Over the past decade, the U.S. Census Bureau has been collecting detailed data on cohabitation. The number of U.S. adults living unpartnered, without a spouse or partner in the home, is up 3 percent from 39 percent in 2007.
The Pew Research Center cites two important demographic trends --- the share of adults living with a partner has grown while the number of married adults has dropped, though, the cohabitation increase has not fully mitigated the decrease in marriage. Taken together, this has resulted in rising numbers of unpartnered Americans, which can impact U.S. adults' economic well-being. Research has shown the financial benefits of marriage and cohabitation.
Over the past decade, the share of adults who are unpartnered has risen more sharply among those who are not employed. In 2007, 46% of working-age adults without a job were not living with a spouse or partner. By 2017 that share had risen to 51%. Among employed working-age adults, the share who were unpartnered increased more modestly since 2007, from 36% to 38%.
