Top 10 countries by divorce rate
Rankings use the latest available national or international estimates; years differ by country. The metric is the crude divorce rate — divorces per 1,000 people per year. Interpret ranks cautiously when reference years differ or where small-population microstates appear high.
What drives divorce levels? Law (ease of divorce), norms, the marriage rate itself, and the age at first marriage all shape divorce trends. OECD tracking shows 2022 rates ranging from ≈0.6 per 1,000 (e.g., Colombia) to ≈3.6 (Chile). In the EU, 2023 highs included Latvia 2.8 and Lithuania 2.5. Microstates can show high volatility because a small number of cases moves the rate a lot.
City vs. countryside. Urban areas often see later marriage and more cohabitation; marriage rates are lower, which can reduce divorces per population even if the share of marriages that end in divorce is high. Rural areas with earlier marriage can show different patterns.
- Household structure: Higher divorce rates usually raise the share of single-parent households, which face higher poverty risk and time constraints.
- Schooling & skills: On average, children in single-parent homes have slightly lower test scores and completion rates; effects vary widely and are mediated by income and parental conflict.
- Buffers that help: adequate child support, quality early education, stable housing, and low-conflict co-parenting mitigate most risks.
Policy levers that matter: timely maintenance enforcement, childcare access, parenting programs, and flexible work for custodial parents.
OECD Society at a Glance 2024 (crude divorce rates, 2022 snapshot); Eurostat 2023 update for EU members; UN Demographic Yearbook methodological notes. Country list and small-state figures cross-checked against a 2025 international compilation.
- OECD, “Marriage and divorce” (2024): range ≈0.6–3.6 per 1,000 in 2022. (Chile at 3.6; Colombia at 0.6).
- Eurostat Statistics Explained (2025): 2023 highs in EU — Latvia 2.8; Lithuania 2.5; Finland 2.1.
- UN DESA, Demographic Yearbook (methods for crude rates).
- WorldPopulationReview (2025) for microstates and latest country rows (note: North Macedonia 2023 anomaly flagged by UN; excluded from our Top-10).
Children & single-parent households. Where divorce rises, the share of children in single-parent homes usually increases; their well-being hinges on steady income, child support, and low-conflict co-parenting. Policies that help—affordable childcare, housing support, and predictable maintenance—reduce educational and mental-health risks.
Sources: Eurostat 2023; OECD 2024; UN Demographic Yearbook; international compilation (2025) for the latest rows by country.
