Despite public opinion that divorce is becoming more frequent in the United States, the divorce rate actually seems to be declining, with Nevada being the top state for divorce in 2022, with a rate of 4.2 divorces per 1,000 of the population, followed by Oklahoma, Arkansas, Idaho, and Wyoming. Marriage and divorce in Nevada Nevada has one of the highest marriage rates in the country, and Las Vegas is a popular wedding destination. Nevada is one of the few states in the U.S. that allows couples to get a marriage license and get married immediately afterwards. In addition, Nevada is a no-fault divorce state, which means that couples do not need to address the reason behind the divorce. Divorced couples in the U.S. In recent years, the number of divorced individuals over age 50 in the U.S. seems to have surpassed the number of those who were under the age of 30, but whether or not the younger generation remains married longer than generations past remains to be seen. Additionally, far more children of divorced parents lived with a female single parent, rather than a male single parent.

In 2022, the divorce rate in the United States stood at 2.4 per 1,000 of the population. Divorce in the U.S. Divorce is the termination of a marital union. In the United States, as in most other countries, it is a legal process in which a judge or another legal authority dissolves the bonds of matrimony existing between two persons. The process of divorce also normally involves issues surrounding distribution of property, financial support of the former spouse, child custody and child support. A divorce also allows a person to marry again.In the United States divorce is, like marriage, a matter for state governments, not the federal government. Although divorce laws vary from state to state, for example on which terms a divorce can be arranged, a divorce must be certified by a court of law to become effective. A declining divorce rate Over the last couple of years both the marriage rate and the divorce rate have been declining in the United States. As of 2009, the average length of a first marriage in the U.S. was eight years. The average age men were at when they went through their first divorce was 32, for women this was 30. The average length of a second marriage was about 10 years.

The graph displays the divorce rate per 1,000 people in the United States from 2000 to 2022. The x-axis represents the years, labeled from '00 to '22, while the y-axis indicates the divorce rate per 1,000 individuals. The divorce rate starts at 4.0 per 1,000 in 2000 and 2001, which are the highest values in the dataset. Over the years, there is a general downward trend, with the rate decreasing to 2.3 per 1,000 in 2020, the lowest point recorded. In 2021 and 2022, the rate slightly fluctuates, rising to 2.5 and then decreasing to 2.4 per 1,000 respectively. The data highlights a consistent decline in the divorce rate over the 22-year period.

In 2022, the marriage rate in the United States stood at 6.2 per 1,000 people of the population. This is a decrease from 1990 levels, when the marriage rate was 9.8 marriages per 1,000 people. Marriage Marriage is a union that can legally, culturally, and financially bind two people. Marriage occurs between all genders, races, and cultures. Marriage is drastically different all around the world, due to the diversity of cultures and religions. Marriage can be recognized by a state, religious authority, or an organization. Typically viewed as contract, it brings people together through a multitude of avenues. A part of marriage is the wedding, for which couples can decide to partake in or not. Weddings are also incredibly diverse and vary in time, money, and customs. Marriage in the United States Marriage in the United States is viewed differently across all 50 states. The number of married couples in the United States has been steadily increasing since 1960. On the other hand, the divorce rate in the United States has decreased since 1990. Nevada was the state in 2021 that had the highest marriage rate in the United States, due to easy accessibility to get married there. In 2021, Nevada was also the state with the highest divorce rate in the country.

According to the 2020 UNIDOMO questionnaire, Portugal clearly led the list of European countries with the highest divorce rate per 100 marriages. With 91.5 divorces the Portuguese Republic led the list, followed by Spain and Luxembourg. All three countries boast a significantly higher share than the other European countries, each reporting a divorce rate over 80 divorces.

A different way to look at Portugal

While Portugal clearly has the most divorces per 100 marriages, looking at divorce rates per 1.000 inhabitants in other European countries alters the picture of the country as one unsettled by significant numbers of divorces. With nearly 1.7 divorces per 1,000 inhabitants Portugal has roughly the same divorce rate as Germany and the Netherlands. Interesting is furthermore that although marriages in Portugal tend to result in divorce lightly more often as in Luxembourg (80.3%), the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg experienced a 0.6 point higher divorce rate.

What about the rest of the World?

While compared with Latin American countries like Guatemala or Peru, ranked among the countries with the lowest divorce rates in the world, Luxembourg’s divorce rate seems excessive. However, when compared with divorce rates (per 1.000 inhabitants) of countries like the United States (2.7) or China (3.5) divorce rates from Luxembourg and Europe are not out of the ordinary.

