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Marriages and Divorces

This page provides access to annual statistics on marriages and divorces that occurred in Wisconsin. Wisconsin Stats, ch. 69 authorizes the State Registrar in the Department of Health Services (DHS) to supervise and direct the collection of marriage and divorce data. This statute also specifies how local registrars are to collect and file certificates of marriage and how clerks of court are to report divorces granted in their courts.

The sources of data for the annual Wisconsin Marriages and Divorces report are certificates of marriage and divorce maintained by DHS.

Key Findings

  • There was a spike in divorces at the end of World War II, and rates climbed again after 1960, peaking in the early 1980s.
  • There has been a steady decline in marriage rates since 1980, with a more recent leveling off around 2010.
  • Wisconsin marriage trends have mirrored trends in the country with the rates being consistently lower.
  • There were slightly fewer divorces in Wisconsin overall in 2020 than there were in 2019. The state’s divorce rate per 1,000 people was 2.2 in 2019 and 2.1 per 1,000 in 2020.

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Copies of Vital Records

Last revised September 5, 2023