Census 2000 enumerated 281.4 million

people, of whom

273.6 million were

living in 105.5 million

households.1 The

majority of these

households (52 percent) were maintained

by married couples

(54.5 million) while

the second most common type of household (26 percent) consisted of people living

alone (27.2 million).

This report presents

information on the

number and types of

living arrangements

derived from the item on the Census 2000

questionnaire that asked about the relationship to the householder.

The relationship item, which has been on

the census since 1880, asks how each

member of the household is related to the

householder. This item gives us information both about individuals and the makeup of families and households. In 1990,

the categories of “unmarried partner,”

“adopted child,” “step child,” “foster child,”

and “grandchild” were added to the relationship item to measure the growing

complexity of American households. 

Two additional categories were added to

the question in Census 2000 to further

measure household composition —

“parent-in-law” and “son/daughter-in-law.”

Finally, people who wrote in responses

“brother/sister-in-law,” “nephew/niece,”

“grandparent,” “uncle/aunt,” or “cousin”

were also coded into separate categories

instead of remaining in the “other relative”

category as in previous censuses. 

The number of households grew by

over 13 million since 1990.

Overall, the number of households in the

United States increased 15 percent, from

91.9 million in 1990 to 105.5 million in

2000. Family households increased 

11 percent, from 64.5 million in 1990 to

71.8 million in 2000, while nonfamily

households increased faster, 23 percent,

from 27.4 million in 1990 to 33.7 million

in 2000.

U S C E N S U S B U R E A U

Helping You Make Informed Decisions

U.S.Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

Issued September 2001

C2KBR/01-8

Households and Families: 2000

Census 2000 Brief

By 

Tavia Simmons and 

Grace O’Neill Figure 1.

Reproduction of the Question on Relationship 

to Householder From Census 2000

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 questionnaire.

2.

Husband/wife

Natural-born son/daughter

Adopted son/daughter

Stepson/stepdaughter

Brother/sister

Father/mother

Grandchild

Parent-in-law

Roomer, boarder

Housemate, roommate

Unmarried partner

Foster child

Other nonrelative

If NOT RELATED to Person 1:

Other relative — Print

exact relationship.

How is this person related to Person 1? Mark ONE box. ✗

Son-in-law/daughter-in-law

1

The remaining 7.8 million people lived in group

quarters (such as correctional institutions, nursing

homes, and college dormitories), and not in households.

(www.census.gov/population/cen2000/grpqtr/

grpqtr01.pdf)
2 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 1 shows that the vast majority of family households in 2000 —

households containing at least one

person related to the householder

by birth, marriage, or adoption —

were married-couple households

(54.5 million). Family households

maintained by women with no husband present numbered 12.9 million, almost three times the number

maintained by men with no wife

present (4.4 million). Among nonfamily households, one-person

households predominated (27.2 million) and were more than four times

as common as nonfamily households with two or more people 

(6.5 million).

Despite increases in both the number of households and of people in

the United States since 1990, both

the average household size and

average family size decreased over

the decade — from 2.63 to 2.59,

and from 3.16 to 3.14,

respectively.2 These declines continue the downward trends in these

indicators since the end of the Baby

Boom in the 1960s. 

The number of households within

each category type increased in the

last 10 years, including marriedcouple households, from 50.7 million in 1990 to 54.5 million in 2000.

Despite this increase, Figure 2

shows that in 2000, 52 percent of

all households were married-couple

households, down from 55 percent

in 1990. For each of the other types

of households, both the numbers

and the percentage share increased

slightly from 1990 to 2000.

Thirty-one percent of all

households in 2000 were in

four states.

Table 2 shows that four states contained 31 percent of all households

enumerated in Census 2000:

California (11.5 million), Texas 

(7.4 million), New York (7.1 million),

and Florida (6.3 million).3 Seventeen

states had less than 1 million

households, with Wyoming having

the fewest (194,000). The District

of Columbia had fewer households

in 2000 (248,000 households) than

in 1990 (250,000 households). On a

regional basis,4 more households

were located in the South (38.0 million) than in any other region in the

country.

A “household” is a person or group of people who occupy a housing

unit. The “householder” is a person in whose name the housing unit is

owned, being bought, or rented.

A “family household” consists of a householder and one or more people

living together in the same household who are related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption — it may also include people unrelated to the householder. If the householder is married and living with

his/her spouse, then the household is designated a “married-couple

household.” The remaining types of family households not maintained

by a married couple are designated by the sex of the householder.

