Map reveals states with most single-parent households

The District of Columbia has the highest proportion of single-parent households across the United States, while Utah has the lowest, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The findings, from the “2022 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates” report, reveal that the proportion of single-parent households varied substantially across the country, but remained a minority overall among U.S. households with children.

The area with the highest percentage of single-parent households was the District of Columbia on 33 percent of all households with children, compared to 49.9 percent with married-couple parents, according to data analysis by the Badger Institute. This equated to a total of 18,047 households with a single female parent, and 2,627 with a single male parent.

The states with the next highest proportions of single-parent households were Mississippi on 27.4 percent; Louisiana on 27.2 percent; Georgia on 24.2 percent; New Mexico on 24.1 percent; and South Carolina on 23.9 percent.

In contrast, the state with the lowest proportion of single-parent households was Utah on 12.8 percent, compared to 74 percent of households with married-couple parents. This equated to a total of 39,025 households with a single female parent and 14,459 households with a single male parent.

After Utah, the states with the next lowest proportions of single-parent households included Hawaii on 14.8 percent; Idaho on 14.8 percent; New Hampshire on 16.3 percent; and Wyoming on 16.9 percent.

The U.S. Census Bureau also revealed in its “America’s Families and Living Arrangements: 2022” report that the proportion of households consisting of married couples with children has fallen successively over recent decades, from 40.3 percent in 1970 to 17.8 percent in 2022.

In contrast, the “other family households” demographic, including single parents living with children, has risen from 10.6 percent in 1970 to 17.4 percent in 2022.

The findings showed that married parents still accounted for the largest share of family groups with children under the age of 18 on 65 percent. This was followed by mothers with no spouse or partner present on 23 percent, and then fathers with no spouse or partner present on six percent, according to the report. The report notes that parents without a spouse of partner present may still be in a relationship, but their partner may have been stationed overseas, for example.

Furthermore, the data shows that mothers were nearly four times as likely to live alone with their child on 22.6 percent of all parents co-resident with children under the age of 18, compared to six percent of fathers.

Commenting on the findings, the U.S. Census Bureau states: “That mothers were more likely than fathers to live alone with their children was due to mothers being more likely than fathers to be the custodial parent of their children in the event of a relationship dissolution.”

The bureau added later in the report: “The report highlights the complexity and variety of contemporary families and living arrangements and illustrates how they have changed over time.

“Over the last few decades, the trend in the United States has been toward smaller households, fewer family and married-couple households, and more people living alone, especially at older ages.

“These trends showcase the importance of collecting detailed demographic and economic information about how the situation of American families and households changes over time.”