Marriages and Divorces, Australia

Latest release

National and state statistics on marriages and divorces, including same-gender couples

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Reference period
2025
Release date and time
28/07/2026 11:30am AEST

Key statistics

  • 118,804 marriages were registered in 2025, 1.7% fewer than in 2024.
  • The most popular date to marry was 25/10/2025, with 2,035 marriages on that day.
  • The number of divorces granted in 2025 increased by 4.1% to 49,148. 

Marriages

There were 118,804 marriages registered in Australia in 2025, 1.7% fewer than the 120,844 marriages registered in 2024. This is similar to the number of marriages registered in 2023 (118,439) but still much higher than the numbers recorded during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic (79,987 in 2020 and 89,167 in 2021). 

When adjusted for population size, the crude marriage rate in 2025 decreased slightly from 5.5 in 2024 and 2023 to 5.3 marriages per 1,000 people. 

Most age-specific marriage rates for both males and females decreased in 2025, with the largest decreases in those aged 25-29 and 30-34. No age-specific rates increased (see data downloads for more information).

The median age at marriage for males in 2025 was 32.7 years, a slight decrease from the 32.8 years recorded in 2024. The median age at marriage for females was 31.2 years, the same as was recorded in 2023 and 2024.

There were 4,636 marriages registered in 2025 for couples of the same or non-binary gender, down by 2.3% from the 4,746 marriages registered in 2024. Marriage between people of the same sex or gender was legislated from December 2017.

Selected marriage indicators, 2021-2025 (a)(b)(c)(d)
  20212022202320242025
Total marriages registered (no.) (a)89,167127,161118,439120,844118,804
Crude marriage rate (b)4.36.15.55.55.3
Median ages     
 Median age at marriage, male (years)32.132.532.932.832.7
 Median age at marriage, female (years)30.530.931.231.231.2
Marriages of the same gender     
 Male marriages of the same gender (no.) (c)1,0751,7671,7351,8931,849
 Female marriages of the same gender (no.) (c)1,7702,6672,6192,6222,527
  1. Public health restrictions put in place during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic had a direct impact on marriages in 2020 and 2021.
  2. Crude marriage rates are the number of marriages registered during the year per 1,000 of estimated resident population aged 16 years and over, as at 30 June for the same year.
  3. In September 2021, marriage registration forms were updated to record gender including male, female and non-binary. Prior to 2022, sex was collected on marriage registration forms. Comparisons should be treated with caution.
  4. Refer to the methodology for more information.
  1. Restrictions put in place during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic had a direct impact on marriages in 2020 and 2021. Comparisons to other years should be treated with caution.
  2. Crude marriage rates reflect the number of marriages registered during the year per 1,000 of estimated resident population aged 16 years and over, as at 30 June for the same year.
  3. Refer to the methodology for more information.

Marriages by state and territory

For marriages registered in 2025:

  • Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory registered fewer marriages compared to 2024. 
  • New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory had an increase in marriages compared to 2024.
  • Victoria had the largest proportional decrease in the number of marriages with 5.7% fewer than 2024. Marriages in the Australian Capital Territory decreased by 5.5%, and in Queensland by 2.1%.
  • South Australia recorded the highest increase with 343 (4.6%) more marriages in 2025 than in 2024.
Number of marriages by state and territory of registration, 2021-2025 (a)(b)(c)
 20212022202320242025
NSW27,31444,95339,01839,65939,818
Vic.18,74033,23129,81632,05030,209
Qld21,62725,01423,82623,59523,091
SA6,7787,2687,7827,5007,843
WA10,30511,23713,12013,36613,208
Tas.2,3282,8212,5062,3642,405
NT796819794738739
ACT1,2791,8181,5621,5541,469
  1. Marriage data is based on the state or territory of registration rather than usual residence.
  2. Restrictions put in place during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic had a direct impact on marriages in 2020 and 2021.
  3. Refer to the methodology for more information.