A “nonfamily household” consists of a person living alone or a householder who shares the home with nonrelatives only; for example, with

roommates or an unmarried partner.

Table 1.

Households by Type: 2000

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/doc/sf1.pdf)

Household type Number Percent

Total households . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105,480,101 100.0

Family households . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71,787,347 68.1

Married-couple households. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54,493,232 51.7

Female householder, no husband present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,900,103 12.2

Male householder, no wife present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,394,012 4.2

Nonfamily households . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33,692,754 31.9

One person . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27,230,075 25.8

Two or more people . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,462,679 6.1

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Summary File 1.

2

For computational purposes, family members include only people related to the family

householder by birth, marriage, or adoption.

3

These four states (California, Texas, New

York, and Florida) also were the states with the

largest populations.

4

There are four regions (Northeast, Midwest,

South, and West). The Northeast region includes

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New

Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,

Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont. The

Midwest region includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,

Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,

Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota,

and Wisconsin. The South region includes

Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, the District of

Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana,

Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina,

Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas,

Virginia, and West Virginia. The West region

includes Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado,

Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico,

Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
Wide variations in the average number of people per household for

states were noted in Census 2000,

ranging from a low of 2.39 for

Maine to a high of 3.13 for Utah, the

only state in 2000 that averaged

more than three people per household. The District of Columbia averaged only 2.16 people per household. Regionally, the highest average

number of people per household

was found in the West (2.75), while

the lowest average was found in the

Midwest (2.53).

Utah also had the highest average

number of people per family (3.57),

closely followed by California (3.43)

and Hawaii (3.42). While traditionally high levels of fertility contributed

to the high averages noted for Utah,

the presence of related family members (other than spouses or children) and relatively high proportions of multigenerational

households with extended family

members partly contributed to the

high averages for California and

Hawaii. States that averaged less

than three people per family in

2000 were clustered in the New

England states of Maine and

Vermont, six southern states (West

Virginia, North Carolina, Florida,

Kentucky, Tennessee, and

Arkansas), and Montana. 

The highest proportion of

married-couple households

was in Utah.

Sixty-three percent of all households

in Utah in 2000 were maintained by

married couples, the highest in the

country. Idaho (59 percent) and Iowa

(55 percent) were the second and

third highest. The states with less

than one-half of their households

maintained by married couples were

geographically dispersed:

Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New

York, Louisiana, Mississippi, and

Nevada. Only 23 percent of households in the District of Columbia

were maintained by married couples. 

Regional patterns in the proportion

of married-couple households

quickly emerge from the county

map presented in Figure 3. In addition to counties in the Mountain

division states of Utah and Idaho,

counties in the West Central section

of the United States from west

Texas northwards were also characterized by above-average percentages of married-couple households.

In contrast, the counties in the

coastal states extending from the

lower Mississippi Valley up the

Atlantic seaboard to New England

had relatively lower percentages of

married-couple households.

Especially low percentages (less

than 40 percent) were found in

counties in the lower Mississippi

Valley, which also had relatively

high percentages of family households maintained by women with

no husband present.5

U.S. Census Bureau 3

Figure 2.

Households by Type: 1990 and 2000

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Summary File 1; 1990 Census of Population, Summary Population and Housing Characteristics, United States (1990 CPH-1-1).

(Percent distribution. For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see 

www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/doc/sf1.pdf)

One person,

nonfamily 24.6

Two or more people,

nonfamily 5.2

Male householder,

other family 3.4

Female householder,

other family 11.6

Married-couple

household 55.2

One person,

nonfamily 25.8

Two or more people,

nonfamily 6.1

Male householder,

other family 4.2

Female householder,

other family 12.2

Married-couple

household 51.7

1990 2000

5

The Census 2000 short form did not contain information on marital status. In this

report, married-couple households are identified by the presence of a householder and

another person who is the “husband/wife” of

the householder (as reported on the relationship question). Householders in households

with no husband/wife present can be any marital status, including “married, spouse absent.” 
4 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 2.

Households and Families for the United States, Regions, and States, and for Puerto Rico:

1990 and 2000

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/doc/sf1.pdf)

Area

All households

Percent of households in 2000 which were: Average

number of

Family households Nonfamily people in 2000 households

Unmarriedpartner

households

Multigenerational

households

Married-couple

households

Female family

households1 Male family

households1

One

person

Two or

more

people

Per

householdPer

April 1, 1990 April 1, 2000 Total family

With

children

under

18 yrs. Total

With

children

under

18 yrs. Total

With

children

under

18 yrs.

