Key Takeaways
- Germany recorded the most marriages (360,979) among 24 EU countries in 2023 because of its large population.
- Romania has the highest marriage rate among 24 EU countries. Latvia and Hungary follow.
- Hungary’s marriages rose 45.8% between 2010 and 2016, as a tax break and housing support for married couples began.
- Italy ranks 3rd for number of marriages among 24 EU countries. It ranks 23rd for marriage rate, as young adults marry later, live together unmarried, and make up a smaller share of the population.
- The EU’s marriage rate fell by more than half between 1964 and 2024, as people married later and more couples lived together unmarried.
Marriages and Marriage Rates in EU Countries
| Country | Marriages | Marriage Rate (per 1,000 inhabitants) |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | 360,979 | 4.3 * |
| France | 241,196 | 3.5 † |
| Italy | 184,207 | 3.1 |
| Spain | 171,500 | 3.5 |
| Poland | 145,898 | 4.0 § |
| Romania | 111,122 | 5.8 ‡ |
| Netherlands | 67,959 | 3.8 |
| Hungary | 50,139 | 5.2 |
| Czechia | 48,268 | 4.4 |
| Belgium | 46,641 | 4.0 |
| Austria | 45,855 | 5.0 |
| Sweden | 44,190 | 4.2 |
| Greece | 40,351 | 3.9 |
| Portugal | 36,980 | 3.5 |
| Slovakia | 26,484 | 4.9 |
| Bulgaria | 21,800 | 3.4 |
| Finland | 20,693 | 3.7 |
| Croatia | 17,306 | 4.5 |
| Lithuania | 13,997 | 4.9 |
| Latvia | 10,549 | 5.6 |
| Estonia | 6,504 | 4.7 |
| Slovenia | 6,388 | 3.0 |
| Luxembourg | 2,539 | 3.8 |
| Malta | 2,347 | 4.2 |
Source: Eurostat
The marriage rate is the number of marriages in a year divided by the average population in that year, expressed per 1,000 inhabitants.
Countries send marriage data to Eurostat voluntarily. Completeness depends on what each national statistical institute provides.
Marriages are counted by the legal civil status recognised by each country’s law.
† = provisional
‡ = estimated
§ = estimated, provisional
* = break in time series
Germany Has the Most Marriages Among 24 EU Countries and the Largest Population
Germany recorded the most marriages among 24 EU countries in 2023. The total was 360,979.
Germany also has the largest population among the 24 countries. Its average population in 2023 was 83.3 million.
Germany accounts for 19.1% of the combined population of the 24 countries. It accounts for 20.9% of their marriages.
The seven countries with the most marriages are also the seven most populous, in the same order.
Romania, Latvia and Hungary Have the Highest Marriage Rates Among 24 EU Countries
Romania, Latvia and Hungary have the highest marriage rates among 24 EU countries. The marriage rate is the number of marriages in a year per 1,000 inhabitants.
Dividing marriages by population is why the marriage rate ranks countries differently from the number of marriages.
Four countries recorded a marriage rate of 5.0 or higher per 1,000 inhabitants in 2023:
- Romania: 5.8
- Latvia: 5.6
- Hungary: 5.2
- Austria: 5.0
Three countries recorded a marriage rate below 3.5 per 1,000 inhabitants in 2023:
- Slovenia: 3.0
- Italy: 3.1
- Bulgaria: 3.4
Germany ranks 10th for marriage rate among the 24 countries. Its rate is 4.3 per 1,000 inhabitants.
Hungary’s Marriages Rose 45.8% Between 2010 and 2016 as Married Couples Gained Tax and Housing Support
Hungary’s marriages rose 45.8% between 2010 and 2016. The total increased from 35,520 to 51,805.
Four developments coincided with the rise in Hungary’s marriages:
- The economy recovered after the downturn of 2009 and 2010.
- Couples held weddings that the economic crisis had postponed.
- A tax break for first-time married couples began in January 2015.
- A housing support programme for married couples (CSOK) began in July 2015.
Italy Ranks 3rd for Number of Marriages but 23rd for Marriage Rate Among 24 EU Countries
Italy ranks 3rd for number of marriages among the 24 countries. It ranks 23rd for marriage rate.
Italy’s marriages fell 2.6% between 2022 and 2023.
Three factors help explain the long-term decline in Italy’s marriages:
- Later marriage: education and difficulty finding stable work delay young adults from leaving their parents’ home and starting a family.
- Unmarried cohabitation: the number of unmarried couples living together rose from about 440,000 in 2000 and 2001 to over 1.6 million in 2022 and 2023.
- Fewer young adults: Italy’s fertility has been well below replacement level since the mid-1970s, so smaller age groups reach marriageable age.
Why Has the EU’s Marriage Rate Fallen by More Than Half Since 1964?
The EU’s marriage rate fell by more than half between 1964 and 2024. It dropped from 8.0 marriages per 1,000 inhabitants to 3.9.
Four changes help explain the decline:
- People marry later: longer education, housing shortages in parts of Central and Eastern Europe and job insecurity in parts of Southern Europe delay marriage. Women in Spain marry at 34.9 on average and women in Sweden at 34.8 (2023).
- Couples live together without marrying: unmarried cohabitation has spread across Europe and often delays or replaces marriage.
- Laws offer alternatives: registered partnerships and other legal alternatives to marriage have become more common, and national laws have given unmarried couples more rights.
- Values have shifted: relationships now rest more on personal choice than on social expectation.
Births outside marriage rose from 17.7% of all births in 1993 to 41.1% in 2024.
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