The U.S. Cities With the Highest and Lowest Rates of Divorce and Separation

No one gets married with the intention of separating or getting divorced. Sadly, it is an all-too-common occurrence in cities across the United States. But some cities see more divorces and separations than others, for several reasons.

Our research team at the Joslyn Law Firm analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey of metropolitan and micropolitan areas to determine the cities with the highest and lowest percentages of divorced people in 2022, and the cities with the highest and lowest percentages of separated people in 2022.

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The U.S. Cities With the Highest and Lowest Rates of Divorce and Separation

U.S. Cities with the Highest Divorce Rates

It may surprise you to learn that the city with the highest divorce rate in the U.S. is the Medford, Oregon metro area, with a population of 184,923 people who are aged 15 and up, 15.8% (roughly 29,000) of whom are currently divorced. This is quite a bit higher than the national average rate of 10.5%. It is important to note that the U.S. Census no longer considers a person to be divorced once they remarry.

Why so high in Oregon? One theory is that the state has a higher median age than the rest of the country, that being 40.5 compared to the national average of 39. At the same time, millennials and Gen Z are waiting longer to get married, and are staying married longer.

At the same time, divorce in older populations is becoming more common. Referred to as “gray divorce,” it affects more people over the age of 65 than ever. These divorces can be particularly complex to navigate because older people tend to have more assets, including retirement funds or pensions.

The second and third U.S. cities with the highest divorce rate are the Dothan, Alabama metro area and Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma, both coming in at 15.1% of their respective populations 15 and up of 124,829 (approximately 19,000 people) and 199,932 (roughly 30,000 people).

The Complete List of the Top 25 Metro Areas With the Highest Divorce Rates

City Population 15 years and over Percentage of population who are currently divorced
1 Medford, OR Metro Area 184,923 15.8
2 Fort Smith, AR-OK Metro Area 199,932 15.1
3 Dothan, AL Metro Area 124,829 15.1
4 Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL Metro Area 606,624 15
6 Charleston, WV Metro Area 208,537 14.9
6 Bangor, ME Metro Area 132,210 14.9
7 Pueblo, CO Metro Area 139,571 14.7
8 Texarkana, TX-AR Metro Area 115,796 14.7
9 Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA Metro Area 264,031 14.6
10 Jackson, MI Metro Area 132,411 14.6
11 Redding, CA Metro Area 148,776 14.5
12 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL Metro Area 539,130 14.3
13 Punta Gorda, FL Metro Area 183,646 14.1
14 Shreveport-Bossier City, LA Metro Area 309,484 14
15 Reno, NV Metro Area 416,648 13.9
16 Johnson City, TN Metro Area 181,322 13.9
17 Albuquerque, NM Metro Area 770,472 13.7
18 Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ Metro Area 216,164 13.7
19 Carbondale-Marion, IL Metro Area 110,988 13.6
20 Salem, OR Metro Area 355,405 13.5
21 Eugene-Springfield, OR Metro Area 328,549 13.5
22 Terre Haute, IN Metro Area 154,233 13.4
23 Muskegon, MI Metro Area 144,708 13.3
24 Canton-Massillon, OH Metro Area 329,719 13.1
25 Norwich-New London, CT Metro Area 227,780 13.1

U.S. Cities with the Lowest Divorce Rates

Just as some parts of the country are seeing high percentages of divorced people, other areas contribute much less to the national divorce rate.

The U.S. city with the lowest divorce rate is the Provo-Orem, Utah metro area, at just 5.7% of people aged 15 and up. That is only about 30,000 people in this age range out of a total of 530,217. This is perhaps unsurprising as roughly 42% of the state’s population identified as Mormon in 2022, and though the religion does not strictly prohibit divorce, it does discourage it.

Of interest is that while the second city with the lowest divorce rate in the U.S. jumps to 6.8% of just 199,635 people aged 15 and up, this accounts for roughly half of Provo-Orem’s total, coming in at just about 14,000 people.

The Complete List of the Top 25 Metro Areas With the Lowest Divorce Rates

City Population 15 years and over Percentage of population who are currently divorced
1 Provo-Orem, UT Metro Area 530,217 5.7
2 Laredo, TX Metro Area 199,635 6.8
3 College Station-Bryan, TX Metro Area 231,333 6.9
4 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA Metro Area 1,617,261 7
5 Merced, CA Metro Area 222,348 7.3
6 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX Metro Area 661,453 7.7
7 Brownsville-Harlingen, TX Metro Area 325,540 7.8
8 San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA Metro Area 3,868,876 8
9 Lancaster, PA Metro Area 451,159 8
10 Yuma, AZ Metro Area 164,825 8
11 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA Metro Area 16,229,134 8.1
12 Rochester, MN Metro Area 184,220 8.1
13 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA Metro Area 10,718,743 8.3
14 Fresno, CA Metro Area 784,024 8.3
15 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA Metro Area 363,399 8.3
16 Athens-Clarke County, GA Metro Area 184,394 8.4
17 Raleigh-Cary, NC Metro Area 1,206,861 8.5
18 Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NY Metro Area 576,079 8.5
19 Stockton, CA Metro Area 623,207 8.6
20 Ogden-Clearfield, UT Metro Area 548,161 8.6
21 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI Metro Area 7,768,698 8.7
22 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA Metro Area 3,728,010 8.7
23 Bakersfield, CA Metro Area 702,224 8.7
24 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metro Area 5,192,933 8.8
25 Salinas, CA Metro Area 342,358 8.9

U.S. Cities with the Highest Separation Rates

But divorce is not the only route people are pursuing when their marriages break up. Some people separate instead, and some for extended periods of time before either reconciling or divorcing.

