A new report from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that more women had their first child while living with an unmarried partner in the early 2020s compared to the early 1990s. The Women’s Living Arrangements at First Birth report, released today, examines how women’s living situations at the time of their first birth have changed over three decades, considering factors such as educational attainment and race or ethnicity.
The study indicates that fewer women had their first child while neither married nor cohabiting in 2020-2024 than in 1990-1994.
In terms of education, the data reveal that among first-time mothers with at least a bachelor’s degree, the percentage who were married increased from 74.4% in 1990-1994 to 84.5% in 2020-2024. For this group, only 4.4% were neither married nor living with a partner at the time of their first birth in 2020-2024, down from 14.4% three decades earlier.
For women with less than a bachelor’s degree, marriage rates at first birth declined from 58.6% to 40.6% over the same period. Cohabitation for this group rose from 19.2% to 34.8%.
Racial and ethnic differences also emerged in the findings. In the early 1990s, Asian women were most likely to be married at first birth (81.7%), followed by White (71.8%), Hispanic (61.2%), and Black (31.5%) mothers. By the early 2020s, the share of Hispanic mothers who were married at first birth dropped to 43.9%. The proportion of marital first births did not show significant change for Asian, White, or Black mothers during this period.
Cohabitation increased among White and Hispanic mothers: for White mothers it rose from 14.5% to 20.2%, and for Hispanic mothers from 20.4% to 34%.
The report draws on data from sources including the Current Population Survey June Fertility Supplement File and America Counts.
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