988 Minnesota Lifeline Data

The Minnesota Department of Health works with the state's 988 Minnesota Lifeline Centers and the national 988 Lifeline administrator to collect, track, and analyze 988 data. MDH publishes an annual data summary below that highlights trends in volume, outcomes of contacts, and demographic information.  

Important things to know about 988 Lifeline data

Data sources: Data on the 988 Minnesota Lifeline is obtained through two sources: the national 988 Lifeline administrator Vibrant Emotional Health (Vibrant) and the 988 Minnesota Lifeline Centers. The data below excludes contacts answered by the specialty lines (Veterans Crisis Line, Spanish language services, LGBTQI+ youth and young adult line, and videophone services for people who are deaf or hard of hearing) or the National Backup centers. 

Data duplication: There is known data duplication in the current data set. This means the same individual is counted multiple times if they contacted the 988 Minnesota Lifeline multiple times in 2024. Therefore, the following data represents the number of contacts made to the 988 Minnesota Lifeline, not the number of individuals.

Data demographics: Contacting the 988 Minnesota Lifeline can be anonymous, and help-seekers are not required to disclose any demographic information to receive support. Therefore, the demographic information reported by 988 Minnesota Lifeline Centers is not an accurate representation of all help-seekers.

Quick facts

• 988 Minnesota Lifeline contacts (calls, texts, and chats) answered: Preliminary 2024 data shows that 988 Minnesota Lifeline Centers answered 90,080 contacts, a 75% increase from 2023.
• Yearly growth: Overall, 988 Minnesota Lifeline contacts have increased throughout 2024. 988 Minnesota Lifeline contacts answered increased by 86% in December compared to January.
• Answer rates and wait times:
  • The average monthly answer rate in 2024 was 91%.
  • The monthly average speed to answer was:
    • 19 seconds for calls – Refers to the average time from when a call completes the automated service selection greeting to when the call is answered by a 988 Minnesota Lifeline Center.
    • 16 seconds for chats and texts - Refers to the average time from when a contact completes the pre-chat survey, which includes service selection, to when a contact is answered by a 988 Minnesota Lifeline Center.
  • These high answer rates and short wait times are a result of investments to expand the 988 Minnesota Lifeline workforce.

• Support needs: Each contact answered by a 988 Minnesota Lifeline Center is categorized into one of four categories listed below. The percentages indicate the proportion of answered 988 Minnesota Lifeline contacts that fall into each category. Support needs trends in 2024 closely mirrored 2022 and 2023.

  • Emotional support (45%) – Support for emotional concerns that hasn’t reached crisis level.
  • Crisis support (24%) – Immediate intervention for scenarios such as suicidal behaviors or substance use crises.
  • Non-productive (22%) – Connecting with the 988 Minnesota Lifeline for reasons outside of the intended use (i.e., prank calls, wrong numbers, etc.).
  • Informational (9%) – Non-crisis referrals and resource guidance.

  NOTE: October and November data are preliminary due to an issue in Vibrant’s warehouse impacting chat and text volume. The number of contacts answered is underreported for these months.

In 2024, the vast majority (95%) of 988 Minnesota Lifeline contacts answered, excluding non-productive contacts, did not require support from a higher-level of service such as mobile crisis or emergency services. These contacts are categorized as stabilized meaning additional support from outside agencies was not necessary.

In 2024, approximately 51% of help-seekers provided their gender identity. Among those that reported their gender identity, 57% identified as female. The vast majority (95%) of help-seekers did not provide their sexual orientation.

In 2024, roughly 49% of help-seekers provided their age. Among those who provided their age, the most common (31%) age group was 25–44 years old. The large majority (97%) of help-seekers did not provide their race or ethnicity. 

988 summary reports

• Minnesota 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline - 2023 Summary (PDF)
• Minnesota 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline - 2022 Summary (PDF)

Updates on the latest news and information about 988 will be made through the monthly Suicide Prevention newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter.

If you need immediate emotional or mental health support, or are worried about someone else, please call or text 988 or visit the 988 Lifeline chat to connect online with a trained counselor.