Share of births outside marriage in Canada
Canada: Share of births outside marriage was 28.98 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of births outside marriage in Canada, 1960–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, share of births outside marriage in Canada stood at 28.98.
That represents a change of down 6.7% on the previous year and down 12.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of births outside marriage in Canada peaked at 35.65 in 2015 and was at its lowest, 4.3, in 1960.
Canada ranks 31st of 43 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 48 years of available data.
Share of births outside marriage in Canada, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 4.3 | — |
| 1961 | 4.5 | +4.7% |
| 1962 | 4.8 | +6.7% |
| 1963 | 5.3 | +10.4% |
| 1964 | 5.9 | +11.3% |
| 1965 | 6.7 | +13.6% |
| 1966 | 7.6 | +13.4% |
| 1967 | 8.3 | +9.2% |
| 1968 | 9 | +8.4% |
| 1969 | 9.2 | +2.2% |
| 1970 | 9.6 | +4.3% |
| 1971 | 9.03 | -6.0% |
| 1972 | 9 | -0.3% |
| 1973 | 9.03 | +0.3% |
| 1991 | 26.96 | +198.6% |
| 1992 | 28.2 | +4.6% |
| 1993 | 29.2 | +3.5% |
| 1994 | 29.61 | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 30.5 | +3.0% |
| 1996 | 30.94 | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 31.37 | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 31.29 | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 31.23 | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 31.74 | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 31.36 | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 31.64 | +0.9% |
| 2003 | 29.23 | -7.6% |
| 2004 | 28.85 | -1.3% |
| 2005 | 29.05 | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 30.61 | +5.4% |
| 2007 | 30.97 | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 32.09 | +3.6% |
| 2009 | 32.21 | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 32.3 | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 33.42 | +3.5% |
| 2012 | 33.03 | -1.2% |
| 2013 | 32.73 | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 33.2 | +1.4% |
| 2015 | 35.65 | +7.4% |
| 2016 | 33.93 | -4.8% |
| 2017 | 33.88 | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 33.48 | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 33.22 | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 32.89 | -1.0% |
| 2021 | 33.43 | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 33.17 | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 31.06 | -6.4% |
| 2024 | 28.98 | -6.7% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 28.98 is below the median for high income countries, which is 40.23, 72% of the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of births outside marriage in Canada changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | +198.6% | 9.03 | 26.96 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 6.56 | 4.3 | 9.2 | 10 |
| 1970s | 9.16 | 9 | 9.6 | 4 |
| 1990s | 29.92 | 26.96 | 31.37 | 9 |
| 2000s | 30.78 | 28.85 | 32.21 | 10 |
| 2010s | 33.48 | 32.3 | 35.65 | 10 |
| 2020s | 31.91 | 28.98 | 33.43 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More population data for Canada
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.3281 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -1.13 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.3281 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.2634 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 45,891 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.7644 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate 0.3863 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate 0.327 (2100)
- Population density 6.1 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 2.33 million (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of births outside marriage in Canada?
- Share of births outside marriage in Canada was 28.98 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of births outside marriage recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 35.65 in 2015.
- What is the lowest share of births outside marriage recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.3 in 1960.
- How does Canada rank for share of births outside marriage?
- Canada ranks 31st out of 43 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of births outside marriage rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share of births outside marriage. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).