The Williams Institute

Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, this report provides demographic and economic information about same-sex couples and same-sex couples raising children in the U.S. We compare same-sex “unmarried partners,” which the Census Bureau defines as an unmarried couple who “shares living quarters and has a close personal relationship,” to different-sex married couples in the U.S.

In many ways, the almost 777,000 same-sex couples living in the U.S. are similar to married couples. According to Census 2000, they live in every county in every state, are racially and ethnically diverse, have partners who depend upon each other financially, and actively participate in the U.S. economy. Census data also show that 20% of same-sex couples in the U.S. are raising children. However, same-sex parents have fewer economic resources to provide for their families than do their married counterparts: they have lower household incomes, on average, and lower rates of home ownership.