Left-Handed Statistics: How Many People Are Left-Handed? 46 Facts (2026)

Roughly one person in ten writes with the left hand. That share sounds stable, but it has changed a lot over the last 150 years, it differs between countries, and it is higher in some sports than in the rest of the population.

This page gathers the most important numbers on left-handedness, with a focus on the UK and on handwriting and signatures. Every figure is linked to a source listed at the foot of the page.

How many people are left-handed

The answer depends on how you ask the question. Someone who writes with the left hand but throws with the right counts as left-handed in one survey and as mixed-handed in another.

1. About 10.6% of people are left-handed

The largest meta-analysis on the subject, covering 2,396,170 people, puts the best overall estimate of left-handedness at 10.6%. Without elite athletes, who are more often left-handed, the figure is 10.4%.¹

2. The definition moves the number from 9.3% to 18.1%

With the strictest criterion, 9.3% of people count as left-handed. With the most lenient one, which counts everyone who is not clearly right-handed, the share rises to 18.1%.²

3. The study behind the figure covered more than 2.3 million people

The 2020 meta-analysis was led by the University of Athens, with the University of St Andrews leading the UK contribution. It is described as the biggest study of left-handedness ever carried out.³

4. 9.3% of UK Biobank participants are left-handed

Among 501,730 adults in the UK Biobank, 9.3% reported being left-handed and 1.7% said they use both hands equally.⁴

5. 11% in a sample of 1.7 million people

Combining the UK Biobank, 23andMe customers and the International Handedness Consortium gives 1,729,034 people. Of these, 194,198, or 11.0%, were left-handed.⁵

6. The share was the same in the Stone Age

A comparison of Palaeolithic "negative hand" cave paintings, made between 35,000 and 10,000 years ago, with modern French students found no difference in the share of left-handers.⁶

Men vs women

Every large dataset shows the same pattern: men are a little more likely to be left-handed than women.

7. 10.4% of men and 8.4% of women in the UK

In the UK Biobank, with 228,723 men and 273,107 women, 10.4% of men and 8.4% of women were left-handed.⁷

8. 15.6% of men and 12.6% of women in 23andMe data

Among 23andMe customers the shares are higher overall, but the gap remains: 15.6% of men and 12.6% of women said they were left-handed.⁸

9. Men are also more often ambidextrous

About 2% of men and 1.3% of women in the UK Biobank said they were ambidextrous. In the 23andMe sample the figures were 3.45% and 2.61%.⁹

Left-handers in the UK

Britain has some of the best historical data on handedness, and it shows a sharp fall in the 19th century followed by a steady rise in the 20th.

10. 3% of Britons born around 1900 were left-handed

Today about 11% of the British population is left-handed. Among people born in 1900 the share was only 3%, according to Chris McManus of University College London.¹⁰

11. The low point came between 1880 and 1900

Left-handedness fell through most of the 19th century and hit its lowest level of about 3% for people born between roughly 1880 and 1900, before rising again.¹¹

12. Every decade adds about 0.7 percentage points

In the UK Biobank, the probability of being left-handed rose by about 0.7 percentage points for each later decade of birth.¹²

13. A 1953 BBC survey received 6,549 replies

The BBC television programme Right Hand, Left Hand asked viewers about their handedness in 1953. Replies came from people born between 1864 and 1948, and 15.2% said they were left-handed, a figure the researchers consider inflated because left-handers were keener to respond.¹³

14. Left-handed 11-year-olds rose from 6% to 10.4%

In a 1998 House of Commons debate, an MP cited a 1976 study of 11-year-olds in British schools that found 10.4% were left-handed, up from 6% twelve years earlier.¹⁴

Left-handers around the world

Biology sets the baseline, but culture decides how many people actually use their left hand. Where writing with the left hand was discouraged, the share is far lower.

