Change in Common Household Types in the U.S.

In the 1970s, the most common household type in the U.S. was a married couple with kids. But over time, as people wait longer to get married and have fewer kids (if any), it’s grown more common to live alone or with non-family. The chart below shows the shifts between 1976 through 2021.

1976

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

ONE-PERSON

MARRIED COUPLE

WITH CHILDREN

As people wait longer to have kids, households of married couples with children are less common.

It is most common to live alone these days.

28% of U.S.

Households

in 2021

37% of U.S.

Households

in 1976

MARRIED COUPLE

WITH NO CHILDREN

22%

MARRIED COUPLE

WITH NO CHILDREN

23%

MARRIED COUPLE

WITH CHILDREN

21%

ONE-PERSON

21%

It is also more common now to live with roommates and/or non-family.

COMPOSITE

11%

EXTENDED

7%

EXTENDED

9%

SINGLE MOTHER

7%

SINGLE MOTHER

6%

4%

COMPOSITE

SINGLE FATHER

2%

SINGLE FATHER

1%

1976

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

SOURCE: CURRENT POPULATION SURVEY / IPUMS

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

As people wait longer to have kids, households of married couples with children are less common.

It is most common to live alone these days.

ONE-PERSON

28% of U.S.

Households

in 2021

MARRIED COUPLE

W/O CHILDREN

22%

MARRIED COUPLE

W/ CHILDREN

21%

It is also more common now to live with roommates.

COMPOSITE

11%

EXTENDED

9%

SINGLE MOTHER 6%

SINGLE FATHER 2%

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

SOURCE: CURRENT POPULATION SURVEY / IPUMS

While there are many household types, the ones here are based on definitions from the United Nations Statistics Division. They define four main types of households:

  • One-person household
  • Nuclear household — a household with a single family nucleus
  • Extended household — a household with a single family nucleus with other people related to the nucleus
  • Composite — A mix of nuclei or non-related people

They further breakdown the nuclear household to married with children, married without children, a father with children, and a mother with children.

Most of the change occurs among married couples with children, one-person, and composite households. The other types vary relatively little over the selected decades.

Become a member. Support an independent site. Make great charts.

See What You Get

Learn to Visualize Data See All →

How to Make Interactive Frequency Trails with D3.js

Layering time series data or distributions with this method can change the feel and aesthetic versus a multi-line chart or small multiples. In some cases, frequency trails let you show more in less space.

Downloading Your Email Metadata

Email provides a window into who we interact with and what we do. This tutorial describes how to get that data in the format you want.

How to Make Animated Line Charts in R

Sometimes it’s useful to animate the multiple lines instead of showing them all at once.

How to Display Text in R

Text can provide much needed context to traditional visual cues and can be used as a visual cue itself in some cases.

Favorites

What Qualifies as Middle-Income in Each State

The meaning of “middle-income” changes a lot depending on where you live and your household size.

Peak Non-Creepy Dating Pool

Based on the “half-your-age-plus-seven” rule, the range of people you can date expands with age. Combine that with population counts and demographics, and you can find when your non-creepy dating pool peaks.

Redefining Old Age

What is old? When it comes to subjects like health care and retirement, we often think of old in fixed terms. But as people live longer, it’s worth changing the definition.

Divorce and Occupation

Some jobs tend towards higher divorce rates. Some towards lower. Salary also probably plays a role.