Unmarried Americans By the Numbers: Some Stunning Stats

September 21, 2015

This is National Unmarried and Single Americans Week and all week we will be highlighting new U.S. Census Bureau data documenting the size and power of this fast-growing demographic group —focusing particularly on unmarried women. In 2016, for the first time ever there will be more unmarried women than married women eligible to vote.

107 million

Number of U.S. residents 18 and older who were unmarried in 2014, which is 45% of the total U.S. population 18 and older.

53%

Percentage of 2014 unmarried U.S. residents 18 and older who are women.

Data Source: U.S. Census Bureau: America’s Families and Living Arrangements 2014, Table A1

What We're Reading

U.S. Census: Unmarried and Single Americans Week

To commemorate Unmarried and Single Americans Week (September 17-23), the U.S. Census has produced a “Facts for Features” profile (PDF) of 2016 census data about unmarried Americans. Here are some of the highlights:

There are 110.6 unmarried people 18 or older in America, making up 45.2% of the U.S. adult population.
35.4 million Americans lived alone in 2016, representing 28.1% of all US households — up from 17.1% in 1970.
Despite unmarried people being 45.2% of the U.S. adult population, only 39.6% of voters in the 2016 presidential election were unmarried.

Read the rest of the U.S. Census Bureau’s “Facts for Features” profile (PDF) on unmarried Americans.

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Unmarried Americans By the Numbers: Some Stunning Stats

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