described social pressure as the dominant reason [6].
4. Reasons people detransition: social pressure often tops the list
Multiple studies emphasize external pressures — family rejection, community transphobia, legal and policy barriers, and loss of access to care — as common drivers of detransition rather than a straightforward “change of mind” about identity [5] [6] [7]. For example, the USTS and mixed‑methods research found many detransitioners cited it being “too hard to be trans in my community” or family pressure, and one analysis found bans on gender-affirming care drove some detransitions (~6% in one recent study) [6] [7].
5. Measurement limits and bias in the literature
Researchers caution that many studies suffer from methodological limitations: nonprobability sampling, loss to follow-up, short follow-up windows, and conflation of temporary discontinuation with permanent detransition [8] [3] [4]. Systematic reviews call for long-term, well‑tracked cohorts; one review concluded the subject has been “insufficiently investigated” and urged careful, standardized definitions [8].
6. Competing narratives and how data are used politically
Journalists and advocacy groups on different sides of the debate draw different inferences from the same evidence. Some outlets highlight the clinic and surgical‑regret studies to argue detransition is rare [1] [3], while others emphasize survey findings and stories of people forced to revert to argue detransition is socially driven and often not true “regret” [6] [5]. Reporters note anti‑trans policy discussions frequently amplify higher, lifetime survey numbers even though clinic‑based prospective follow-ups show lower rates [7].
7. What we can say with confidence — and what we can’t
Available sources consistently find most people who transition do not later report permanent regret; surgical regret rates in long-term surgical cohorts are very low [3] [5]. Available sources do not mention a single, settled global percentage because estimates depend on definition, population, and study design [8] [4]. Researchers agree that more standardized, long-term follow-up and clarity in definitions are needed to reconcile clinic-based and survey-based estimates [8].
8. Practical takeaway for readers and policymakers
If your interest is clinical risk after medical or surgical care, clinic cohorts and surgical series show detransition/regret is rare [1] [3]. If your interest is lifetime patterns in broader communities, surveys find higher proportions who have ever detransitioned — often temporarily and frequently for external reasons like stigma or loss of care [2] [6]. Both perspectives matter; policy or clinical guidance should reflect the nuance in the evidence rather than a single, decontextualized number [8] [7].