The graph illustrates the percentage of marriages that ended in divorce in the United States from the year 2000 ('00) to 2022 ('22). The x-axis represents the years, labeled with two-digit abbreviations from '00 to '22, while the y-axis displays the divorce rates as percentages. Throughout this period, divorce rates varied between a high of 41.7% in 2002 and a low of 32.62% in 2022. The data shows a notable decline in divorce rates over the two decades, with some fluctuations occurring in the early and mid-2000s. Overall, the trend indicates a steady decrease in the proportion of marriages ending in divorce in the United States from 2000 to 2022.

In 2022, Nevada had the highest marriage rate in the United States, with 25.9 marriages per 1,000 residents. Hawaii had the second-highest marriage rate, at 14.4 marriages per 1,000 residents. The falling marriage rate Perhaps unsurprisingly, the marriage rate in the United States has fallen since 1990, although it has leveled off in the past decade. This means that fewer and fewer people are getting married than in years past, particularly as views about marriage have changed in the U.S. However, despite changing perceptions about marriage and a falling marriage rate, there were more married couples in the United States in 2021 than there were in 1960. First comes love, then comes marriage Weddings and marriage have changed in the United States in recent years as people have been staying single longer, and especially gay marriage and inter-racial marriage have become more socially acceptable. The changing face of America means that love and relationships are changing as well, and what is socially acceptable within a relationship will continue to change with it.

In 2021, the crude divorce rate in Queensland, Australia was 2.6 per 1,000 resident population. In contrast, the divorce rate in the Northern Territory was 1.8 per 1,000 resident population.

State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population: West Bank data was reported at 1.900 NA in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 1.800 NA for 2016. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population: West Bank data is updated yearly, averaging 1.300 NA from Dec 1997 (Median) to 2017, with 16 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.900 NA in 2017 and a record low of 0.800 NA in 2002. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population: West Bank data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) – Table PS.G002: Vital Statistics.

In 2023, the divorce rate in Germany lay at about 35.74 percent. The highest divorce rate at almost 52 percent was recorded in 2005. Since then, divorce rates have ranged between 30 and 50 percent. The divorce rate compares the number of marriages with the number of divorces in the same period under review. Accordingly, the divorce rate does not provide any information about the ‘divorce risk’ of a particular marriage cohort, as the divorces do not relate to a marriage year.

State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population data was reported at 1.800 NA in 2017. This stayed constant from the previous number of 1.800 NA for 2016. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population data is updated yearly, averaging 1.500 NA from Dec 1997 (Median) to 2017, with 16 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.800 NA in 2017 and a record low of 0.900 NA in 2002. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) – Table PS.G002: Vital Statistics.

State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population: Gaza Strip data was reported at 1.700 NA in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1.800 NA for 2016. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population: Gaza Strip data is updated yearly, averaging 1.650 NA from Dec 1997 (Median) to 2017, with 16 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.900 NA in 2010 and a record low of 1.000 NA in 2002. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Divorce Rate: per 1000 Population: Gaza Strip data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) – Table PS.G002: Vital Statistics.

As of 2022, the Mexican state with the highest number of same-sex divorces was Mexico City, with 136 for men-men marriages and 193 for woman-woman. Followed by the state of Nuevo León and Jalisco. In total, 714 same-sex divorces were registered in Mexico in 2023.

In 2023, there were about 15.09 million children living with a single mother in the United States, and about 3.05 million children living with a single father. The number of children living with a single mother is down from its peak in 2012, and the number of children living with a single father is down from its peak in 2005.

Marriage and divorce in the United States

Despite popular opinion in the United States that “half of all marriages end in divorce,” the divorce rate in the U.S. has fallen significantly since 1992. The marriage rate, which has also been decreasing since the 1990s, was still higher than the divorce rate in 2021. Half of all marriages may not end in divorce, but it does seem that fewer people are choosing to get married in the first place.

New family structures

In addition to a falling marriage rate, fewer people in the U.S. have children under the age of 18 living in the house in comparison to 1970. Over the past decade, the share of families with children under 18, whether that be married couples or single parents, has stayed mostly steady, although the number of births in the U.S. has also fallen.

In 2022, there were 67.85 million married men and 68.45 million married women living in the United States. This is compared to 3.7 million widowed men and 11.48 million widowed women.

Marriage in the United States

Nevada had the highest marriage rate in the United States in 2021, followed by Hawaii and Montana. This can be attributed to marriage accessibility in the state. Las Vegas weddings are known for being quick, easy, and inexpensive chapel weddings. In comparison to the cheap weddings available in Las Vegas, the average expenditure for a wedding in the United States was the highest in New Jersey, clocking in at 51,000 U.S. dollars.

