Forum on Child and Family StatisticsFamily Structure and Children's Living Arrangements
The composition of families is dynamic and has implications for critical parental and economic resources as well as a child's health and overall well-being.1 Family structure has changed over time, with more parents cohabiting and a growing share of children living with a parent who is unmarried.2 Examining the ongoing complexities of family structures and living arrangements provides useful insight for assessing children's well-being.
Indicator FAM1.A: Percentage of children ages 0–17 by presence of parents in household, 2010–2022
NOTE: Data for 2022 exclude about 160,900 household residents under age 18 who have a spouse or child in the household.
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement.
- Sixty-five percent of children ages 0–17 lived with two married parents in 2022.
- In 2022, 22% of children lived with their mothers only, 5% lived with their fathers only, and 4% lived with neither of their parents.
- Five percent of all children lived with two cohabiting parents in 2022.3
- Seventy-five percent of White-alone, non-Hispanic children lived with two married parents in 2022 compared with 60% of Hispanic and 38% of Black-alone children.4
While the majority of children live with two parents, many children have other living arrangements. Information about detailed parental relationships and the presence of other adults in the household, such as unmarried partners, grandparents, and other relatives, is important for understanding children's social, economic, and developmental well-being.
Indicator FAM1.B: Percentage of children ages 0–17 by presence of parents in household, 2022
a Children living with two stepparents are included here, in either of the categories in which one parent is biological/adoptive and one is a stepparent.
NOTE: Data for 2022 exclude about 160,900 household residents under age 18 who have a spouse or child in the household. Prior to 2007, a second parent could be identified only if he or she was married to the first parent on the survey record. Prior to 2007, children with two unmarried parents in the household may be identified as "mother only" or "father only." Starting in 2007, a second parent identifier permits identification of two coresident parents, even if the parents are not married to each other.
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement.
- In 2022, 70% of children ages 0–17 lived with two parents (65% with two married parents and 5% with two unmarried cohabiting parents), 22% lived with their mothers only, 5% lived with their fathers only, and 4% lived with no parent.5
- Among children living with two parents, 92% lived with both of their biological or adoptive parents, and 8% lived with a stepparent.6
- About 6% of children who lived with two biological or adoptive parents had parents who were not married.
FAM1A HTML Table | FAM1B HTML Table
1 Lee, D., & McLanahan, S. (2015). Family structure transitions and child development: Instability, selection, and population heterogeneity. American Sociological Review, 80(4), 738–763. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122415592129M.
2 Thomas, D. (2020). As family structures change in U.S., a growing share of Americans say it makes no difference. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/04/10/as-family-structures-change-in-u-s-a-growing-share-of-americans-say-it-makes-no-difference.
3 The number of children living with two unmarried parents is calculated by subtracting the number who live with two married parents from the total number who live with two parents.
4 Federal surveys now give respondents the option of reporting more than one race. Therefore, two basic ways of defining a race group are possible. A group such as Black may be defined as those who reported Black and no other race (the race-alone or single-race concept) or those who reported Black regardless of whether they also reported another race (the race-alone or in-combination concept). This indicator shows data using the first approach (race-alone). Use of the single-race population does not imply that it is the preferred method of presenting or analyzing data. The U.S. Census Bureau uses a variety of approaches. Data on race and Hispanic origin are collected separately. Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.
5 The percentage of children living with two unmarried parents is not statistically different from the percentage of children living with only their father.
6 For more information, refer to America's Families and Living Arrangements detailed tables, at https://www.census.gov/topics/families/families-and-households.html.
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics
