The percentage of Americans over the age of 18 who are married has dropped from 57% in 2000 to 51% in 2011, according to a report published by Pew Research Center. If this trend continues married people will soon be in the minority.

To fully understand the state of marriage in the U.S., 24/7 Wall St. examined marriage data on a state level. Other than divorce, one of the greatest differences in marriage trends by state is the average age of marriage. 24/7 Wall St. has examined data from the Pew Research Center for the 50 states to identify where people marry the youngest and where they marry the oldest.

Read The States Where People Marry The Youngest

Read The States Where People Marry The Oldest

There are a number of preconceived notions about why people marry young. Some of these are true and some are not.

States where residents get married early tend to be poor. These states have very low median household incomes and high poverty rates. The five states where people marry youngest include Oklahoma and Arkansas — two of the worst off states. The states in which people wait the longest to get married include some of the richest states, including Connecticut, New Jersey and Massachusetts.

It is also often assumed that people who marry at younger ages are less educated. 24/7 research shows that this is not true. High school graduation rates vary greatly among the states where people marry young and old. Wyoming, where people marry young, has the highest high school graduation rate in the country. Rhode Island, where people marry old, has the 10th-lowest graduation rate.

The states where people tie the knot at a younger age also have higher rates of population growth. While states like Rhode Island and New York, where people wait a bit longer for marriage, have particularly low population growth rates.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed Census data to identify the states where people marry young and old. All other data is from the Census Bureau and Pew Research Center.

These are the states where people marry the youngest and oldest.

The states where people marry the youngest:

5. Wyoming
> Median age at first marriage for men: 26.9 (eighth lowest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 24.2 (third lowest)
> Median household income: $53,512 (16th highest)
> Poverty rate: 10.3% (seventh lowest)
> Population growth: 14.1% (12th highest)

While Wyoming does not fall into the category of poorer states whose residents tend to have a lower age at first marriage, it has become the norm for many to marry young. This is especially true for women, among whom the median age for the first marriage is 24.2 years — the third-lowest in the country. The median age for men is the eighth lowest. The rate of population growth in Wyoming between 2000 and 2010 is nearly 50% greater than the national rate.

4. Oklahoma
> Median age at first marriage for men: 26.2 (fourth lowest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 24.7 (fifth lowest)
> Median household income: $42,072 (eighth lowest)
> Poverty rate: 16.3% (12th highest)
> Population growth: 8.7% (24th highest)

Residents of Oklahoma are in poor economic shape. The state has the eighth lowest median income and the 12th highest poverty rate. In addition to the high number of young marriages marriage, Oklahoma has an exceptionally high divorce rate. According to the Oklahoma Marriage Initiative, “32% of all adults [in Oklahoma] have divorced compared to 21% nationally.” Those who tie the knot in the state when they were under the age of 20 are the most likely to get divorced, the group also notes.

3. Arkansas
> Median age at first marriage for men: 26.2 (third lowest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 24.7 (fourth lowest)
> Median household income: $38,307 (third lowest)
> Poverty rate: 18.4% (3rd highest)
> Population growth: 9.1% (22nd highest)

Arkansas, like Oklahoma, is a very poor state. It has the third-lowest median household income in the country and the third-highest percentage of residents living below the poverty line. The state also has a very high divorce rate. In fact, Arkansas men had the highest divorce rate in the country 2009. According to the Pew Research Center, about 10% of the state’s adults who have ever been married have been married three times — a much higher percentage than the national average of 5%.

2. Idaho
> Median age at first marriage for men: 25.5 (tied for lowest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 23.4 (second lowest)
> Median household income: $43,490 (13th lowest)
> Poverty rate: 14.3% (23rd highest)
> Population growth: 21.2% (fourth highest)

Idaho men get married for the first time at 25.5 years old — the lowest median age among all states. The women marry for the first time at 23.4 years old — the second lowest median age. According to the Pew Research Center, the rate of divorces “tends to be high in states where women marry young, such as Oklahoma and Idaho.” Idaho is also the state with the highest share of people who are currently married at 58% of men and 56% of women. The state’s increase in population is the fourth-largest in the country.

