Colorado women are some of most likely to be married, least likely to have kids

LOVELAND SKI AREA, CO – FEBRUARY 14: Michael and Marcia Linley of Fort Collins, Co. kiss atop Loveland Ski Area in Colorado prior to the start of the 20th Annual Marry Me & Ski Free Mountaintop Matrimony on Valentine’s Day, February 14th in Loveland, Colorado. The mass wedding ceremony was held at noon at 12,050 feet outside of the Ptarmigan Roost Cabin at Loveland. More than 75 couples were pre-registered to get married or renew their vows high on The Continental Divide in this yearly Loveland tradition. Following the ceremony couples were invited to a casual reception complete with a champagne toast, wedding cake and music. The Linleys are avid skiiers and were renewing their vows after 34 years of marriage. (Photo by Marc Piscotty/Getty Images)

by: DJ Summers

Posted: Mar 28, 2023 / 11:20 AM MDT

Updated: Mar 28, 2023 / 12:28 PM MDT

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

DENVER (KDVR) — Women are more likely to be married in Colorado than nearly anywhere in the country, but they are less likely to have children than nearly anywhere in the country as well.

Colorado had one of the highest marriage rates in the country in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey, lower only than Alaska and neighboring Utah.

In Colorado, there were 19.8 marriages in 2021 per every 1,000 women over the age of 15 – the nation’s third-highest rate. Arkansas had the next highest rate with 19.7 followed by North Dakota and Oklahoma with 19.6 apiece.

Alaska has the nation’s highest marriage rate for women with 23.5 marriages per 1,000 of-age women, followed by Utah with 22.3. Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut and New Hampshire have the lowest rates – nearly half of Colorado’s.

Though Colorado women get married more, they have one of the nation’s lowest birth rates.

Colorado had a rate of 44 women per 1,000 who had a birth in the last 12 months. Only Vermont and Washington, D.C. had lower birth rates.

Other states with Colorado’s high marriage rates have comparably high birth rates. North Dakota has the nation’s highest birth rate, while Utah has the sixth-highest.