Separation doesn’t always require a legal filing, but it can be helpful if the separation is particularly contentious. However, some states don’t allow legal separation at all, including Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas. Instead, some of those states may impose waiting periods before divorce is granted to encourage reconciliation and prevent the breakup of marriages over snap decisions.

The city with the highest separation rate in the U.S. is the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas metro area, with 3.5% of 661,453 people aged 15 and up identifying as separated in 2022.

In the second and third spots are the Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas and Lumberton, North Carolina metro area, both at 3.3 percent. Lumberton’s 15 and older population is 92,043, while Brownsville-Harlingen boasts 325,540.

The Complete List of the Top 25 Metro Areas With the Highest Separation Rates

  City Population 15 years and over Percentage of population who are currently separated
1 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX Metro Area 661,453 3.5
2 Brownsville-Harlingen, TX Metro Area 325,540 3.3
3 Lumberton, NC Micro Area 92,043 3.3
4 Fayetteville, NC Metro Area 415,487 3.1
5 Columbus, GA-AL Metro Area 259,445 3
6 Jackson, TN Metro Area 147,555 3
7 Laredo, TX Metro Area 199,635 2.9
8 Monroe, LA Metro Area 165,036 2.9
9 Jackson, MS Metro Area 473,413 2.8
10 El Paso, TX Metro Area 685,604 2.7
11 Yuma, AZ Metro Area 164,825 2.7
12 Burlington, NC Metro Area 145,129 2.7
13 Memphis, TN-MS-AR Metro Area 1,061,504 2.6
14 Shreveport-Bossier City, LA Metro Area 309,484 2.6
15 Fresno, CA Metro Area 784,024 2.5
16 Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC Metro Area 507,383 2.5
17 Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV Metro Area 249,304 2.5
18 Lawton, OK Metro Area 102,104 2.5
19 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL Metro Area 5,144,871 2.4
20 Mobile, AL Metro Area 347,235 2.4
21 Macon-Bibb County, GA Metro Area 189,924 2.4
22 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC Metro Area 307,033 2.3
23 Spartanburg, SC Metro Area 280,156 2.3
24 Kingston, NY Metro Area 157,565 2.3
25 Abilene, TX Metro Area 146,308 2.3

U.S. Cities with the Lowest Separation Rates

Conversely, the Lafayette, Indiana metro area has the lowest separation rate in the country. Making a second appearance on these lists, and coming in at the eighth lowest rate is the Provo-Orem, Utah metro area. This may once again be attributed to religious beliefs held by nearly half the state’s population.

Interestingly, the top 10 states with the highest separation rates are all in the south, while the top 10 states with the lowest separation rates are all in the north, with the exception of the Punta Gorda, Florida metro area coming in as technically tied for number 2.

Incidentally, the Punta Gorda metro area also has the 13th highest divorce rate in the country. The median age in the city itself is 66.3, and the area is home to many retirees, so these statistics together may also speak to the higher incidence of divorce among older people.

It’s important to note that the Census Bureau data is based on the percentage of the population aged 15 and up who are currently divorced or separated, not the percentage of people who have ever been divorced or separated.

The Complete List of the Top 25 Metro Areas With the Lowest Separation Rates

City Population 15 years and over  Percentage of population who are currently separated
1 Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN Metro Area 189,618 0.5
2 Madison, WI Metro Area 576,840 0.6
3 Portland-South Portland, ME Metro Area 479,520 0.6
4 Green Bay, WI Metro Area 270,851 0.6
5 Punta Gorda, FL Metro Area 183,646 0.6
6 Provo-Orem, UT Metro Area 530,217 0.7
7 Rochester, MN Metro Area 184,220 0.7
8 Wausau-Weston, WI Metro Area 136,903 0.7
9 Fort Collins, CO Metro Area 312,932 0.8
10 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL Metro Area 308,970 0.8
11 Lincoln, NE Metro Area 279,394 0.8
12 Duluth, MN-WI Metro Area 246,422 0.8
13 Jefferson City, MO Metro Area 122,452 0.8
14 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metro Area 2,996,851 0.9
15 Grand Rapids-Kentwood, MI Metro Area 889,509 0.9
16 Boise City, ID Metro Area 659,596 0.9
17 Colorado Springs, CO Metro Area 622,595 0.9
18 Akron, OH Metro Area 584,757 0.9
19 Ogden-Clearfield, UT Metro Area 548,161 0.9
20 Boulder, CO Metro Area 282,460 0.9
21 Norwich-New London, CT Metro Area 227,780 0.9
22 Topeka, KS Metro Area 188,560 0.9
23 Jackson, MI Metro Area 132,411 0.9
24 Bangor, ME Metro Area 132,210 0.9
25 Terre Haute, IN Metro Area 154,233 1

 

If you’re in the Columbus, Ohio area and are in need of a divorce lawyer, Joslyn Law Firm is there for you. Here are just a few of the ways we can help you today:

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This page was last updated by Brian Joslyn

(614) 420-2424
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