Divorce Rate by State: Assessing Marriage in the USA

Divorce rates differ from state to state and unfortunately, some states are a little higher than others. And although we have fairly accurate scientific surveys — such as the American Community Survey used below — there isn’t one singular source of information that can effectively tell the entire story of divorce in the United States and why certain states fare better than others.

However, there are several data sources and tools that can be used to examine the issue, and some, like the U.S. Census Data Profile Mapper (as seen below), can be used to effectively visualize marriage and divorce for any state and/or territory in the United States.

By understanding marital status, divorce, and marital history, federal agencies and other organizations can forecast future trends, identify spousal program needs, reevaluate financial assistance programs and tax policies, and effectively measure programs that have a direct effect on the well-being of families.

Use the data and maps below to explore marriage and divorce rate by state for the entire U.S. Compare the information below, see why some states are higher than others, and the difference between male and female divorce rates. Pair these maps with other interactive demographic and social tools to explore the issue further.

Divorce Rate by State (to include DC and Puerto Rico)

Rank	State	Population (15 Years and Older)	Currently Divorced	Currently Married	Currently Widowed	Currently Separated	Never Married
1	Puerto Rico	2,833,104	14.7%	31.9%	8.1%	2.1%	43.2%
2	Arkansas	2,445,206	13.3%	48.9%	6.6%	2.1%	29.2%
3	West Virginia	1,486,191	13.3%	49.3%	7.3%	1.3%	28.7%
4	Maine	1,168,883	13.2%	51.6%	5.8%	0.8%	28.6%
5	Nevada	2,567,541	12.8%	45.1%	5.4%	1.8%	35.0%
6	New Mexico	1,728,213	12.8%	44.7%	5.7%	1.6%	35.1%
7	Oregon	3,540,546	12.7%	48.8%	4.9%	1.3%	32.5%
8	Kentucky	3,672,905	12.6%	49.0%	6.6%	1.8%	29.9%
9	Oklahoma	3,195,710	12.6%	48.9%	6.3%	1.8%	30.4%
10	Florida	18,251,571	12.5%	47.4%	6.4%	1.9%	31.7%
11	Indiana	5,500,676	12.5%	49.2%	5.7%	1.1%	31.4%
12	Wyoming	471,226	12.3%	53.8%	5.0%	1.4%	27.5%
13	Alabama	4,113,516	12.2%	47.1%	7.1%	1.9%	31.7%
14	Idaho	1,515,845	11.9%	54.8%	4.8%	1.1%	27.4%
15	Montana	910,599	11.9%	50.9%	5.4%	1.2%	30.6%
16	Ohio	9,636,748	11.9%	47.2%	6.0%	1.5%	33.4%
17	Tennessee	5,707,432	11.9%	48.8%	6.3%	1.9%	31.1%
18	Missouri	5,026,699	11.8%	49.4%	6.0%	1.7%	31.1%
19	Louisiana	3,725,807	11.7%	43.5%	6.3%	2.2%	36.4%
20	New Hampshire	1,180,473	11.7%	51.4%	5.2%	1.2%	30.6%
21	Arizona	5,951,507	11.6%	48.7%	5.1%	1.5%	33.1%
22	Michigan	8,287,187	11.5%	47.7%	5.7%	1.2%	33.9%
23	Mississippi	2,382,518	11.5%	44.5%	6.9%	2.5%	34.6%
24	Vermont	550,276	11.4%	49.4%	5.3%	0.9%	32.9%
25	Washington	6,346,203	11.4%	50.7%	4.4%	1.3%	32.2%
26	Alaska	581,897	11.3%	49.0%	4.2%	1.8%	33.6%
27	Georgia	8,731,410	11.3%	46.5%	5.2%	1.8%	35.2%
28	Colorado	4,793,694	11.1%	50.2%	4.1%	1.2%	33.3%
29	Kansas	2,588,040	11.0%	51.4%	5.7%	1.2%	30.7%
30	Rhode Island	925,558	10.8%	44.9%	5.5%	1.5%	37.4%
31	Wisconsin	4,852,416	10.8%	49.9%	5.2%	0.9%	33.2%
32	North Carolina	8,660,874	10.7%	48.5%	5.7%	2.2%	32.9%
33	Iowa	2,588,040	10.5%	51.2%	5.5%	1.1%	31.7%
34	South Carolina	4,276,713	10.5%	47.9%	6.6%	2.2%	32.8%
35	Connecticut	3,018,535	10.4%	46.9%	5.4%	1.4%	35.9%
36	Nebraska	1,563,814	10.4%	52.3%	5.2%	1.0%	31.2%
37	Minnesota	4,628,858	10.1%	50.8%	4.8%	0.9%	33.3%
38	Virginia	7,088,043	10.0%	49.5%	5.3%	1.9%	33.3%
39	Delaware	832,027	9.9%	48.1%	6.3%	1.6%	34.1%
40	South Dakota	711,925	9.9%	51.4%	5.5%	1.2%	32.0%
41	Texas	23,373,981	9.9%	49.7%	4.8%	2.1%	33.4%
42	Maryland	5,042,297	9.8%	47.5%	5.4%	1.8%	35.6%
43	North Dakota	620,127	9.8%	50.2%	5.2%	1.0%	33.8%
44	Pennsylvania	10,766,654	9.7%	48.1%	6.1%	1.7%	34.4%
45	Illinois	10,376,721	9.6%	47.4%	5.5%	1.5%	36.1%
46	Hawaii	1,184,801	9.4%	50.0%	5.7%	0.9%	34.0%
47	District of Columbia	559,673	9.3%	30.2%	3.8%	1.3%	55.3%
48	Massachusetts	5,871,307	9.2%	46.6%	5.1%	1.5%	37.5%
49	New York	16,443,249	9.1%	44.4%	5.6%	2.2%	38.7%
50	California	32,021,241	8.9%	46.4%	4.6%	1.9%	38.2%
51	Utah	2,561,556	8.6%	55.3%	3.5%	1.2%	31.5%
52	New Jersey	7,606,368	8.5%	49.9%	5.5%	1.7%	34.4%
	United States	271,400,195	10.60%	48.0%	5.5%	1.7%	34.2%

