By the numbers
Single-parent households are still the minority among U.S. households with children. However, the share of households with children headed by a single parent — rather than by a married or unmarried couple — varies from state to state. According to Census data from 2022, Wisconsin has the 25th highest percentage of single-parent households among the states and the District of Columbia.
The Badger Institute has published several reports and news articles about family structure in Wisconsin and how it has changed over time:
A report in 2013 by Christian Schnieder analyzed the state of marriage in Wisconsin (under our previous name, Wisconsin Policy Research Institute).
A piece by Marie Rohde in 2018 discussed why both older and younger people are deciding to stay single.
A contrasting article by Marilyn Krause discussing why some couples still cherish the institution of marriage.
A piece by Michael Jahr accompanied both those, showing how the idea of marriage is now becoming a foreign concept to some.
We published a policy brief in 2019 on the marriage penalty in Wisconsin’s earned income tax credit.
Jahr offered testimony to the Assembly Committee on Ways and Means in 2022 discussing the benefits of removing the marriage penalty in Wisconsin as the Assembly debated a bill, AB 692, to do so.
A chapter from our Mandate for Madison policy book by Angela Rachidi analyzed the many poverty safety net programs in Wisconsin and included a discussion of the marriage disincentives in those benefits’ structure.
Our data was taken from the 2022 American Community Survey 5-year estimates data profiles found on the U.S. Census Bureau website.
The underlying numbers
| Married with children under 18 | Cohabiting couple with children under 18 | Female householder, no partner with children under 18 | Male householder, no partner with children under 18 | Households with one or more people under 18 | Percentage of households with single parents | Percentage of households that are married-couple parents | |
| D.C. | 30,929 | 2,580 | 18,047 | 2,627 | 61,992 | 33.3% | 49.9% |
| Mississippi | 181,788 | 21,284 | 85,045 | 12,438 | 355,179 | 27.4% | 51.2% |
| Louisiana | 281,246 | 43,715 | 123,860 | 23,571 | 541,709 | 27.2% | 51.9% |
| Georgia | 733,565 | 79,032 | 262,143 | 47,849 | 1,280,171 | 24.2% | 57.3% |
| New Mexico | 116,678 | 26,930 | 43,472 | 12,534 | 232,365 | 24.1% | 50.2% |
| South Carolina | 326,554 | 39,835 | 118,007 | 20,998 | 580,739 | 23.9% | 56.2% |
| Delaware | 58,960 | 9,093 | 20,117 | 5,320 | 106,791 | 23.8% | 55.2% |
| Rhode Island | 67,363 | 10,966 | 22,932 | 5,152 | 118,016 | 23.8% | 57.1% |
| Alabama | 321,090 | 32,357 | 113,277 | 21,393 | 567,058 | 23.7% | 56.6% |
| Arkansas | 209,038 | 25,129 | 69,122 | 15,522 | 363,642 | 23.3% | 57.5% |
| Ohio | 789,959 | 120,728 | 254,482 | 61,995 | 1,364,252 | 23.2% | 57.9% |
| Nevada | 194,077 | 33,032 | 60,736 | 20,003 | 350,004 | 23.1% | 55.4% |
| North Carolina | 722,891 | 84,635 | 228,238 | 48,436 | 1,218,725 | 22.7% | 59.3% |