Same-sex marriage

The number of Americans who think that same-sex marriage should be recognized by law has more than doubled since 1996, while the number of Americans who think it should not be valid has decreased. It was not until June 26, 2015 that the United States Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states. Before then, it was up to the states to decide if they allowed same-sex marriage. States in the Southeast are the most opposed to same-sex marriage, whereas the strongest support comes from Northern coastal states.

Although the American Community Survey (ACS) produces population, demographic and housing unit estimates, for 2020, the 2020 Census provides the official counts of the population and housing units for the nation, states, counties, cities, and towns. For 2016 to 2019, the Population Estimates Program provides estimates of the population for the nation, states, counties, cities, and towns and intercensal housing unit estimates for the nation, states, and counties..Supporting documentation on code lists, subject definitions, data accuracy, and statistical testing can be found on the American Community Survey website in the Technical Documentation section.Sample size and data quality measures (including coverage rates, allocation rates, and response rates) can be found on the American Community Survey website in the Methodology section..Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2016-2020 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability. The degree of uncertainty for an estimate arising from sampling variability is represented through the use of a margin of error. The value shown here is the 90 percent margin of error. The margin of error can be interpreted roughly as providing a 90 percent probability that the interval defined by the estimate minus the margin of error and the estimate plus the margin of error (the lower and upper confidence bounds) contains the true value. In addition to sampling variability, the ACS estimates are subject to nonsampling error (for a discussion of nonsampling variability, see ACS Technical Documentation). The effect of nonsampling error is not represented in these tables..Divorce estimates may vary from the divorce data released by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) because of differences in methodology and data collection. NCHS uses information collected on divorce decrees from states providing them. From these administrative records, NCHS then publishes information about couples who divorced in a calendar year. In contrast, the ACS collects survey-based reports from individuals as to whether or not they divorced in the last 12 months. We recommend using caution when comparing the NCHS estimates to the ACS estimates of divorces..The 2016-2020 American Community Survey (ACS) data generally reflect the September 2018 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) delineations of metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas. In certain instances, the names, codes, and boundaries of the principal cities shown in ACS tables may differ from the OMB delineation lists due to differences in the effective dates of the geographic entities..Estimates of urban and rural populations, housing units, and characteristics reflect boundaries of urban areas defined based on Census 2010 data. As a result, data for urban and rural areas from the ACS do not necessarily reflect the results of ongoing urbanization..Explanation of Symbols:- The estimate could not be computed because there were an insufficient number of sample observations. For a ratio of medians estimate, one or both of the median estimates falls in the lowest interval or highest interval of an open-ended distribution.N The estimate or margin of error cannot be displayed because there were an insufficient number of sample cases in the selected geographic area. (X) The estimate or margin of error is not applicable or not available.median- The median falls in the lowest interval of an open-ended distribution (for example "2,500-")median+ The median falls in the highest interval of an open-ended distribution (for example "250,000+").** The margin of error could not be computed because there were an insufficient number of sample observations.*** The margin of error could not be computed because the median falls in the lowest interval or highest interval of an open-ended distribution.***** A margin of error is not appropriate because the corresponding estimate is controlled to an independent population or housing estimate. Effectively, the corresponding estimate has no sampling error and the margin of error may be treated as zero.

In 2021, there were 3.1 divorces per one thousand inhabitants in Virginia. This figure is a decrease from 1990, when the divorce rate stood at 4.4 divorces for every one thousand inhabitants in the state.