Marriages by date of occurrence

  • Higher numbers of marriages occurred in spring and autumn, while lower numbers occurred in winter and over the Easter and Christmas periods.This is a similar pattern to previous years.  
  • The most popular date to marry was 25 October (25/10/25) with 2,035 marriages.
  • Other popular dates were:
    • 22 November (22/11/25), with 1,527 marriages 
    • 1 November (01/11/25), with 1,498 marriages 
    • 5 April (05/04/25), with 1,491 marriages 
    • 18 October (18/10/25), with 1,490 marriages
  • Saturday remains the most common day in the week for marriages. Over 52,000 marriages occurred on a Saturday in 2025. Of the top 50 marriage dates, 45 of them fell on a Saturday.
  • Friday is the second most common day to get married, with just over 21,000 marriages occurring on this day. The most popular date to get married on a Friday was 10 October (10/10/25) with 811 marriages occurring. This was the 33rd most popular marriage date in 2025.
  • The only date in the top 50 marriage dates that was neither a Saturday nor a Friday was Sunday 25 May (25/05/25) with 726 marriages. It was the 40th most popular marriage date in 2025.
  1. Data is presented by the date the marriage occurred. A proportion of marriages occurring in a year are not registered until subsequent years.
  2. This graph includes marriages registered and received by the ABS in 2025. Totals will differ to data by year of registration.
  3. Refer to the methodology for more information.

Divorces

In 2025:

  • 49,158 divorces were granted in Australia, up 4.1% from the 47,216 divorces granted in 2024. This is comparable to the number granted in 2022 (49,241 divorces).
  • The crude divorce rate was 2.2 divorces per 1,000 people, up from 2.1 in 2024.
  • The median duration of marriages (from marriage to separation) increased to 9.4 years (from 9.3 years in 2024).
  • The median age at divorce has increased for both males and females from 2024. The median age at divorce is now 47.3 years for males and 44.4 years for females.
  • Age specific divorce rates have increased for all male age groups from 40-44 years and older and all female age groups from 35-39 years and older. Divorce rates fell slightly for both sexes in the 25-29 and 30-34 year age groups (see data downloads for more information).
Selected divorce indicators, 2020-2024(a)(b)(c)
  20212022202320242025
Divorces granted (absolute) (no.) (a)56,24449,24148,70047,21649,158
Crude divorce rate (b)2.72.42.32.12.2
Median duration 
 Median duration of marriage to separation (years)8.48.99.09.39.4
 Median duration of marriage to divorce (years)12.212.813.013.213.4
Median ages 
 Median age at divorce, male (years)45.946.747.147.147.3
 Median age at divorce, female (years)43.043.744.144.144.4
  1. The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia have advised that the high number of divorces finalised in 2021 is in part related to administrative changes. This constitutes a break in time series and any comparison with earlier years should be made with caution.
  2. Crude divorce rates reflect the number of divorces granted during the year per 1,000 of estimated resident population aged 16 and over, as at 30 June that year.
  3. Refer to the methodology for more information.
  1. The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia have advised that the high number of divorces finalised in 2021 is in part related to administrative changes. This constitutes a break in time series and any comparison with earlier years should be made with caution.
  2. Crude divorce rates reflect the number of divorces granted during the year per 1,000 of estimated resident population aged 16 and over, as at 30 June that year.
  3. Refer to the methodology for more information.

Data downloads

1. Marriages and Divorces (Australia) 2025

Data files
Download xlsx [53.75 KB]

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 3310.0

Methodology

Scope

Marriages registered in Australia.

Divorces granted absolutes under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth).

Geography

Data is available for:

  • Australia
  • State and territories.

Source

Marriage registrations from the state and territory Registries of Births, Deaths and Marriages. 

Divorce data from the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia and the Family Court of Western Australia.

Collection method

Administrative data collection from marriage registrations and divorce records.  

 

Concepts, sources and methods

Not applicable for this release.

History of changes

Amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect in December 2017 to reflect that marriage in Australia is not determined by sex or gender.

View full methodology

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