15. The Netherlands leads with 12.95%, China is lowest at 2.64%

A study of 422,772 people in 41 countries found the highest share of left-handers in the Netherlands, at 12.95%, and the lowest in China, at 2.64%.¹⁵

16. Indonesia, Vietnam and Hong Kong follow at the bottom

After China, the lowest shares were found in Indonesia (3.39%), Vietnam (4.26%), Hong Kong (4.85%) and Taiwan (5.16%), well below the worldwide average of 10.6%.¹⁶

17. 8% of Hong Kong schoolchildren write left-handed

A more recent study of Hong Kong schoolchildren found that 8% wrote with the left hand, more than earlier Asian datasets suggested.¹⁷

Genes, twins and early childhood

Left-handedness runs in families, but genes explain only part of it. Much of the variation comes from factors unique to each person.

18. Genes explain about a quarter of handedness

A joint analysis of 35 twin samples with 21,127 twin pairs put the genetic share of handedness at 25.47%. The remaining 74.53% is explained by factors unique to the individual.¹⁸

19. Two left-handed parents: 26% chance of a left-handed child

Two right-handed parents have about a 9% chance of a left-handed child. If one parent is left-handed the chance rises to 19%, and if both are it reaches 26%, based on 25 datasets with more than 72,600 people.¹⁹

20. Four regions of the genome are linked to left-handedness

An Oxford study of about 400,000 UK Biobank participants, including 38,332 left-handers, found four genomic regions linked to left-handedness.²⁰

21. Twins are 1.4 times more likely to be left-handed

A 2022 meta-analysis found that twins have 1.40 times the odds of being left-handed compared with children born on their own.²¹

22. Handedness can show in the womb

In a follow-up of 75 babies observed sucking their thumb before birth, all 60 who sucked the right thumb were right-handed at age 10 to 12. Of the 15 who sucked the left thumb, 10 were left-handed.²²

23. By age 6 most children have a clear preference

NHS guidance says children usually show a clear hand preference by the age of 6, and that a left-handed child should not be made to switch hands.²³

Left-handed writing

The Latin alphabet runs from left to right, which suits the right hand. Left-handers push the pen instead of pulling it, and their hand moves over what they have just written.

24. The NHS says left-handers can struggle when learning to write

NHS children's health guidance notes that left-handed children "can struggle when learning to write" and often smudge their writing with their hand.²⁴

25. Most left-handers use the "hook" posture

An NHS leaflet explains that a left-hander's hand can cover what has been written, making the page look smudged, and that most left-handers curl the wrist into a "hook" above the line.²⁵

26. 51% of left-handers write with an inverted hand

Among 232 left-handed Danish conscripts, 51% used an inverted, hook-like writing posture, 21% a normal one, and 28% could not be clearly classified.²⁶

27. Handedness does not decide handwriting quality

In a study of 182 Greek children aged 7 to 12, handedness was not significantly related to writing performance or speed, although left-handers were over-represented among the weakest writers.²⁷

28. No speed advantage for either hand

A large Irish study of handwriting speed in pupils aged 8 to 18 found that neither left-handed nor right-handed children wrote consistently faster.²⁸

29. Left-handed pupils lean closer to the page

In a study of 84 primary pupils, 11% of them left-handed, left-handers wrote just as fast and as neatly, but from the second year of school tilted their heads closer to the table and lifted their shoulders more.²⁹

Left-handed signatures

A signature is the piece of handwriting people produce most often, and forensic document examiners regularly have to judge which hand wrote it. The research shows that some clues exist, but none is foolproof.

30. Ballpoint "sister lines" point to the writing hand

A ballpoint pen often leaves fine parallel "sister lines". They appeared in 50% of right-handed and about 39% of left-handed writers, and their direction gave examiners a likelihood ratio of 48 for identifying a left-handed writer.³⁰

31. The crossbar of a "t" gives left-handers away

A model based on the stroke direction of the letter "t" classified left-handed writing correctly in 100% of cases and right-handed writing correctly in 73% to 97% of cases.³¹

32. Experts match writing from both hands with 94% accuracy

Forensic document examiners matched writing from a person's dominant and non-dominant hand with 93.75% accuracy for joined-up writing and 87.22% for print, compared with 81.02% and 74.07% for laypeople.³²

For left-handers this has a practical side: a signature that flows from left to right with few pen lifts is easier to write without smudging. If you want to try out styles that suit your hand, you can test them in our free signature generator.

