For pastors.
Do you have a singles' ministry at your church?
Our team of data monkeys scoured dozens of sources to collect interesting statistics about US Singles. In legal definitions for interpersonal status, a single person is someone who is not in a relationship or is \"unmarried\". - Wikipedia
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There Are Now More Single People In The US Than Married People
As a demographic category, single people in the US are growing faster than married, a trend that has continued uninterrupted since 1960. In fact, singles now outnumber married adults! In 2021, there were 122 million singles in America, which represented 48.2% of all US residents over the ages of 18.
Marital Status Statistics for Singles
While the label \'single\' indicates that a person is not currently married, a number of singles have previously been married and are currently single as a result of divorce or the passing of a spouse. Of unmarried US residents 18 and older, 14% are widowed, 24% are divorced, and 62% have never been married. That ratio has changed over time - while widowers are becoming less common, divorce is becoming much more common. The percentage of singles that have never been married is also on the rise - in fact, it's nearly double the ratio from 1960!
Gender Statistics for Singles
While the national population is fairly evenly split between men (49.5%) and women(50.5%), the singles demographic skews a bit more, with women making up 53% of singles and men only 47%. That means there are 86 unmarried men for every 100 unmarried women. Gender has long been a factor in the age at which individuals have entered into marriage, with women entering into marriage an average of 3 years earlier than men. The average age people are choosing to enter into marriage has risen significantly over the last several decades, soaring from 20 for women & 23 for men in 1960 to 27 for women and 29 for men in the current decade. Studies show that while 23% of single females attend church regularly, only 15% of single men do.
Why does this matter to me?
US statistics tend to carry over into the church. This means that many in your congregation face unique issues. Strong churches are built by strong families, and this may leave some members of your church feeling alienated at times.
It's not your fault, it just is what it is. They may even be surprised when their own feelings creep up at the most unexpected times.
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If you would like to help the singles in your church connect with each other and with others in your district, click here.
Did you know that only 11
districts have singles ministries?
Racial Statistics for Singles
As the racial make-up of the US has changed over time, so too has the ethnic ratio of Singles. However, living \'single\' is growing in popularity across all ethnic groups at relatively the same pace. The percentage of singles has grown to 73% among Caucasians, 86% among Hispanics & 77% among African Americans. The face of Single-America is becoming more diverse, reflecting similar changes to the overall US population.
Age Group Statistics for Singles
There is significant growth in the single community across all age groups. This is particularly noticeable in the 25-44 range, where the percentage of singles has nearly tripled what it was in the 1960s. As of 2012, more than 90% of adults under 24 years old are single. On the other end of the spectrum, there are currently over 17 million unmarried seniors who account for over 16% of all US singles.
Geographic Statistics for Singles
The demographic make-up of society is different in every region. Some locations tend to skew heavily toward single life, while others have heavier concentrations of married couples. The heaviest concentration of singles is in Washington DC, where an astonishing 71% of the population is single - a full 20 points above the national average. This solitary lifestyle is juxtaposed by Idaho & Utah, which are both around 40% single - well below the national average.
Financial Statistics for Singles
Over 40% of the US workforce is single - that\'s over 56 million unmarried American workers contributing an impressive $2 trillion to the US economy. Singles are putting more focus on completing basic education with 90% increase in high-school completion compared to the 60's, as well as investing in a college education up 68% compared to the 60's.
US SINGLES STATISTICS SOURCES:
www.unmarried.org
• http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/files/2014/09/ST-2014-09-24-never-married-31.png
• http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2011/12/14/barely-half-of-u-s-adults-are-married-a-record-low/
• http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2010/11/18/the-decline-of-marriage-and-rise-of-new-families/6/
• http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2010/10/07/the-reversal-of-the-college-marriage-gap/
• http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0078.pdf
• http://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/marriage/data/acs/ElliottetalPAA2012presentation.pdf
• http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_13_5YR_S1201&prodType=table
• http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr58/nvsr58_25.pdf
• http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
• https://www.ipums.org/
• http://www.statista.com/statistics/242030/marital-status-of-the-us-population-by-sex/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_in_the_United_States#cite_note-US_Census_2005_Economic_Survey.2C_income_data-1
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_in_the_United_States#cite_note-US_Census_Bureau.2C_personal_income_distribution-2
• http://kff.org/state-category/demographics-and-the-economy/population/
• http://www.statisticbrain.com/dating-relationship-stats/
• http://www.nber.org/papers/h0080.pdf