Why the Decline in Dual-Income Couples?

According to the 2021 Current Population Survey, just 50 percent of the nation's married couples are dual-income—meaning both husband and wife are in the labor force. This figure is significantly below the 56 percent who were dual-income nearly a generation ago in 2000. Without further analysis, this decline could be interpreted as wives withdrawing from the labor force. Nothing could be further from the truth. The decline is entirely due to the retirement of the aging Baby-Boom generation.

• As dual-income couples declined from 56 to 50 percent of total couples between 2000 and 2021, the percentage of couples in which neither spouse was in the labor force grew from 16 to 22 percent as Boomers retired.
• The percentage of couples in which only the wife was in the labor force also increased, rising from 6 to 8 percent between 2000 and 2021. This increase, too, is largely due to Boomer retirements, with typically older husbands retiring a bit before their wives.
• The percentage of married couples in which only the husband was in the labor force fell slightly during those years, from 21.4 to 20.9 percent.
• Among married couples with children under age 18 (husbands and wives of prime working age), the 66 percent dual-income share of 2021 has barely changed over the decades. 

The decline in two-income couples as a share of all married couples is yet another example of how the increasingly top-heavy age structure of the population is affecting the nation's statistics.

Source: Demo Memo analysis of the Census Bureau's Historical Families Tables

Median Household Income of Married Couples Tops $100,000

The median household income of married couples has grown by leaps and bounds over the past half century, according to the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey. Take a look at the trend...

Median household income of married couples, 1970 to 2020 (in 2020 dollars)

2020: $101,240

2010:   $85,950

2000:   $89,081

1990:   $76,847

1980:   $69,405

1970:   $62,734

Between 1970 and 2020, the median household income of married couples grew by a huge 61 percent, after adjusting for inflation. In comparison, the median income of all households grew by a smaller 30 percent during those years. 

What accounts for the surge in the median income of married couples? Some of the increase—especially in the 1970s and 1980s—was due to the rise of dual-earner couples as a share of all married couples. Another factor is the rising income of women. Between 1970 and 2020, the median earnings of women who work full-time climbed 85 percent, after adjusting for inflation. The median earnings of their male counterparts grew just 13 percent during that time period. 

Perhaps the biggest factor boosting the incomes of married couples in recent years is what is called the marriage market. In the marriage market, the most desirable mates are those who make the most money. Among men, the married share ranges from a low of 33 percent among those with personal incomes below $25,000 to a high of 78 percent among those with incomes of $100,000 or more. The comparable figures for women are 41 and 67 percent. The marriage market explains the outsized gains for married couples.

Source: Demo Memo analysis of the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey

Married Couples Peak in the 40-to-44 Age Group

Only 48 percent of the nation's 129 million households are headed by married couples, according to the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey. By age, the married-couple share of households first rises above the 50 percent threshold in the 35-to-39 age group, peaks at 58 percent in the 40-to-44 age group, and falls back below the 50 percent threshold in the 75-to-79 age group. Only 20 percent of households headed by people aged 85 or older are married couples.

Percent of households headed by married couples by age of householder, 2019
Total households: 48.2%
Under age 25: 14.5%
Aged 25 to 29: 32.6%
Aged 30 to 34: 49.4%
Aged 35 to 39: 56.9%
Aged 40 to 44: 58.1%
Aged 45 to 49: 57.3%
Aged 50 to 54: 54.7%
Aged 55 to 59: 52.8%
Aged 60 to 64: 52.4%
Aged 65 to 69: 51.5%
Aged 70 to 74: 51.0%
Aged 75 to 79: 44.3%
Aged 80 to 84: 37.4%
Aged 85-plus: 20.4%

The married-couple share of households was as high as 78.8 percent in 1949. The share fell below 70 percent in 1971, below 60 percent in 1981, and below 50 percent in 2010.

Source: Census Bureau, Age and Sex Composition in the United States: 2019

Differences in Earnings of Husbands and Wives

How do husbands and wives compare in earnings? Not surprisingly, most husbands earn more. In 2018, the 54 percent majority of husbands earned at least $5,000 more than their wives...

