Since they live in the public eye, some celebrities feel they not only have to come out to their friends and family but also to their fans.
To do so, they often turn to social media or news outlets to announce they identify as LGBTQ - this year, stars like Lili Reinhart, Elliot Page, and Jameela Jamil have done just that.
From famous actors to YouTube celebrities, here are 17 celebrities who have come out so far this year.
"Real Housewives of Orange County" star Braunwyn Windham-Burke came out as a lesbian in December.
In an interview with GLAAD, Windham-Burke announced the news publicly for the first time.
"I like women. I'm gay," she said in the interview. "I'm a member of the LGBTQ+ community. It has taken me 42 years to say that but I am so proud of where I am right now. I'm so happy where I am. To be able to be comfortable in my own skin after so long is just so nice."
The "Real Housewives" star added, "I'm just now starting to feel like I'm becoming the woman I'm supposed to be. I've always known it, but it took me, personally, 42 years to be comfortable in my own skin to say that."
Windham-Burke also revealed that she has a girlfriend, but she plans to remain married to her husband, Sean Burke, with whom she shares seven children.
Also in December, Elliot Page, the actor formerly known as Ellen Page, announced he is transgender.
Page, who is known for his Oscar-nominated performance in "Juno" and his part in Netflix's "Umbrella Academy," announced in a tweet in December that he is transgender.
"Hi friends, I want to share with you that I am trans, my pronouns are he/they and my name is Elliot," he wrote. "I feel lucky to be writing this. To be here. To have arrived at this place in my life."
The actor continued, "The truth is, despite feeling profoundly happy right now and knowing how much privilege I carry, I am also scared. I'm scared of the invasiveness, the hate, the 'jokes' and of violence."
But he ended on a positive note.
"I love that I am trans," he wrote. "And I love that I am queer. And the more I hold myself close and fully embrace who I am, the more I dream, the more my heart grows and the more I thrive. To all trans people who deal with harassment, self-loathing, abuse, and the threat of violence every day: I see you, I love you and I will do everything I can to change this world for the better."
Netflix's "Tiger King" star Carole Baskin came out as bisexual in an interview in October.
In an interview with Pink News, Baskin revealed she is bisexual and that she hid it for 30 years.
"I have always considered myself to be bisexual, even though I've never had a wife. I could just as easily have a wife as a husband, as far as the way I feel about us," Baskin told Pink News. "I just don't see us as being different genders or different colors or different anything."
Baskin became a celebrity overnight when the docuseries "Tiger King" premiered on Netflix earlier this year, chronicling the world of big cat rescues and zookeeper Joe Exotic.
In September, Niecy Nash introduced the world to her new wife, Jessica Betts.
Nash surprised her fans when she announced she married Jessica Betts a few months after divorcing her ex-husband, Jay Tucker. Nash and Betts met on social media five years ago and became friends. Nash told People that after her divorce, their relationship transformed into something else.
"I don't feel like my marriage is my coming out of anywhere, but rather a going into myself and being honest about who I love," the "Claws" actress told People. "And I'm not limiting myself on what that love is supposed to look like."
In August, Tinashe announced she is bisexual for the first time.
Back in 2011, Tinashe tweeted, "I like boys and I like girls." A few years later, she told HuffPost that she doesn't like labels.