Cities with the most divorced people

ThiagoSantos // Shutterstock There was a time in American society when marriage was, essentially, final–intractable, incapable of being dissolved, in fact. It wasn’t until New York state’s Married Women’s Property Act of 1848 that women even began to be seen as “legal entities,” to say nothing of equals to men, at least in the eyes of the law. Through the end of the 19th century, divorce retained a distasteful patina; it was a source of failure, shame, or wrongdoing. Yet there were parts of the country–such as Indiana, North and South Dakota, and Utah–that had become known as “divorce mills,” places a person could safely and discreetly obtain a divorce (in the same manner that today only select states offer protected abortion care). In fact, the rate of divorce in those particular states became such a concern that in 1887 the federal government began to keep statistics on the matter. Fast-cut to the 21st century and divorce is not only obtainable across the country, but it also has, in large part, shed the veil of secrecy and shame that once enshrouded it. The National Center for Health Statistics found in its most recent data that in 2020, across 45 reporting states and Washington D.C., there were more than 630,000 divorces. That’s 2.3 divorces per 1,000 population. And while it is a 116,000-divorce drop from 2019, it would not take a divorce lawyer to puzzle out the pandemic’s effect on those numbers. Where you live may have a lot to do with your odds of getting divorced. Using 5-year estimate data from the Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey, Stacker created a list of the 50 metropolitan areas with the highest number of divorced people. The metropolitan areas, all of which had to have more than 50,000 residents to make the list, are ranked by the percentage of their divorced adult population. Adult population is considered 15 years old and over. Here, the percentage of the adult population that is divorced is listed along with its percentage point difference versus the national average. The percentage of the adult population that is currently separated, married, or widowed also is noted, as are any resulting ties in the data. Read on to find out if you live in a city with one of the highest divorce rates. You may also like: 50 terms with origins in rural America #50. Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Sara Goth // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.3% (0.5 points above national average) – Currently married: 50.8% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 7.1% (1.5 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.2% (7.6 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 196,463 #49. Panama City, Florida Rob Hainer // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.1% (0.3 points above national average) – Currently married: 50.1% (2.1 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.7% (1.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 27.5% (6.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 149,399 #47. Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, Arkansas (tie) Montanabw // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.9% (0.1 points above national average) – Currently married: 48.1% (0.1 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 5.8% (0.2 points above national average) – Percent never married: 30.6% (3.2 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 599,679 #47. Longview, Washington (tie) Jeremywagg // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.9% (0.1 points above national average) – Currently married: 48.8% (0.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.6% (1.0 points above national average) – Percent never married: 29.1% (4.7 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 88,694 #46. Weirton-Steubenville, West Virginia-Ohio The American Explorer // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.6% (0.2 points below national average) – Currently married: 47.8% (0.2 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 8.3% (2.7 points above national average) – Percent never married: 28.7% (5.1 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 99,107 You may also like: 20 influential Indigenous Americans you might not know about #45. Great Falls, Montana Photolitherland // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.5% (0.3 points below national average) – Currently married: 50.3% (2.3 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.6% (1.0 points above national average) – Percent never married: 28.1% (5.7 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 67,945 #44. Springfield, Illinois j.s. clark // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.3% (0.5 points below national average) – Currently married: 46.6% (1.4 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.1% (0.5 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.4% (1.4 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 170,792 #43. Billings, Montana Brandonrush // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.6% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.0% (0.8 points below national average) – Currently married: 51.6% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 5.6% (0.0 points below national average) – Percent never married: 28.3% (5.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 147,751 #41. Reno, Nevada (tie) Renelibrary // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.7% (2.9 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.7% (0.1 points below national average) – Currently married: 47.4% (0.6 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 4.9% (0.7 points below national average) – Percent never married: 32.4% (1.4 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 396,915 #41. Port St. Lucie, Florida (tie) Felix Mizioznikov // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 13.7% (2.9 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.7% (0.1 points below national average) – Currently married: 49.7% (1.7 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.0% (2.4 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.8% (7.0 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 408,646 You may also like: What kind of data is your car collecting about you? #40. Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida MicheleHaro // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.7% (2.9 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.6% (0.2 points below national average) – Currently married: 49.7% (1.7 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 7.7% (2.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 27.3% (6.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 511,055 #39. Albany-Lebanon, Oregon Felix Mizioznikov // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 13.7% (2.9 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.5% (0.3 points below national average) – Currently married: 52.2% (4.2 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 5.6% (0.0 points below national average) – Percent never married: 27.0% (6.8 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 103,403 #38. Sherman-Denison, Texas Lómelinde // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.7% (2.9 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.4% (0.4 points below national average) – Currently married: 51.6% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.5% (0.9 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.8% (7.0 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 107,592 #37. Owensboro, Kentucky Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 13.8% (3.0 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.8% (0.0 points below national average) – Currently married: 51.8% (3.