Guide to Marriage Statistics

Marriage statistics are studies conducted by different companies and government agencies. The numbers are used to track trends on everything from average age of the bride and groom to whether a marriage ends in divorce. These marriage statistics give an interesting overview of marriage in the United States.

Wedding Statistics

• The average age for marriage is 26 for women and 27 for men (2005).
• Women in Arkansas, Utah, Idaho and Oklahoma are among the youngest brides in the country, averaging age 24 or younger. Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York brides are among the country's oldest, usually over 30 years old.
• The cost of a US wedding averages $27,000.
• July is the top month for weddings in the United States.
• Las Vegas, Nevada is the city with the most weddings per year-more than 100,000 in 2007.

Marriage Statistics

• Just over 80 percent of US citizens will marry at least once in their lifetime.
• Couples with the same religious and spiritual beliefs are more likely to experience marital satisfaction (2004 survey).
• Research shows that a happy marriage can be good for your health. Happily married people live longer and on average are healthier than their single counterparts.
• Couples that receive pre-marriage advice from the clergy or a marriage counselor are more likely to have a successful marriage.
• The two biggest conflicts in a marriage are over communications and finances.

Divorce Statistics

• According to the US Bureau of the Census in 2006, approximately 50 percent of marriages will end in divorce.
• The average US marriage lasts for seven years before seeking marriage help and ending in divorce.
• Remarriage statistics for success are low; with 60 percent of second marriages ending in divorce and 73 percent of third marriages (2006).
• People tend to remarry quickly after divorce or a spouse's death, with an average of 30 percent getting married after just one year.
• A third of married Americans have been divorced at least one time before.