Belgium vs Netherlands: Share of children who were born outside of marriage
Belgium
52.4%
in 2018
Netherlands
53.5%
in 2020
Belgium rank
14th
Netherlands rank
13th
Share of children who were born outside of marriage over time
- Belgium
- Netherlands
How they compare
Netherlands currently reports 53.5% against 52.4% in Belgium, a difference of 1.1%.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 59 shared years of data; in 1960 it was Belgium ahead.
Belgium ranks 14th and Netherlands ranks 13th of 42 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Belgium averaged higher in 5 and Netherlands in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Belgium | Netherlands | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.4% | 1.8% | 0.6% | Belgium |
| 1970s | 3.1% | 2.4% | 0.8% | Belgium |
| 1980s | 7.2% | 7.7% | 0.5% | Netherlands |
| 1990s | 17.4% | 15.8% | 1.6% | Belgium |
| 2000s | 37.6% | 34.0% | 3.5% | Belgium |
| 2010s | 49.1% | 48.4% | 0.7% | Belgium |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of children who were born outside of marriage, Belgium or Netherlands?
- Netherlands, at 53.5% against 52.4% in Belgium as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of children who were born outside of marriage between Belgium and Netherlands?
- 1.1%, with Netherlands ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Belgium and Netherlands?
- 59 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2018.
- How do Belgium and Netherlands rank globally for share of children who were born outside of marriage?
- Belgium ranks 14th and Netherlands ranks 13th of 42 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- OECD (2025); OECD (2024) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of children who were born outside of marriage. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Share of all children born to mothers who were not married at the time of birth.