Share of births outside marriage in Japan
Japan: Share of births outside marriage was 2.4 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
2.4
Change on year
up 4.3%
World rank
43rd
of 43 countries
All-time high
2.4
in 2020
All-time low
0.8
in 1975
Years of data
32
1960–2023
Share of births outside marriage in Japan, 1960–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2023, share of births outside marriage in Japan stood at 2.4. That is the highest value across all 32 years on record.
That represents a change of up 4.3% on the previous year and up 9.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of births outside marriage in Japan peaked at 2.4 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.8, in 1975.
Japan ranks 43rd of 43 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Share of births outside marriage in Japan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 1.2 | — |
| 1965 | 1 | -16.7% |
| 1970 | 0.9 | -10.0% |
| 1975 | 0.8 | -11.1% |
| 1980 | 0.8 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 1 | +25.0% |
| 1990 | 1.1 | +10.0% |
| 1995 | 1.2 | +9.1% |
| 2000 | 1.6 | +33.3% |
| 2001 | 1.7 | +6.2% |
| 2002 | 1.9 | +11.8% |
| 2003 | 1.9 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 2 | +5.3% |
| 2005 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 2.1 | +5.0% |
| 2007 | 2 | -4.8% |
| 2008 | 2.1 | +5.0% |
| 2009 | 2.1 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 2.1 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 2.2 | +4.8% |
| 2012 | 2.2 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 2.2 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 2.3 | +4.5% |
| 2015 | 2.3 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 2.3 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 2.2 | -4.3% |
| 2018 | 2.3 | +4.5% |
| 2019 | 2.3 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 2.4 | +4.3% |
| 2021 | 2.3 | -4.2% |
| 2022 | 2.3 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2.4 | +4.3% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 2.4 is below the median for high income countries, which is 40.23, 6% of the median. (40 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.1 | 1 | 1.2 | 2 |
| 1970s | 0.85 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 2 |
| 1980s | 0.9 | 0.8 | 1 | 2 |
| 1990s | 1.15 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 2 |
| 2000s | 1.94 | 1.6 | 2.1 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.24 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.35 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More population data for Japan
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.4984 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -5.09 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.4984 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.5507 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 103,784 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population -0.5891 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.2372 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate -0.501 (2100)
- Population density 210.83 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 2.83 million (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of births outside marriage in Japan?
- Share of births outside marriage in Japan was 2.4 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of births outside marriage recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 2.4 in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of births outside marriage recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8 in 1975.
- How does Japan rank for share of births outside marriage?
- Japan ranks 43rd out of 43 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of births outside marriage rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Japan 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 — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).