Portugal vs Sweden: Share of children who were born outside of marriage
Portugal
57.9%
in 2020
Sweden
55.2%
in 2020
Portugal rank
8th
Sweden rank
10th
Share of children who were born outside of marriage over time
- Portugal
- Sweden
How they compare
Portugal currently reports 57.9% against 55.2% in Sweden, a difference of 2.7%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 61 shared years of data; in 1960 it was Sweden ahead.
Portugal ranks 8th and Sweden ranks 10th of 42 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Portugal averaged higher in 1 and Sweden in 6.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Portugal | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 8.1% | 13.7% | 5.6% | Sweden |
| 1970s | 7.4% | 30.1% | 22.7% | Sweden |
| 1980s | 11.7% | 45.9% | 34.1% | Sweden |
| 1990s | 17.9% | 51.8% | 33.9% | Sweden |
| 2000s | 29.8% | 55.3% | 25.5% | Sweden |
| 2010s | 49.8% | 54.5% | 4.7% | Sweden |
| 2020s | 57.9% | 55.2% | 2.7% | Portugal |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of children who were born outside of marriage, Portugal or Sweden?
- Portugal, at 57.9% against 55.2% in Sweden as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of children who were born outside of marriage between Portugal and Sweden?
- 2.7%, with Portugal ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Portugal and Sweden?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2020.
- How do Portugal and Sweden rank globally for share of children who were born outside of marriage?
- Portugal ranks 8th and Sweden ranks 10th 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.