Divorce · statistics
The divorce rate in the UK
England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each publish their own divorce figures, so there is no single UK rate[1][2][3]. In England and Wales there were 105,002 divorces in 2025, and the divorce rate for opposite-sex couples was 8.4 per 1,000 opposite-sex married people, the ONS reported on 23 September 2026[1].
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Last reviewed Sources checked
01/ Three sets of figures
02/ England and Wales
Divorces in England and Wales: the ONS figures
The ONS counts divorces and civil partnership dissolutions together as "legal partnership dissolutions"; there were 105,961 in 2025, similar to 2023 and 2024[1]. That is lower than in the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s, when there were around 150,000 divorces a year[1].
The 2024 and 2025 release is the first to work out rates separately for opposite-sex and same-sex marriages, and the ONS has applied that method to earlier years too[1]. Older ONS bulletins worked out rates on the whole married population instead, so their published rates were calculated differently[1][7].
The same-sex divorce rate was 19.5 per 1,000 same-sex married people in 2025, which the ONS says is less robust because the numbers in its survey sample are small[1].
| Year | Dissolutions |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 103,816 |
| 2024 | 105,664 |
| 2025 | 105,961 |
From "Divorces and dissolutions in England and Wales: 2024 and 2025", released 23 September 2026; the figures include nullity orders[1].
03/ Marriages ending in divorce
What percentage of marriages end in divorce?
The ONS answers this by year of marriage, following each group of couples who married in the same year[4]. Of couples who married in 2015 in England and Wales, 16.3% had divorced by their 10th wedding anniversary, fewer than the 24.7% of those who married in 1995[4].
By their 20th anniversary, 38.1% of couples who married in 1995 had divorced, and 35.3% of those who married in 2005[4].
| Year of marriage | Divorced by 10th anniversary | Divorced by 20th anniversary |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 9.9% | 21.7% |
| 1995 | 24.7% | 38.1% |
| 2005 | 20.7% | 35.3% |
| 2015 | 16.3% | Not yet reached |
Cumulative percentages from "Divorces and dissolutions in England and Wales: 2024 and 2025", released 23 September 2026[4].
06/ Length of marriage
How long marriages last before divorce
The median length of opposite-sex marriages ending in divorce in England and Wales was 13 years in 2025, the longest since the ONS series began in 1963[1].
07/ Scotland
Divorce statistics in Scotland
The Scottish figures cover financial years such as 2022-23, while the ONS figures for England and Wales cover calendar years[2][1]. In 2022-23, 60% of divorces granted in Scotland used the simplified procedure, 121 were granted to same-sex couples, and there were 43 civil partnership dissolutions[2].
Over the longer term, the number of divorces in Scotland fell from 13,365 in 1985 to 7,744 in 2022[2]. The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service reported that in 2024/25, 74% of family actions in its civil courts related to divorce and dissolution[6].
08/ Northern Ireland
Divorce statistics in Northern Ireland
The courts service's statistics guide says a divorce in Northern Ireland needs one of five facts, such as two years' separation with consent or five years without it[14]. The most recent annual total stated on NISRA's pages is 2,324 divorces registered in 2022[3].
09/ If you are separating
If you are thinking about divorce
See how long a divorce takes and how to get a divorce for the process in England and Wales. See divorce mediation for agreeing money and children arrangements without court.
10/ Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the divorce rate in the UK?
How many divorces are there each year in England and Wales?
What percentage of marriages end in divorce?
Is the divorce rate going up?
Did no-fault divorce lead to more divorces?
How many divorces are there in Scotland?
How many divorces are there in Northern Ireland?
11/ Sources
Sources we checked
- Divorces and dissolutions in England and Wales: 2024 and 2025 — Office for National Statistics
- Civil justice statistics in Scotland 2022-23: family — Scottish Government
- Registrar General Annual Report 2022: divorces — NISRA · Registrar General Annual Report 2024: divorces — NISRA · Judicial Statistics 2025 — NICTS, GOV.UK
- Divorces and dissolutions in England and Wales: 2024 and 2025, by year of marriage — Office for National Statistics
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, section 3 — legislation.gov.uk · Get a divorce: check you can get a divorce — GOV.UK
- Civil justice: statistics — Scottish Government · Civil statistics added to the website — Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (24 April 2025)
- Divorces and dissolutions in England and Wales: 2023 — Office for National Statistics
- Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, section 1 — legislation.gov.uk
- Family Court Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2026 — Ministry of Justice, GOV.UK
- Family Court Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2022 — Ministry of Justice, GOV.UK
- Family Court Statistics Quarterly: October to December 2023 — Ministry of Justice, GOV.UK · Family Court Statistics Quarterly: October to December 2022 — Ministry of Justice, GOV.UK
- Family Court Statistics Quarterly: October to December 2025, divorce — Ministry of Justice, GOV.UK
- Family Court Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2026, divorce — Ministry of Justice, GOV.UK
- NICTS statistics user guide: petitions for divorce — NISRA
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