U.S. marriages have shown a significant rebound in 2022, reaching nearly 2.1 million, marking a 4% increase from the previous year. This positive trend comes after a challenging period during the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted many marriage plans.
In 2020, the first year of the pandemic, the U.S. witnessed a notable decline in weddings, with only 1.7 million recorded — the lowest number since 1963. The restrictions imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19, such as stay-at-home orders and limits on large gatherings, played a significant role in this decrease.
However, there was a gradual recovery in 2021, although marriages did not return to pre-pandemic levels. The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that marriages in 2022 not only surpassed the 2019 statistics but also saw a slight increase.
New York, the District of Columbia, and Hawaii experienced the most significant growth in marriages from 2021 to 2022. Nevada, known for its famous wedding chapels in Las Vegas, maintained the highest marriage rate in the country, despite a slight decrease from the previous year.
On the other hand, the number and rate of U.S. divorces in 2022 slightly decreased, continuing a downward trend as reported by the CDC. Despite these fluctuations, marriages in the U.S. remain less common compared to previous decades.
Historical data dating back to 1900 reveals that the peak of weddings in the U.S. was in 1946, with a marriage rate of 16.4 per 1,000 people. The rate remained above 10 in the early 1980s before entering a prolonged decline. In 2022, the marriage rate stood at 6.2 per 1,000 population.
