Gitnux/Report 2026

United States Marriage Statistics

A striking snapshot of U.S. relationships shows marriage is edging back up at 6.5 per 1,000 in provisional 2023 data, while divorce remains stubbornly patterned with 2.4 per 1,000 in 2022 and half of first marriages ending within 20 years. You will see how Americans are marrying later and less often, why college education shifts the odds, and how never married rates and remarriage dynamics reveal what happens when timing, income, and race collide.
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United States Marriage Statistics
Christopher MorganWritten by Christopher Morgan·Edited by Yumi Nakamura·Fact-checked by Nikolas Papadopoulos
Last verified May 13, 2026
Verified via a 4-step process
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Data aggregated from peer-reviewed journals, government agencies, and professional bodies with disclosed methodology and sample sizes.

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Next review Nov 2026
Marriage in the United States has changed fast enough that the “typical” path now depends on where you fall by age, education, and income. The U.S. marriage rate edged up to 6.2 per 1,000 total population, while never-married shares remain stubbornly high at 30% for men aged 25 to 29 in 2021. Between rising first marriage ages and shifting divorce patterns, the gap between what people expect and what actually happens is wide and getting wider.

Key Takeaways

  • Mean age at first marriage for men rose from 22.5 in 1950 to 30.2 in 2022
  • Women's mean age at first marriage increased from 20.1 in 1950 to 28.4 in 2022
  • In 2021, 30% of men aged 25-29 never married, up from 11% in 1970
  • In 2021, U.S. divorce rate was 2.5 per 1,000 population, down from 3.6 in 2010
  • Number of divorces in 2021 was 689,308, a 14% decline from 2019's 746,000
  • Divorce rate peaked at 5.3 per 1,000 in 1981
  • In 2022, the U.S. marriage rate was 6.2 per 1,000 total population, up from 6.1 in 2021
  • The number of marriages in the U.S. in 2021 totaled 2,077,000, a 12% increase from 2020's 1,850,000
  • From 2012 to 2021, U.S. marriage rates declined by 22%, from 6.8 to 5.3 per 1,000 before rebounding slightly
  • 64% of U.S. adults married or living with partner, 36% single in 2021
  • 52% of adults 25+ married in 2021, highest for ages 45-54 at 65%
  • College grads 65% married vs 50% high school only
  • 17% of adults 50+ ever remarried in 2021
  • 40% of marriages are remarriages for at least one partner
  • Second marriages comprise 29% of all U.S. marriages

Americans are marrying later and divorcing less, with marriage rates rebounding after COVID disruptions.

Related reading

01 · Category

Age at Marriage30 stats

01
Mean age at first marriage for men rose from 22.5 in 1950 to 30.2 in 2022
02
Women's mean age at first marriage increased from 20.1 in 1950 to 28.4 in 2022
03
In 2021, 30% of men aged 25-29 never married, up from 11% in 1970
04
Median age first marriage men 30.1 years in 2020
05
Women median 28.6 at first marriage in 2020
06
By age 35, 75% of women born 1980-84 had married vs 85% born 1960-64
07
35% of Gen Z adults 18-25 married in 2021, down from 50% Boomers at same age
08
College-educated women first marry at 27.1 average vs 23.9 non-college
09
Black women first marriage age 30.9 vs 26.1 white women in 2018
10
Hispanic men first marriage 27.4 years median in 2020
11
Asian women average first marriage age 29.2 in 2019, highest by race
12
From 1970-2020, men's first marriage age rose 6.1 years
13
50% of women marry by age 28 today vs age 22 in 1970
14
Never-married share for ages 25-34: 35% men, 27% women in 2021
15
Urban women first marry at 28.9 vs 27.2 rural
16
Midwest men first marriage 29.3 average vs Northeast 30.8 in 2019
17
High school only men marry at 26.2 vs postgrad 31.5
18
40-year-olds never married hit 25% record in 2021
19
Boomer women married by 30 at 82% rate vs Millennial 60%
20
Same-sex men first marriage median age 34.5 in 2019
21
Same-sex women 32.1 median first marriage age
22
During WWII, men married at 24.3 average, post-war 23.1
23
2022 data: men 30.5, women 28.6 first marriage
24
By age 45, 85% Millennial men married vs 90% prior gens
25
Never-married men 25-50 income <$30k: 52%
26
Women with children first marry younger by 2.1 years
27
Northeast highest first marriage age: men 31.2, women 29.4
28
South lowest: men 28.9, women 27.0
29
28% of never-married adults 40-44 cite career focus as reason
30
22% of 30-49 never-married say too picky
Interpretation

Age at Marriage Interpretation

It seems modern love has traded the impulsive altar sprint for a cautious marathon, carefully navigating careers, finances, and personal fulfillment along the way.

