54% of Women Aged 25 to 29 Are Childless

Nearly half of American women aged 15 to 44 were childless in 2016, up from about one-third in 1976. The dramatic rise in childlessness among women of reproductive age has been fueled by the especially large increases among women aged 25 to 34. The percentage of women aged 25 to 29 who have not (yet) had a child climbed 23 percentage points between 1976 and 2016. Among 30-to-34-year-olds, the percent childless nearly doubled during those years...

Percent of women who are childless, 2016 (and 1976)
Aged 15 to 44: 48.6% (35.1%)
Aged 20 to 24: 75.8% (69.0%)
Aged 25 to 29: 53.8% (30.8%)
Aged 30 to 34: 30.8% (15.6%)
Aged 35 to 39: 18.5% (10.5%)
Aged 40 to 44: 14.4% (10.2%)

Source: Census Bureau, Fertility of Women in the United States: 2016

Attitudes Toward Marriage and Childbearing

Cohabitation and out-of-wedlock childbearing, already commonplace in the United States, may become the norm in the years ahead if the attitudes of the nation's younger adults are any indicator. According to the 2011-13 National Survey of Family Growth, most adults under age 45 think cohabitation and out-of-wedlock childbearing are okay. Respondents were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the following statements...

A young couple should not live together unless they are married
Men who disagreed: 75%
Women who disagreed: 71%

It's okay to have and raise children when the parents are living together but not married
Men who agreed: 76%
Women who agreed: 75%

It's okay for an unmarried female to have and raise a child
Men who agreed: 69%
Women who agreed: 78%

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, National Survey of Family Growth, Trends in Attitudes about Marriage, Childbearing, and Sexual Behavior: United States, 2002, 2006-2010, and 2011-2013