United States . . . . 91,947,410 105,480,101 51.7 23.5 12.2 7.2 4.2 2.1 25.8 6.1 5.2 3.7 2.59 3.14

Region

Northeast . . . . . . . . . 18,872,713 20,285,622 49.9 22.6 12.8 7.0 4.1 1.8 27.2 6.0 5.3 3.7 2.56 3.14

Midwest. . . . . . . . . . . 22,316,975 24,734,532 52.4 23.6 11.2 6.8 3.8 2.0 26.9 5.7 5.1 2.7 2.53 3.09

South . . . . . . . . . . . . 31,822,254 38,015,214 51.9 23.1 13.1 7.7 4.1 2.0 25.3 5.6 4.8 3.9 2.56 3.08

West . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18,935,468 22,444,733 52.0 25.2 11.5 6.9 4.8 2.5 24.2 7.6 5.9 4.4 2.75 3.30

State

Alabama . . . . . . . . . . 1,506,790 1,737,080 52.2 22.5 14.2 8.1 3.6 1.7 26.1 3.9 3.4 3.7 2.49 3.01

Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . 188,915 221,600 52.5 28.5 10.8 7.8 5.5 3.6 23.5 7.8 7.5 3.1 2.74 3.28

Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . 1,368,843 1,901,327 51.9 22.6 11.1 6.8 4.7 2.6 24.8 7.5 6.2 4.0 2.64 3.18

Arkansas.......... 891,179 1,042,696 54.3 22.7 12.1 7.4 3.8 2.0 25.6 4.2 3.9 3.2 2.49 2.99

California. . . . . . . . . . 10,381,206 11,502,870 51.1 26.0 12.6 7.3 5.2 2.6 23.5 7.6 5.9 5.6 2.87 3.43

Colorado . . . . . . . . . . 1,282,489 1,658,238 51.8 24.4 9.6 6.2 4.0 2.2 26.3 8.3 5.5 2.7 2.53 3.09

Connecticut . . . . . . . . 1,230,479 1,301,670 52.0 23.7 12.1 7.0 3.6 1.6 26.4 5.9 5.3 3.2 2.53 3.08

Delaware. . . . . . . . . . 247,497 298,736 51.3 21.9 13.1 7.7 4.2 2.2 25.0 6.5 6.1 3.7 2.54 3.04

District of Columbia. . 249,634 248,338 22.8 8.4 18.9 9.9 4.2 1.5 43.8 10.2 6.0 4.6 2.16 3.07

Florida. . . . . . . . . . . . 5,134,869 6,337,929 50.4 19.2 12.0 6.9 4.1 2.0 26.6 6.9 5.8 3.8 2.46 2.98

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . 2,366,615 3,006,369 51.5 24.4 14.5 8.6 4.2 2.0 23.6 6.1 4.8 4.3 2.65 3.14

Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . 356,267 403,240 53.6 24.0 12.4 5.9 5.2 2.2 21.9 6.9 5.8 8.2 2.92 3.42

Idaho............. 360,723 469,645 58.9 28.1 8.7 5.8 3.9 2.4 22.4 6.1 4.8 2.3 2.69 3.17

Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,202,240 4,591,779 51.3 24.3 12.3 6.9 4.1 1.9 26.8 5.6 4.8 4.0 2.63 3.23

Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . 2,065,355 2,336,306 53.6 23.8 11.1 6.9 3.9 2.2 25.9 5.5 5.3 2.7 2.53 3.05

Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,064,325 1,149,276 55.1 23.9 8.6 5.6 3.3 1.9 27.2 5.8 4.9 1.6 2.46 3.00

Kansas ........... 944,726 1,037,891 54.7 25.1 9.3 6.0 3.6 2.1 27.0 5.4 4.1 2.2 2.51 3.07

Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . 1,379,782 1,590,647 53.9 23.6 11.8 7.0 3.7 1.9 26.0 4.5 4.5 2.7 2.47 2.97

Louisiana. . . . . . . . . . 1,499,269 1,656,053 48.9 22.6 16.6 9.8 4.3 2.2 25.3 4.9 5.0 4.8 2.62 3.18

Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . 465,312 518,200 52.5 21.8 9.5 6.2 3.8 2.4 27.0 7.2 7.3 1.7 2.39 2.90

Maryland . . . . . . . . . . 1,748,991 1,980,859 50.2 23.3 14.1 8.0 4.3 2.1 25.0 6.4 5.6 4.5 2.61 3.13

