U.S. Divorce Rates Down, Marriage Rates Stagnant From 2012-2022

Marriage rates held steady but divorce rates of women age 15 and older declined from 2012 to 2022, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau data visualization.

Marriage and divorce rates are based on the number of women who married or divorced in the last year per 1,000 women age 15 and over.

The U.S. marriage rate in 2012 was 16.6 compared to 16.7 in 2022, according to the American Community Survey (ACS). During the same period, divorce rates dropped from 9.8 to 7.1.

Figure 1 shows women’s marriage and divorce rates nationally from 2008 until 2022. Note that data are not shown for 2020 due to impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on data collection.

From 2008 to 2022, the national divorce rate declined from just over 10.0 to about 7.0. In contrast, the national marriage rate has generally remained between 16.0 and 18.0 since 2008, with the exception of 2021 when the rate fell below 15.0.

This annual timeline indicates 2021 may be an outlier in the general trend. Though causes of this dip in marriage rates are not clear, it may be due to the postponement of weddings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, an updated U.S. Census Bureau visualization allows you to compare how divorce and marriage rates from 2012 to 2022 in your state compare to those in other states and the nation.

Rates of marriage and divorce varied by state both in 2012 and in 2022.

The visualization below shows marriage and divorce rates by state and state equivalent. Please note that not all differences are statistically significant.

In 2022:

• Washington, D.C., Colorado and Nebraska had among the nation’s highest marriage rates, at 24.4, 20.9 and 20.8, respectively. These rates, however, do not significantly differ from each other.
• Puerto Rico had among the lowest marriage (6.3) and among the lowest divorce (5.1) rates of states and state equivalents.
• New Mexico had among the lowest marriage rates at 12.1.
• Arkansas and Wyoming had among the highest divorce rates – 11.9 and 11.0, respectively (not a significant difference).
• Vermont had a divorce rate of 4.6, among the lowest in the nation.

The visualization has three components: an introductory tab that discusses how marriage and divorce rates are calculated and provides the national rates; a map tab that shows each state’s marriage and divorce rates compared to the national rate; and a ranking table tab that shows each state’s rank in 2012 and 2022.