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.4% (0.8 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.3% (7.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 96,191 #36. Bangor, Maine Chris Light // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.8% (3.0 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.1% (0.7 points below national average) – Currently married: 47.0% (1.0 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.3% (0.7 points above national average) – Percent never married: 31.7% (2.1 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 129,781 You may also like: How alcohol-related deaths have changed in every state over the past two decades #35. Flint, Michigan Andrew Farkas // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.9% (3.1 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.6% (0.2 points below national average) – Currently married: 43.9% (4.1 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.0% (0.4 points above national average) – Percent never married: 34.5% (0.7 points above national average) – Total adult population estimate: 330,915 #34. Casper, Wyoming Flintmichigan // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 13.9% (3.1 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.1% (0.7 points below national average) – Currently married: 50.4% (2.4 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 5.5% (0.1 points below national average) – Percent never married: 29.1% (4.7 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 63,411 #33. Huntington-Ashland, West Virginia-Kentucky-Ohio Eudaimonic Traveler // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 14.0% (3.2 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.7% (0.1 points below national average) – Currently married: 48.6% (0.6 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 7.7% (2.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 28.0% (5.8 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 297,755 #32. Parkersburg-Vienna, West Virginia Public Domain – Percent currently divorced: 14.0% (3.2 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.3% (0.5 points below national average) – Currently married: 50.5% (2.5 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 7.8% (2.2 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.4% (7.4 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 74,210 #31. Muskegon, Michigan Carol M. Highsmith/Library of Congress // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.0% (3.2 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.0% (0.8 points below national average) – Currently married: 46.7% (1.3 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 5.8% (0.2 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.5% (1.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 142,179 You may also like: Marijuana violations have taken over 10,000 truck drivers off the road this year, adding more supply chain disruptions #30. Brunswick, Georgia John Phelan // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.1% (3.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.3% (0.5 points above national average) – Currently married: 46.2% (1.8 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 8.0% (2.4 points above national average) – Percent never married: 29.4% (4.4 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 93,561 #28. Albuquerque, New Mexico (tie) Andrew Jameson // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.1% (3.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.4% (0.4 points below national average) – Currently married: 43.5% (4.5 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 5.5% (0.1 points below national average) – Percent never married: 35.6% (1.8 points above national average) – Total adult population estimate: 748,464 #28. Grand Junction, Colorado (tie) Ron Reiring // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.1% (3.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.4% (0.4 points below national average) – Currently married: 50.2% (2.2 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.3% (0.7 points above national average) – Percent never married: 27.9% (5.9 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 127,130 #27. Spokane-Spokane Valley, Washington Inkknife_2000 // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.1% (3.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.2% (0.6 points below national average) – Currently married: 48.8% (0.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 5.3% (0.3 points below national average) – Percent never married: 30.6% (3.2 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 471,724 #25. Bay City, Michigan (tie) M.Bucka // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.1% (3.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.1% (0.7 points below national average) – Currently married: 47.1% (0.9 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 7.5% (1.9 points above national average) – Percent never married: 30.3% (3.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 87,018 You may also like: 50 facts about food insecurity in America #25. Lewiston-Auburn, Maine (tie) Bubba73 (Jud McCranie) // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.1% (3.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.1% (0.7 points below national average) – Currently married: 48.3% (0.3 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.1% (0.5 points above national average) – Percent never married: 30.3% (3.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 90,589 #24. Lewiston, Idaho-Washington Dsdugan // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.2% (3.4 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.2% (0.6 points below national average) – Currently married: 50.8% (2.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 7.4% (1.8 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.3% (7.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 52,907 #23. Redding, California Yipdw // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.3% (3.5 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.8% (0.0 points below national average) – Currently married: 49.0% (1.0 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.4% (0.8 points above national average) – Percent never married: 28.5% (5.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 149,073 #22. Jackson, Michigan Phillip L. Hofmeister // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.3% (3.5 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.3% (0.5 points below national average) – Currently married: 45.9% (2.1 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.0% (0.4 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.5% (1.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 132,247 #21. Terre Haute, Indiana Doug Kerr // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.3% (3.5 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.0% (0.8 points below national average) – Currently married: 45.3% (2.7 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.5% (0.9 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.9% (0.9 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 153,098 You may also like: Web3 is coming–here’s what you should know #20. Anniston-Oxford, Alabama Ebyabe // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.4% (0.6 points above national average) – Currently married: 44.1% (3.9 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 7.4% (1.8 points above national average) – Percent never married: 31.7% (2.1 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 95,608 #19. Danville, Illinois Tim Kiser // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.1% (0.3 points above national average) – Currently married: 43.8% (4.2 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 7.6% (2.0 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.1% (1.7 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 60,043 #18. Pueblo, Colorado Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.9% (0.1 points above national average) – Currently married: 44.9% (3.1 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.3% (0.7 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.5% (1.