More Seniors Splitting Up. Gray Divorce Rate Hits New High, Study Finds

The number of older Americans calling it quits on marriage has nearly tripled over the last three decades.

The divorce rate among people 65+ jumped from 5.2%  in 1990 to 15.2% in 2022, according to the National Center for Family and Marriage Research.

Bottom line, 1 out of 10 people divorcing in the U.S. today is 65 or older.

The study didn’t look at why gray divorce is on the rise, but researcher and psychologist Susan Brown says it’s likely related to increased life expectancy and the challenges of tying the knot a second time.

“We know that remarriages are more likely to end in divorce than first marriages, which could be one cause for the increase.”

Meanwhile, divorce rates among those aged 50 - 64 slightly declined in 2022 and the percentage of older adults who never married increased from 5.2% to 6.6%

The authors say the composition of older adults may be shifting to an increasingly divorced or never married population.

Source: National Center for Family and Marriage Research

Author Affiliations: Bowling Green State University