Key messages

On this page:

• Marriage rate and number of marriages
• State variation in marriage rates
• When do we marry?
• First and later marriages
• How old are we when we marry?
• Living together before marriages
• Religious vs civil weddings
• Same-gender marriages

Marriage rate and number of marriages

• After the drastic fall in the marriage rate during the COVID-19 pandemic (down to 3.8 per 1,000 adults in 2020) and sharp rise in 2022 (up to 6.1 per 1,000 adults), the marriage rate in 2023 (5.5 per 1,000 adults) appeared to continue the long-term downward trend (see Figure 1, chart 1 of 2).
• The latest marriage data released by the ABS show that 118,439 marriages were registered in 2023, representing a decline from 127,161 a year before and a return to pre-COVID-19 levels (see Figure 1, chart 2 of 2).

Figure 1: The marriage rate in 2023 appeared to continue the long-term downward trend, after the drastic fall and rebound during the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing years
Crude marriage rate and number of marriages, 1971–2023

State variation in marriage rates

• The marriage rate varies across the states and territories. In 2023, New South Wales and Western Australia had the highest marriage rates, at 5.8 and 5.7 marriages per 1,000 resident population aged 16 years and over, respectively. The Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory had the lowest marriage rates, at 4.0 and 4.1, respectively. In the middle were Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania and South Australia (ranging from 5.1 to 5.4). See Figure 2, chart 1 of 2.
• The marriage rate rebounded across states and territories after the COVID-19 pandemic, with all having a higher rate in 2022 and 2023 than 2020. The decline in the marriage rate in 2020 was largest for Victoria, followed by New South Wales and the Northern Territory. Victoria and New South Wales were the states experiencing longer lockdowns and more restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. See Figure 2, chart 2 of 2.
• Consistent with the national trend, the marriage rate fell from 2022 to 2023 for all states and territories except South Australia and Western Australia. In those states, the marriage rate continued to rebound from the 2020 low.

Figure 2: The marriage rate varies across the states and territories – nevertheless, the downward trend in 2023 was evident for most states and territories
Crude marriage rate (per 1,000 residents aged 16+) by state and territory

When do we marry?

• There are seasonal patterns for when people get married. Across all the years since 2015, presented in Figure 3, the number of marriages is typically higher around February–April (Autumn) and again around September–November (Spring), compared to other months.
• The impacts of COVID on marriages can be seen in the 2020 data, with the number of marriages falling steeply in April when various COVID-19 related restrictions were introduced.
• The seasonal patterns in 2023 were similar to pre-pandemic patterns, though marriages appeared to be spread more evenly across September, October and November compared to previous years.

Figure 3: There are seasonal patterns for when people get married, with February–April and September–November popular months
Number of marriages per month, selected years, 2015–2023

First and later marriages

• In 2023, 74% of marriages were first marriages for both partners. The proportion of first marriages has been largely trending up since the early 2000s (see Figure 4).
• The proportion of first marriages remained stable in the 1980s and 1990s until an upward trend emerged from 2003. This is likely a reflection of the rise in cohabitation, with previously married people opting for cohabitation instead of remarriage. 

Figure 4: Around 3 in 4 marriages are first marriages for both partners, with the pattern stable over the last decade
First marriages as a proportion of all marriages, 1971–2023

How old are we when we marry?

• In 2023, the median age of men who married for the first time was 31.4 years, and women’s median at first marriage was 30.1 years.
• The median age at marriage has increased steadily since the mid-1970s (see Figure 5).
• The gap in median age at first marriage between men and women has narrowed from 2.3 years in 1980, to 1.8 years in 2000 and 1.3 years in 2023.

Figure 5: Men and women have increasingly entered their first marriage at a later age
Median age at first marriage by gender, 1971–2023

Living together before marriage

• Most couples now live together before getting married. This has increased greatly since the late 1970s (see Figure 6).
• In 1979, 23% of marriages were preceded by cohabitation. It was 71% in 2000 and, by 2023, 83% of couples had lived together before getting married.

Figure 6: Pre-marital cohabitation has been increasing since the late 1970s
Proportion of marriages preceded by cohabitation, 1979–2023

Religious vs civil weddings

• Most marriages are performed by civil celebrants (83% of marriages in 2023).  
• In 1970, the vast majority of marriages were performed by ministers of religion (88%) (see Figure 7). The patterns have changed considerably since then, with an increasing proportion of marriages being performed outside of a religious service. In recent years, less than one in five marriages were performed by ministers of religion.

Figure 7: Most couples have a civil celebrant conduct their marriage ceremony rather than a minister of religion
Marriages by celebrants and religious service, 1970–2023. 

Same-gender marriages

• There were 4,354 same-gender marriages in 2023, and another 204 marriages involving at least one non-binary gender partner (the latter data were reported for the first time in 2022). Together, 4,558 marriages were either same gender or non-binary gender, accounting for 3.8% of all marriages in 2023 (see Figure 8, chart 2 of 2).¹
• Consistent with the overall trend in marriage numbers described above, the number of same-gender marriages rebounded in 2022, post the COVID-19 pandemic, and remained stable in 2023 (see Figure 8, chart 1 of 2).
• The proportion of same-gender marriages was highest in 2018 at 5.5%. The amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect on 9 December 2017, enabling same-gender couples, with some having waited for years, to legally marry in Australia. The proportion fell between 2018 and 2021, before trending up in 2022 and 2023.
• Across all years since 2018, there were more female same-gender marriages than male same-gender marriages. In 2023, female same-gender marriages accounted for 2.2% of all marriages, compared to 1.5% of male same-gender marriages.  

Figure 8: Each year, there are more female same-gender marriages than male same-gender marriages
Percentage and number of same-gender marriages registered by gender, 2018–2

• In 2023, the median age at first marriage was 32.7 years for female same-gender marriages and 35.9 years for male same-gender marriages.  
• The median age at first marriage for same-gender marriages trended down for both genders between 2018 and 2021, after which it has remained fairly stable (see Figure 9).
• The median age at first marriage for same-gender marriages was older than for all marriages, for both men and women, although the gaps have narrowed. The differences in the median age at first marriage between same-gender marriages and all marriages were notably large in 2018. This was likely due to older same-gender couples being able to marry for the first time after the change to the Marriage Act in late 2017.

Figure 9: The median age at first marriage is higher for people in same-gender marriages compared to all marriages, though the gaps have narrowed
Median age at first marriage, same-gender marriages and all marriages, 2018–21

¹The terminology in relation to gay and lesbian married couples has evolved. In annually released data on marriages and divorces, ABS used ‘same-sex’ prior to 2022 and ‘same-gender’ since 2022. The term ‘same-gender’ is used here to be consistent with the current terminology used by ABS.