Earnings difference between husbands and wives, 2018
54% of husbands earn at least $5,000 more than their wives
25% of husbands and wives earn within $4,999 of one another
20% of wives earn at least $5,000 more than their husbands

These figures have changed some since 2000. The percentage of husbands who earn at least $5,000 more than their wives fell from 59 percent in 2000 to the 54 percent of today. The percentage of wives who earn at least $5,000 more than their husbands grew from 15 percent in 2000 to the 20 percent of 2018. The 25 percent of husbands and wives who earn within $4,999 of one another in 2018 is almost identical to the 26 percent of 2000.

Source: Demo Memo analysis of the Census Bureau's Families and Living Arrangements 2018

Three Generations of Married-Couple Households

It is difficult to grasp just how much living arrangements have changed in the United States unless you mine the Census Bureau's archives to uncover the nitty gritty of the way we used to live. The most dramatic change over the decades is the decline in the share of households headed by married couples. In three generations, the share of all households headed by married couples fell 26 percentage points—from 74 to just 48 percent. Among the youngest adults, the drop is a stunning 68 percentage points! Here is the married-couple share of households by age of householder today (2018), one generation ago (1990), and two generations ago (1960)...

Percent of households headed by married couples

	2018	1990	1960
Total households	48.0%	55.3%	74.2%
Under age 25	14.3	31.9	82.3
Aged 25 to 34	41.5	54.1	86.9
Aged 35 to 44	56.9	62.2	84.4
Aged 45 to 54	55.0	63.8	76.5
Aged 55 to 64	52.9	63.1	67.9
Aged 65 or older	44.2	44.0	51.1

What replaced all those married couples? Single-parent families, single-person households, and people living together outside of marriage. These once uncommon living arrangements were the consequence of rising educational attainment and women's growing economic independence. The steep decline in married couples reveals much of the social change of the past half century.

Source: Demo Memo analysis of the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey

Neither Spouse Works: 19% of Couples

The percentage of couples in which neither husband nor wife is in the labor force grew to a record high of 18.9 percent in 2016, according to Census Bureau data. Behind the increase is the retirement of the baby-boom generation.

Labor force status of married couples in 2016
Husband and wife in labor force: 51.3%
Husband only in labor force: 22.2%
Neither spouse in labor force: 18.9%
Wife only in labor force: 7.6%

Source: Census Bureau, America's Families and Living Arrangements: 2016

1 Million Fewer Married Couples with Children

The number of married couples with children under age 18 fell by 1 million between 2010 and 2016, according to Census Bureau data, the only household type to decline during those years. Behind the decline is the postponement of marriage and childbearing by young adults.

Married couples with children under age 18
2016: 25.1 million (20% of households)
2010: 26.1 million (22% of households)

Source: Census Bureau, Current Population Survey

Earnings of Husbands and Wives

Among the nation's 62 million married couples, 55 percent of husbands earn substantially more than their wives. In another 20 percent of couples, wives earn substantially more than their husbands. Earnings are about equal (a difference of less than $5,000) for 25 percent...

Earnings difference between husbands and wives
Husband earns at least $50,000 more than wife: 23%
Husband earns $5,000 to $49,999 more than wife: 32%
Husband's and wife's earnings differ by less than $5,000: 25%
Wife earns $5,000 to $49,999 more than husband: 15%
Wife earns at least $50,000 more than husband: 5%

Source: Census Bureau, America's Families and Living Arrangements: 2015

Homeownership Rate of Married Couples

Married couples are far more likely than other household types to own their home. In 2014, fully 80.3 percent of couples were homeowners versus 64.5 percent of all households. Married couples are more likely to be homeowners because two incomes are often needed to afford a downpayment and other costs of home buying and homeownership.

Even married couples are less likely to be homeowners than they once were. Over the past 10 years, the homeownership rate of married couples fell 3.7 percentage points. In some age groups, the decline was much larger...

Married-couple homeownership rate in 2014 (and percentage-point decline since 2004)
Total couples: 80.3% (-3.7)
Under age 35: 55.6% (-7.5)
Aged 35 to 44: 73.9% (-9.1)
Aged 45 to 54: 84.1% (-5.5)
Aged 55 to 64: 89.6% (-2.4)
Aged 65-plus: 91.5% (-1.2)

Source: Census Bureau, Housing Vacancies and Homeownership