Census Bureau Implements Improved Measurement of Same-Sex Couples

Same-sex married couples have a higher median household income than opposite-sex married couples but their poverty rates are not significantly different, according to 2019 American Community Survey (ACS) findings released today.

The ACS asks respondents their relationship to the householder (person who rents or owns a home and whose name is on the deed/lease). Until last year, respondents could only identify themselves as a spouse or an unmarried partner (sometimes referred to as cohabiting couple).

Overall, same-sex married couples had a higher median household income than opposite-sex married couples: $107,200 and $96,930, respectively.

To improve the measurement of same-sex couples, the 2019 ACS separated each of these categories so respondents could specify whether these were opposite- or same-sex relationships. In this analysis, we only consider married couples that include the householder.

Household Income and Poverty Rate Differences

In 2019, same-sex married couples accounted for just 1.0% of married-couple households in the United States.

This small share is partly due to fewer same-sex relationships overall, which are also low among unmarried partners (5.1%).

Lower marriage rates among same-sex households also contribute: 88% of opposite-sex- and 58% of same-sex-couple households were married.

Among same-sex married-couple households, 47% were male couples and 53% were female couples.

How do household income and poverty status differ among these married couples?

• Overall, same-sex married couples had a higher median household income than opposite-sex married couples: $107,200 and $96,930, respectively.
• Same-sex female married couples had a lower median household income than same-sex male married couples: $95,720 and $123,600, respectively.
• Same-sex male married couples had a higher income than opposite-sex married couples but the difference in median household income between opposite-sex and female same-sex married couples was not statistically significant.

Brian Glassman is an economist in the Poverty Statistics Branch in the U.S. Census Bureau’s Social Economic and Housing Statistics Division.

This article was filed under:

[
Families and Living Arrangements
](https://www.census.gov/library/stories.html?visual-list-fb55843e87:filters=Census:Topic/Families)

[
Income
](https://www.census.gov/library/stories.html?visual-list-fb55843e87:filters=Census:Topic/Income-Poverty/Income)

[
Income and Poverty
](https://www.census.gov/library/stories.html?visual-list-fb55843e87:filters=Census:Topic/Income-Poverty)

[
Poverty
](https://www.census.gov/library/stories.html?visual-list-fb55843e87:filters=Census:Topic/Income-Poverty/Poverty)

[
Same-Sex Couples
](https://www.census.gov/library/stories.html?visual-list-fb55843e87:filters=Census:Topic/Families/same-sex-couples)

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