Myths: lifespan, IQ and income

Few traits have attracted as many myths as left-handedness. Most of the headline claims fall apart once the data is looked at carefully.

33. The claim that left-handers die 9 years earlier is a statistical artefact

A 1991 study claimed that left-handers die about nine years younger. A 2023 model showed that the rising share of left-handers over the 20th century alone produces a 9.3-year gap, without any real difference in mortality.³³

34. Corrected for birth year, the gap is 0.43 years

Once the year of birth is taken into account, the average difference in age at death between left- and right-handers shrinks to 0.43 years.³⁴

35. No meaningful IQ difference

A meta-analysis of 18 studies with 20,442 people found right-handers' IQ only marginally higher than left-handers' (an effect size of 0.07), and no difference at all for mixed-handers.³⁵

36. Left-handed men earn more, left-handed women less

A study in the Journal of Human Resources found that left-handed men earn slightly more than right-handed men, while left-handed women are paid significantly less than right-handed women.³⁶

37. Left-handers are not over-represented among high scorers

A Harvard Kennedy School analysis of US and UK data found left-handers scored about a tenth of a standard deviation lower on cognitive tests and were not over-represented at the top end.³⁷

Sport and politics

In one-on-one sports, left-handers have a surprise advantage: opponents rarely face them, so they are harder to read.

38. Up to 39.6% of top fencers are left-handed

In the French national fencing championships from 1979 to 1998, left-handers made up between 30.2% and 39.6% of the top 32, nearly four times their share of the population.³⁸

39. Around 30% of elite bowlers and pitchers use the left hand

Among elite cricket bowlers and baseball pitchers between 2009 and 2014, 21.78% to 30.39% bowled or pitched left-handed. In Major League Baseball the share has been stable at around 30% since the 1940s.³⁹

40. A quarter of top male table tennis players are left-handed

Between 2007 and 2016, 25.18% of men and 18.64% of women in the world table tennis top 200 played left-handed.⁴⁰

41. 17% of MMA fighters fight southpaw

In a study of 1,468 mixed martial artists, 17% fought from a left-handed (southpaw) stance, compared with 10 to 12% of left-handers in the general population.⁴¹

42. Left-handed fighters win the ranking 54% of the time

In a study of nearly 10,000 boxers and MMA fighters, a randomly chosen left-handed fighter outranked a randomly chosen right-hander 54% of the time.⁴²

43. 7 of the last 16 US presidents were left-handed

Seven of the last 16 US presidents were left-handed, a share of 44%. The first 19 presidents were all right-handed.⁴³

Culture and language

44. The Left-Handers Club has over 140,000 members

The UK-based Left-Handers Club was formed in 1990 and says it has more than 140,000 members.⁴⁴

45. International Left-Handers Day is 13 August

The Left-Handers Club launched the first International Left-Handers Day on 13 August 1992. Some sources trace the date back to an American proposal from 1976.⁴⁵

46. "Sinister" simply means "left"

The English word "sinister" comes from the Latin sinister, meaning "left" or "on the left side". It came into English through Old French in the 14th century.⁴⁶

The key lesson behind these numbers: left-handedness is common, partly inherited and long misunderstood. For left-handers, the practical questions are about writing posture, smudging and finding a signature that is comfortable to write. You can try different styles in the signature generator, or have a unique signature designed for you with our signature design service.

Frequently asked questions

How many people are left-handed?

About 10.6% of people worldwide are left-handed, according to a 2020 meta-analysis of more than 2.3 million people. Depending on the definition, the figure ranges from 9.3% to 18.1%.

How many people in the UK are left-handed?

Around 9 to 11%. In the UK Biobank, 9.3% of more than 500,000 adults said they were left-handed, and younger generations show higher shares than older ones.

Are more men than women left-handed?

Yes. In the UK Biobank 10.4% of men and 8.4% of women were left-handed, and the same gap appears in every large dataset.

Can you tell from a signature whether someone is left-handed?