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 136,439 #17. Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida Yinan Chen // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.6% (0.2 points below national average) – Currently married: 48.8% (0.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 7.9% (2.3 points above national average) – Percent never married: 27.3% (6.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 566,607 #16. Charleston, West Virginia John Wark // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.5% (0.3 points below national average) – Currently married: 48.4% (0.4 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.2% (2.6 points above national average) – Percent never married: 27.5% (6.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 216,592 You may also like: States with the highest marriage rates–and how they’ve changed #14. Beckley, West Virginia (tie) Nyttend // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.4% (0.4 points below national average) – Currently married: 50.2% (2.2 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.5% (2.9 points above national average) – Percent never married: 25.5% (8.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 95,779 #14. Homosassa Springs, Florida (tie) Ebyabe // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.4% (3.6 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.4% (0.4 points below national average) – Currently married: 52.7% (4.7 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 10.5% (4.9 points above national average) – Percent never married: 21.0% (12.8 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 133,225 #13. Grants Pass, Oregon Matt Morse // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.5% (3.7 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.0% (0.2 points above national average) – Currently married: 52.3% (4.3 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 6.7% (1.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 24.4% (9.4 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 73,486 #12. Gadsden, Alabama Prestinian // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.5% (3.7 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.8% (0.0 points below national average) – Currently married: 45.5% (2.5 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 8.7% (3.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 29.5% (4.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 85,077 #11. Michigan City-La Porte, Indiana Joseph Novak // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.5% (3.7 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.1% (0.7 points below national average) – Currently married: 47.0% (1.0 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.0% (0.4 points above national average) – Percent never married: 31.4% (2.4 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 92,175 You may also like: Best-run cities in America #10. Texarkana, Texas-Arkansas K.Woolf // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 14.6% (3.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.7% (0.9 points above national average) – Currently married: 45.5% (2.5 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 7.1% (1.5 points above national average) – Percent never married: 30.1% (3.7 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 118,882 #9. Carson City, Nevada Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 14.6% (3.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.5% (0.7 points above national average) – Currently married: 45.2% (2.8 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 7.7% (2.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 30.0% (3.8 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 48,085 #8. Kingsport-Bristol, Tennessee-Virginia Billy Hathorn // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.6% (3.8 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.2% (0.4 points above national average) – Currently married: 50.4% (2.4 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.3% (2.7 points above national average) – Percent never married: 24.5% (9.3 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 259,755 #7. Medford, Oregon Little Mountain 5 // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 14.9% (4.1 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.2% (0.6 points below national average) – Currently married: 51.1% (3.1 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 5.9% (0.3 points above national average) – Percent never married: 26.9% (6.9 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 183,553 #6. St. Joseph, Missouri-Kansas Quibik // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 15.1% (4.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.5% (0.3 points below national average) – Currently married: 46.4% (1.6 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.4% (0.8 points above national average) – Percent never married: 30.6% (3.2 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 100,058 You may also like: States with the most homelessness #5. Battle Creek, Michigan Tim Kiser // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 15.1% (4.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.3% (0.5 points below national average) – Currently married: 44.7% (3.3 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 6.3% (0.7 points above national average) – Percent never married: 32.6% (1.2 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 108,885 #3. Hot Springs, Arkansas (tie) CWanamaker // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 15.3% (4.5 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.1% (0.3 points above national average) – Currently married: 48.8% (0.8 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.5% (2.9 points above national average) – Percent never married: 25.3% (8.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 83,268 #3. Lake Havasu City-Kingman, Arizona (tie) Sharon Day // Shutterstock – Percent currently divorced: 15.3% (4.5 points above national average) – Currently separated: 2.1% (0.3 points above national average) – Currently married: 51.0% (3.0 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.7% (3.1 points above national average) – Percent never married: 23.0% (10.8 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 181,749 #2. Prescott Valley-Prescott, Arizona Martha.baden // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 15.5% (4.7 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.3% (0.5 points below national average) – Currently married: 52.9% (4.9 points above national average) – Currently widowed: 8.0% (2.4 points above national average) – Percent never married: 22.3% (11.5 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 202,886 #1. Santa Fe, New Mexico Asaavedra32 // Wikimedia Commons – Percent currently divorced: 16.1% (5.3 points above national average) – Currently separated: 1.2% (0.6 points below national average) – Currently married: 46.5% (1.5 points below national average) – Currently widowed: 5.6% (0.0 points below national average) – Percent never married: 30.7% (3.1 points below national average) – Total adult population estimate: 131,477 You may also like: Most pet-friendly cities in America