Massachusetts . . . . . 2,247,110 2,443,580 49.0 22.4 11.9 6.7 3.6 1.5 28.0 7.5 5.4 3.1 2.51 3.11

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . 3,419,331 3,785,661 51.4 23.1 12.5 7.5 4.1 2.1 26.2 5.7 5.3 3.1 2.56 3.10

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . 1,647,853 1,895,127 53.7 25.2 8.9 5.9 3.6 2.0 26.9 6.9 5.3 1.6 2.52 3.09

Mississippi. . . . . . . . . 911,374 1,046,434 49.8 22.4 17.3 10.1 4.4 2.2 24.6 4.0 4.5 5.2 2.63 3.14

Missouri. . . . . . . . . . . 1,961,206 2,194,594 52.0 22.7 11.6 7.1 3.7 2.1 27.3 5.4 5.1 2.7 2.48 3.02

Montana .......... 306,163 358,667 53.6 23.0 8.9 5.9 3.7 2.3 27.4 6.4 5.0 1.9 2.45 2.99

Nebraska. ......... 602,363 666,184 54.2 24.9 9.1 6.0 3.3 1.9 27.6 5.9 4.4 1.6 2.49 3.06

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . 466,297 751,165 49.7 22.1 11.1 6.7 5.5 2.9 24.9 8.8 7.2 4.0 2.62 3.14

New Hampshire . . . . 411,186 474,606 55.3 25.4 9.1 5.7 3.8 2.3 24.4 7.4 6.9 2.2 2.53 3.03

New Jersey . . . . . . . . 2,794,711 3,064,645 53.5 25.3 12.6 6.4 4.2 1.7 24.5 5.2 4.9 4.7 2.68 3.21

New Mexico . . . . . . . 542,709 677,971 50.4 23.3 13.2 8.3 5.2 3.1 25.4 5.8 6.4 4.3 2.63 3.18

New York. . . . . . . . . . 6,639,322 7,056,860 46.6 21.6 14.7 8.1 4.4 1.9 28.1 6.2 5.4 4.4 2.61 3.22

North Carolina. . . . . . 2,517,026 3,132,013 52.5 22.6 12.5 7.3 3.9 1.9 25.4 5.7 4.6 3.2 2.49 2.98

North Dakota. . . . . . . 240,878 257,152 53.4 24.1 7.8 5.3 3.3 1.9 29.3 6.1 4.4 1.1 2.41 3.00

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,087,546 4,445,773 51.4 22.4 12.1 7.3 3.8 2.0 27.3 5.3 5.2 2.8 2.49 3.04

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . 1,206,135 1,342,293 53.5 23.2 11.4 7.0 3.8 2.1 26.7 4.6 4.0 2.9 2.49 3.02

Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . 1,103,313 1,333,723 51.9 22.2 9.8 6.2 4.1 2.3 26.1 8.1 6.3 2.5 2.51 3.02

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . 4,495,966 4,777,003 51.7 21.8 11.6 6.2 3.9 1.9 27.7 5.2 5.0 3.1 2.48 3.04

Rhode Island....... 377,977 408,424 48.2 21.0 12.9 7.8 3.9 1.8 28.6 6.5 5.7 3.2 2.47 3.07

South Carolina . . . . . 1,258,044 1,533,854 51.1 21.8 14.8 8.5 4.1 2.0 25.0 5.1 4.6 4.2 2.53 3.02

South Dakota . ..... 259,034 290,245 54.2 24.5 9.0 6.1 3.7 2.2 27.6 5.5 4.8 1.8 2.50 3.07

Tennessee. . . . . . . . . 1,853,725 2,232,905 52.6 22.4 12.9 7.4 3.9 1.9 25.8 4.9 4.2 3.4 2.48 2.99

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,070,937 7,393,354 54.0 27.1 12.7 7.6 4.3 2.1 23.7 5.3 4.4 4.8 2.74 3.28

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537,273 701,281 63.2 35.0 9.4 5.8 3.8 1.9 17.8 5.9 3.4 3.7 3.13 3.57

Vermont .......... 210,650 240,634 52.5 23.2 9.3 6.1 3.8 2.4 26.2 8.2 7.5 1.6 2.44 2.96

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . 2,291,830 2,699,173 52.8 23.9 11.9 6.9 3.8 1.8 25.1 6.5 4.7 3.4 2.54 3.04

Washington . . . . . . . . 1,872,431 2,271,398 52.0 23.8 9.9 6.5 4.1 2.4 26.2 7.8 6.1 2.5 2.53 3.07