Sometimes. Forensic studies show that stroke direction and the "sister lines" left by a ballpoint pen give useful clues, but there is no single feature that reliably reveals the writing hand.

Sources

1. 1Papadatou-Pastou et al., Psychological Bulletin (American Psychological Association) (europepmc.org)
2. 2Papadatou-Pastou et al., Psychological Bulletin (American Psychological Association) (europepmc.org)
3. 3University of St Andrews, world's biggest study of left-handedness (st-andrews.ac.uk)
4. 4de Kovel et al., Scientific Reports (UK Biobank) (nih.gov)
5. 5Cuellar-Partida et al., Nature Human Behaviour (nih.gov)
6. 6Faurie and Raymond, Biology Letters (Royal Society) (europepmc.org)
7. 7de Kovel et al., Scientific Reports (UK Biobank) (nih.gov)
8. 8Cuellar-Partida et al., Nature Human Behaviour (nih.gov)
9. 9Cuellar-Partida et al., Nature Human Behaviour (nih.gov)
10. 10National Geographic, the fall and rise of lefties in Victorian England (nationalgeographic.com)
11. 11McManus et al., Laterality (Taylor and Francis) (europepmc.org)
12. 12de Kovel et al., Scientific Reports (UK Biobank) (nih.gov)
13. 13McManus et al., Laterality (Taylor and Francis) (europepmc.org)
14. 14UK Parliament, Hansard, Left-handed children (1998) (parliament.uk)
15. 15Proceedings of the Royal Society B, handedness in 41 countries (nih.gov)
16. 16Psychology Today, which country has the lowest percentage of left-handers (psychologytoday.com)
17. 17BMC Psychology, handedness in Hong Kong schoolchildren (europepmc.org)
18. 18Medland et al., Twin Research and Human Genetics (europepmc.org)
19. 19Psychology Today, does left-handedness run in families (McManus and Bryden data) (psychologytoday.com)
20. 20University of Oxford, via ScienceDaily (sciencedaily.com)
21. 21BMC Psychology, twins and handedness meta-analysis (europepmc.org)
22. 22Hepper et al., Neuropsychologia (europepmc.org)
23. 23NHS Bedfordshire and Luton Children's Health, getting ready to write (nhs.uk)
24. 24NHS Bedfordshire and Luton Children's Health, getting ready to write (nhs.uk)
25. 25University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust, The Left-Handed Writer (uhd.nhs.uk)
26. 26Neuropsychologia, writing posture of left-handers (europepmc.org)
27. 27Perceptual and Motor Skills (SAGE), handedness and handwriting (europepmc.org)
28. 28Occupational Therapy International, handwriting speed study (europepmc.org)
29. 29European Psychiatry, writing posture in primary pupils (nih.gov)
30. 30Journal of Forensic Sciences (Wiley), sister lines and handedness (europepmc.org)
31. 31Journal of Forensic Sciences (Wiley), stroke direction of the letter t (europepmc.org)
32. 32Journal of the American Society of Questioned Document Examiners (asqde.org)
33. 33Archives of Public Health (BMC), left-handedness and age at death (europepmc.org)
34. 34Archives of Public Health (BMC), left-handedness and age at death (europepmc.org)
35. 35Ntolka and Papadatou-Pastou, Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews (europepmc.org)
36. 36Denny and O'Sullivan, Journal of Human Resources (repec.org)
37. 37Goodman, Harvard Kennedy School (harvard.edu)
38. 38Royal Society Open Science, left-handedness in sport (nih.gov)
39. 39Royal Society Open Science, left-handedness in sport (nih.gov)
40. 40Royal Society Open Science, left-handedness in sport (nih.gov)
41. 41Study of 1,468 mixed martial artists (nih.gov)
42. 42CNN, left-handed boxers (cnn.com)
43. 43Booth Western Art Museum, presidents left vs right (boothmuseum.org)
44. 44Left-Handers Club (lefthandersday.com)
45. 45Left-Handers Club, International Left-Handers Day (lefthandersday.com)
46. 46Online Etymology Dictionary, sinister (etymonline.com)