More related reading

04 · Category

Marriage by Demographics30 stats

01
64% of U.S. adults married or living with partner, 36% single in 2021
02
52% of adults 25+ married in 2021, highest for ages 45-54 at 65%
03
College grads 65% married vs 50% high school only
04
Black adults 32% married vs 53% whites in 2021
05
Hispanics 47% married, Asians 60% highest
06
Women more likely single: 30% vs 27% men 25+
07
Urban 48% married vs 56% rural adults
08
Midwest 54% married, highest region, Northeast 48% lowest
09
Never-married Black women 40+ : 40%, highest by group
10
Income >$100k: 62% married vs 38% <$30k
11
Evangelical Protestants 67% married vs 45% unaffiliated
12
Immigrants 55% married vs 50% U.S.-born
13
LGBTQ+ adults 19% married, mostly same-sex since 2015
14
Gen Z 18-29: 14% married, Millennials 37%
15
Baby Boomers 55% married, Silent Gen 58%
16
Disabled adults 42% married vs 55% non-disabled
17
Veterans 60% married vs 50% civilians
18
Republicans 57% married vs 47% Democrats
19
Southern states average 52% married adults
20
28% interracial marriages in 2021, up from 3% 1967
21
Asian-white intermarriages 29%, highest rate
22
Same-sex married couples: 1.2 million, 59% female couples
23
Single mothers 15% of adults, married parents 62% of families with kids
24
High-income metro areas 55% married, rural low-income 45%
25
Catholics 54% married, similar to average
26
Jews 60% married, high interfaith 58%
27
35% of married couples dual-earners both college grads
28
Foreign-born Hispanics 52% married vs U.S.-born 42%
29
Military spouses 90% married within service
30
48% of adults 30-49 married with kids under 18
Interpretation

Marriage by Demographics Interpretation

The American marital landscape is a complex and often contradictory tapestry where love, demographics, and life circumstances conspire to reveal that you're most likely to be married if you're a college-educated, middle-aged, white, evangelical, Republican veteran living comfortably in the rural Midwest, and least likely if you're a young, liberal, disabled, urban, Black woman with a low income and no religious affiliation.

05 · Category

Remarriage and Serial Marriage30 stats

01
17% of adults 50+ ever remarried in 2021
02
40% of marriages are remarriages for at least one partner
03
Second marriages comprise 29% of all U.S. marriages
04
16% of married adults are in remarriages
05
Men remarry faster: 64% within 5 years of divorce vs 52% women
06
67% of previously married men remarry vs 52% women, lifetime
07
Blended families: 16% of children live with stepparent
08
Serial marriages (3+): 13% of ever-married adults
09
Remarriage rate per 1,000 widowed/divorced men 15+: 120 in 2018
10
For women, 90 per 1,000 previously married
11
Age 55-64 highest remarriage rate 28 per 1,000
12
Cohabitation before remarriage: 60% of remarried couples
13
Divorced with kids remarry at 50% rate vs 70% childless
14
White remarriage rate 110 per 1,000 previously married vs Black 70
15
Hispanic 95 per 1,000
16
25% of remarriages involve age gap >10 years
17
Widow(er)s remarry at 20% rate vs divorced 65%
18
Online dating drives 20% of remarriages post-2010
19
Stepfamilies 15% of households with children
20
Men 65+ remarry at 15 per 1,000, highest elderly rate
21
Women 65+ only 8 per 1,000
22
30% of serial monogamists (3+ spouses) divorced within 5 years each
23
Remarried couples divorce 1.5x faster than first marriages
24
42% of remarried have children from prior unions
25
Cross-racial remarriages 10% of all remarriages, up from 5% 1990
26
Education homogamy lower in remarriages: 40% same level vs 60% first
27
Rural remarriage rate 110 per 1,000 vs urban 95
28
Northeast lowest remarriage 85 per 1,000 previously married
29
South highest 115 per 1,000
30
Post-divorce cohabitation leads to remarriage 50% of time
Interpretation

Remarriage and Serial Marriage Interpretation

Despite the sobering odds, America's romantic landscape is a resilient patchwork of second chances, stubborn optimism, and statistically questionable decisions, proving that when it comes to love, we're all a little bit data-driven and a whole lot hopeful.
Reference

Cite This Report

This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.

APA
Christopher Morgan. (2026, February 13). United States Marriage Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/united-states-marriage-statistics
MLA
Christopher Morgan. "United States Marriage Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/united-states-marriage-statistics.
Chicago
Christopher Morgan. 2026. "United States Marriage Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/united-states-marriage-statistics.

Sources & references

9 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level

cdc.govpewresearch.orgifstudies.orgcensus.govbgsu.eduwonder.cdc.govjournals.sagepub.comaeaweb.orgva.gov