| Tennessee | 467,704 | 55,573 | 146,158 | 36,018 | 808,658 | 22.5% | 57.8% |
| Florida | 1,272,584 | 190,691 | 401,829 | 93,757 | 2,227,426 | 22.2% | 57.1% |
| Michigan | 671,804 | 92,136 | 191,812 | 51,446 | 1,110,029 | 21.9% | 60.5% |
| Oklahoma | 285,118 | 37,667 | 80,713 | 24,289 | 483,568 | 21.7% | 59.0% |
| Connecticut | 257,122 | 30,158 | 72,836 | 15,459 | 410,168 | 21.5% | 62.7% |
| New York | 1,290,623 | 153,972 | 386,065 | 75,445 | 2,150,793 | 21.5% | 60.0% |
| Pennsylvania | 864,621 | 116,203 | 243,138 | 63,063 | 1,428,537 | 21.4% | 60.5% |
| Maryland | 440,869 | 48,228 | 126,763 | 28,202 | 723,835 | 21.4% | 60.9% |
| Indiana | 481,355 | 67,818 | 133,074 | 36,853 | 801,917 | 21.2% | 60.0% |
| Missouri | 428,467 | 56,500 | 117,058 | 32,989 | 708,287 | 21.2% | 60.5% |
| Kentucky | 309,536 | 42,999 | 88,385 | 24,953 | 536,701 | 21.1% | 57.7% |
| Wisconsin | 409,900 | 59,212 | 101,683 | 35,110 | 653,677 | 20.9% | 62.7% |
| Illinois | 908,600 | 105,167 | 248,976 | 54,410 | 1,463,560 | 20.7% | 62.1% |
| Texas | 2,298,602 | 246,627 | 633,636 | 138,840 | 3,734,897 | 20.7% | 61.5% |
| Arizona | 477,016 | 78,695 | 129,291 | 39,682 | 824,034 | 20.5% | 57.9% |
| Massachusetts | 497,804 | 53,364 | 130,100 | 28,159 | 779,816 | 20.3% | 63.8% |
| Vermont | 40,082 | 5,895 | 9,201 | 3,503 | 63,960 | 19.9% | 62.7% |
| Virginia | 647,536 | 60,377 | 159,659 | 39,279 | 1,010,937 | 19.7% | 64.1% |
| West Virginia | 107,450 | 16,179 | 28,404 | 7,876 | 186,454 | 19.5% | 57.6% |
| Iowa | 241,033 | 33,656 | 55,148 | 17,054 | 372,448 | 19.4% | 64.7% |
| Nebraska | 157,565 | 18,721 | 34,160 | 11,248 | 238,621 | 19.0% | 66.0% |
| Kansas | 228,049 | 25,565 | 50,018 | 16,105 | 350,615 | 18.9% | 65.0% |
| Oregon | 294,206 | 41,102 | 65,422 | 22,015 | 465,591 | 18.8% | 63.2% |
| Montana | 74,801 | 9,039 | 14,818 | 6,389 | 115,751 | 18.3% | 64.6% |
| South Dakota | 66,843 | 8,492 | 14,190 | 4,663 | 103,306 | 18.2% | 64.7% |
| New Jersey | 720,426 | 72,863 | 162,878 | 34,356 | 1,087,329 | 18.1% | 66.3% |
| Minnesota | 444,289 | 55,309 | 89,970 | 30,093 | 664,163 | 18.1% | 66.9% |
| Colorado | 451,421 | 39,924 | 87,489 | 33,471 | 670,852 | 18.0% | 67.3% |
| Maine | 87,982 | 14,681 | 18,825 | 6,304 | 140,617 | 17.9% | 62.6% |
| Alaska | 53,960 | 7,788 | 10,903 | 4,433 | 86,528 | 17.7% | 62.4% |
| North Dakota | 60,932 | 6,835 | 11,580 | 4,086 | 89,005 | 17.6% | 68.5% |
| California | 2,762,776 | 345,763 | 601,899 | 169,901 | 4,433,837 | 17.4% | 62.3% |
| Washington | 588,901 | 75,364 | 114,061 | 37,133 | 894,754 | 16.9% | 65.8% |
| Wyoming | 45,518 | 5,449 | 8,035 | 3,364 | 67,590 | 16.9% | 67.3% |
| New Hampshire | 95,586 | 12,399 | 17,772 | 5,868 | 145,097 | 16.3% | 65.9% |
| Idaho | 149,775 | 15,343 | 23,503 | 9,815 | 217,374 | 15.3% | 68.9% |
| Hawaii | 86,767 | 11,414 | 16,486 | 5,489 | 148,602 | 14.8% | 58.4% |
| Utah | 308,270 | 18,337 | 39,025 | 14,459 | 416,492 | 12.8% | 74.0% |
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