Divorce Rates by Age for Males

Age	Population (Male)	Divorced	Married	Widowed	Separated	Never Married
15 and up	133,358,219	9.2%	49.7%	2.6%	1.5%	37.1%
15 – 19	11,171,156	0.0%	1.0%	0.0%	0.1%	98.9%
20 – 34	33,732,864	2.2%	25.4%	0.1%	0.8%	71.6%
35 – 44	22,024,008	8.8%	59.8%	0.4%	2.1%	28.9%
45 – 54	20,286,006	14.2%	65.3%	1.0%	2.3%	17.2%
55 – 64	20,952,443	16.4%	65.9%	2.4%	2.1%	13.2%
65 and up	25,191,742	12.9%	68.7%	10.3%	1.3%	6.8%

Divorce Rates by Age for Females

Age	Population (Female)	Divorced	Married	Widowed	Separated	Never Married
15 and up	138,041,976	9.2%	49.7%	2.6%	1.5%	37.1%
15 – 19	10,652,932	0.0%	1.1%	0.0%	0.1%	98.8%
20 – 34	32,728,917	3.2%	32.3%	0.2%	1.4%	63.0%
35 – 44	21,709,553	11.4%	61.4%	0.9%	3.0%	23.3%
45 – 54	20,387,711	17.7%	62.9%	2.4%	3.2%	13.8%
55 – 64	21,862,591	19.8%	60.2%	7.0%	2.5%	10.6%
65 and up	30,700,272	16.7%	46.2%	29.8%	1.2%	6.2%