1. Utah
> Median age at first marriage for men: 25.5 (tied for lowest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 23.3 (the lowest)
> Median household income: $54,744 (13th highest)
> Poverty rate: 11.5% (12th lowest)
> Population growth: 23.8% (third highest)

Utah is tied with Idaho for the state where people get married the youngest. The men get married for the first time at a median age of 25.5 years old, the second lowest in the country, and the women at 23.3 years — the lowest in the country. Not only do they marry young, but the rate of marriages in 2009 was higher in the state than in any other. This implies a strong, current trend of young people starting families. Between 2000 and 2010, Utah’s population grew 23.77%, which is the third largest increase in the country. Much of this can be attributed to the state’s large Mormon population. According to a 2008 article released by the church, 72% of Utah residents are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

The states where people marry the oldest:

5. Connecticut
> Median age at first marriage for men: 29.6 (fifth highest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 27.9 (fifth highest)
> Median household income: $64,032 (fourth highest)
> Poverty rate: 9.7% (fifth lowest)
> Population growth: 5.0% (16th lowest)

Connecticut is one of many wealthy, northeastern states where residents wait until they are older to get married. Connecticut has the fourth-highest median household income in the country and the fifth-lowest poverty rate. Nearly half of all men in the state wait until they are at least 30 to get married for the first time. Population growth in the state is about half the national average.

4. Rhode Island
> Median age at first marriage for men: 29.7 (fourth highest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 28.1 (third highest)
> Median household income: $52,254 (18th highest)
> Poverty rate: 12.8% (23rd lowest)
> Population growth: 0.4% (second lowest)

Rhode Island has the second lowest rate of population growth in the country — just 0.41% from 2000 to 2010. The only state with a lower rate is Michigan, which actually lost people due to its poor economy. Rhode Island also has among the lowest percent of married people in its population. Only 43% of women in the state are currently married, which is the lowest amount in the country. And just 48% of men are married, more than only Alaska, where 47% of men are married.

3. New Jersey
> Median age at first marriage for men: 30.0 (tied for second highest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 27.9 (fourth highest)
> Median household income: $67,681 (second highest)
> Poverty rate: 9.5% (fourth lowest)
> Population growth: 4.5% (14th lowest)

New Jersey is one of the wealthiest states in the country. It has a median household income of $67,681, which is the second highest among all states. It also has the fourth lowest poverty rate of just 9.5%. New Jersey residents’ hesitance to tie the knot does not imply weak marriages. On the contrary, New Jersey had the lowest divorce rates in the country for both men and women in 2009.

1 (tie). Massachusetts
> Median age at first marriage for men: 30.0 (tied for second highest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 28.6 (the highest)
> Median household income: $62,072 (sixth highest)
> Poverty rate: 10.8% (ninth lowest)
> Population growth: 3.1% (eighth lowest)

Massachusetts also has a healthy economy, with the sixth-highest median income in the country. Half of the men in Massachusetts who get married wait until they are at least 30 for their first marriage. While for women the age is slightly younger, at 28.6, this is the oldest in the country for women. Massachusetts residents, on average, seem to make it count. Only 2% of adults in the state who have ever been married have been married at least three times — a tie with New York for the lowest rate in this category.

1 (tie). New York
> Median age at first marriage for men: 30.1 (the highest)
> Median age at first marriage for women: 28.5 (second highest)
> Median household income: $54,148 (14th highest)
> Poverty rate: 14.4% (22nd highest)
> Population growth: 2.1% (fifth lowest)

New York is tied with Massachusetts as being the state with the oldest residents at the time of their first marriage. The median age for men is 30.1 years and the median age for women is 28.5 years. The state is also tied with Rhode Island for having the lowest share of married women at just 43%. The state’s population growth is one of the lowest in the country — less than one-quarter the national rate. But New York is right behind New Jersey when it comes to the lowest divorce rate.

Charles B. Stockdale

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