Although the American Community Survey (ACS) produces population, demographic and housing unit estimates, it is the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program that produces and disseminates the official estimates of the population for the nation, states, counties, cities, and towns and estimates of housing units for states and counties..Supporting documentation on code lists, subject definitions, data accuracy, and statistical testing can be found on the American Community Survey website in the Technical Documentation section.Sample size and data quality measures (including coverage rates, allocation rates, and response rates) can be found on the American Community Survey website in the Methodology section..Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates.Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability. The degree of uncertainty for an estimate arising from sampling variability is represented through the use of a margin of error. The value shown here is the 90 percent margin of error. The margin of error can be interpreted roughly as providing a 90 percent probability that the interval defined by the estimate minus the margin of error and the estimate plus the margin of error (the lower and upper confidence bounds) contains the true value. In addition to sampling variability, the ACS estimates are subject to nonsampling error (for a discussion of nonsampling variability, see ACS Technical Documentation). The effect of nonsampling error is not represented in these tables..Divorce estimates may vary from the divorce data released by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) because of differences in methodology and data collection. NCHS uses information collected on divorce decrees from states providing them. From these administrative records, NCHS then publishes information about couples who divorced in a calendar year. In contrast, the ACS collects survey-based reports from individuals as to whether or not they divorced in the last 12 months. We recommend using caution when comparing the NCHS estimates to the ACS estimates of divorces..The 2021 American Community Survey (ACS) data generally reflect the March 2020 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) delineations of metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas. In certain instances the names, codes, and boundaries of the principal cities shown in ACS tables may differ from the OMB delineations due to differences in the effective dates of the geographic entities..Estimates of urban and rural populations, housing units, and characteristics reflect boundaries of urban areas defined based on Census 2010 data. As a result, data for urban and rural areas from the ACS do not necessarily reflect the results of ongoing urbanization..Explanation of Symbols:- The estimate could not be computed because there were an insufficient number of sample observations. For a ratio of medians estimate, one or both of the median estimates falls in the lowest interval or highest interval of an open-ended distribution. For a 5-year median estimate, the margin of error associated with a median was larger than the median itself.N The estimate or margin of error cannot be displayed because there were an insufficient number of sample cases in the selected geographic area. (X) The estimate or margin of error is not applicable or not available.median- The median falls in the lowest interval of an open-ended distribution (for example "2,500-")median+ The median falls in the highest interval of an open-ended distribution (for example "250,000+").** The margin of error could not be computed because there were an insufficient number of sample observations.*** The margin of error could not be computed because the median falls in the lowest interval or highest interval of an open-ended distribution.***** A margin of error is not appropriate because the corresponding estimate is controlled to an independent population or housing estimate. Effectively, the corresponding estimate has no sampling error and the margin of error may be treated as zero.

Although the American Community Survey (ACS) produces population, demographic and housing unit estimates, it is the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program that produces and disseminates the official estimates of the population for the nation, states, counties, cities, and towns and estimates of housing units for states and counties..Supporting documentation on code lists, subject definitions, data accuracy, and statistical testing can be found on the American Community Survey website in the Technical Documentation section.Sample size and data quality measures (including coverage rates, allocation rates, and response rates) can be found on the American Community Survey website in the Methodology section..Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2017-2021 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability. The degree of uncertainty for an estimate arising from sampling variability is represented through the use of a margin of error. The value shown here is the 90 percent margin of error. The margin of error can be interpreted roughly as providing a 90 percent probability that the interval defined by the estimate minus the margin of error and the estimate plus the margin of error (the lower and upper confidence bounds) contains the true value. In addition to sampling variability, the ACS estimates are subject to nonsampling error (for a discussion of nonsampling variability, see ACS Technical Documentation). The effect of nonsampling error is not represented in these tables..Divorce estimates may vary from the divorce data released by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) because of differences in methodology and data collection. NCHS uses information collected on divorce decrees from states providing them. From these administrative records, NCHS then publishes information about couples who divorced in a calendar year. In contrast, the ACS collects survey-based reports from individuals as to whether or not they divorced in the last 12 months. We recommend using caution when comparing the NCHS estimates to the ACS estimates of divorces..The 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS) data generally reflect the March 2020 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) delineations of metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas. In certain instances, the names, codes, and boundaries of the principal cities shown in ACS tables may differ from the OMB delineation lists due to differences in the effective dates of the geographic entities..Estimates of urban and rural populations, housing units, and characteristics reflect boundaries of urban areas defined based on Census 2010 data. As a result, data for urban and rural areas from the ACS do not necessarily reflect the results of ongoing urbanization..Explanation of Symbols:- The estimate could not be computed because there were an insufficient number of sample observations. For a ratio of medians estimate, one or both of the median estimates falls in the lowest interval or highest interval of an open-ended distribution. For a 5-year median estimate, the margin of error associated with a median was larger than the median itself.N The estimate or margin of error cannot be displayed because there were an insufficient number of sample cases in the selected geographic area. (X) The estimate or margin of error is not applicable or not available.median- The median falls in the lowest interval of an open-ended distribution (for example "2,500-")median+ The median falls in the highest interval of an open-ended distribution (for example "250,000+").** The margin of error could not be computed because there were an insufficient number of sample observations.*** The margin of error could not be computed because the median falls in the lowest interval or highest interval of an open-ended distribution.***** A margin of error is not appropriate because the corresponding estimate is controlled to an independent population or housing estimate. Effectively, the corresponding estimate has no sampling error and the margin of error may be treated as zero.

According to a survey conducted in the United States, 43 percent of American couples changed location of their honeymoon due to the coronavirus pandemic. About 41 percent of respondents, instead, said that they postponed the initial honeymoon date.