West Virginia. . . . . . . 688,557 736,481 54.0 21.3 10.7 5.7 3.7 1.9 27.1 4.5 4.7 2.6 2.40 2.90

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . 1,822,118 2,084,544 53.2 23.7 9.6 6.2 3.7 2.1 26.8 6.7 5.7 1.9 2.50 3.05

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . 168,839 193,608 54.8 24.3 8.7 6.0 3.9 2.4 26.3 6.3 5.4 1.8 2.48 3.00

Puerto Rico ......... 1,054,924 1,261,325 54.1 26.7 21.3 10.4 4.2 1.4 18.4 2.0 3.2 7.4 2.98 3.69

1

No spouse present in household.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Summary File 1; 1990 Census of Population, Summary Population and Housing Characteristics, United States

(1990 CPH-1-1).
U.S. Census Bureau

5

Percent Married-Couple Households: 2000

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Summary File 1. American FactFinder at factfinder.census.gov

provides census data and mapping tools.

U.S. pe

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/doc/sf1.pdf) U.S. peFigure 3.

0 100 Miles 0 100 Miles 

0 100 Miles
6 U.S. Census Bureau

Approximately one out of every six

households in Louisiana and

Mississippi consisted of families

maintained by a woman with no

husband present. The District of

Columbia (19 percent) and Puerto

Rico (21 percent) also recorded

above-average percentages of

family households maintained by

women with no husband present. 

One out of every four

households was a one-person

household.

While the majority of households

in the United States in 2000 were

maintained by married couples, 

27.2 million households consisted

of people living alone.6 This represented a 4.6-million increase in

one-person households since

1990. Nationally, the proportion of

one-person households increased

slightly from 25 percent in 1990 to

26 percent in 2000. 

One-person households were the

most common form of household

type in the District of Columbia 

(44 percent). The state with the

highest proportion of one-person

households was North Dakota at 

29 percent. Utah had the lowest

proportion of one-person households, 18 percent, followed by

Hawaii at 22 percent.

In general, those areas with a high

percentage of married-couple

households have a low percentage

of households consisting of people

living alone. Among counties of

100,000 or more population, four

of the ten counties which had the

lowest proportion of married-couple

households were also among the

top ten counties with the highest

proportion of one-person households.7 Living alone can be

characteristic of people in different

stages of life. For example, this

group includes young adults starting out on their own with their first

jobs, separated or divorced people

after a marital disruption, and elderly people who are widowed and living apart from their children. Table

3 shows the ten places with the

highest proportion of one-person

households and also the percentage

of these households maintained by

a person 65 years and over. 

A high percentage of one-person

households is noted for

Washington, DC, and for neighboring places in Virginia (Alexandria

and Arlington). These places are

characterized by having less than

one-quarter of one-person households maintained by a person 65

years and over. Other places, such

as Fort Lauderdale, Florida; St.

Louis, Missouri; and Pittsburgh,

Pennsylvania, have significantly

higher percentages of one-person

households maintained by a person

65 years and over.

Table 3.

Top Ten Places of 100,000 or More Population With the Highest Percent of One-Person

Households: 2000

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2000/doc/sf1.pdf)

Place

Total

households

One-person households

Number

Percent

of total

With householder

65 years and over

Number

Percent of

one-person

households

Washington, DC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248,338 108,744 43.8 24,903 22.9

Alexandria, VA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61,889 26,890 43.4 4,217 15.7

Cincinnati, OH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148,095 63,353 42.8 16,465 26.0

Cambridge, MA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42,615 17,649 41.4 3,909 22.1

Seattle, WA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258,499 105,542 40.8 24,029 22.8

Arlington, VA* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86,352 35,216 40.8 6,345 18.0

Minneapolis, MN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162,352 65,508 40.3 13,043 19.9

Fort Lauderdale, FL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68,468 27,600 40.3 8,030 29.1

St. Louis, MO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147,076 59,269 40.3 18,978 32.0

Pittsburgh, PA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143,739 56,562 39.4 19,716 34.9

* Arlington, VA, is a census designated place and is not legally incorporated.

Note: In Census 2000, there were 245 places in the United States with 100,000 or more population. They included 238 incorporated

places (including 4 city-county consolidations) and 7 census designated places (CDPs) that were not legally incorporated. For a list of these

places by state, see the footnote in the table at www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/phc-t6/tab04.pdf.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 Summary File 1.

6

One-person households are a subset of

nonfamily households, where the householder

lives alone. Another 6.5 million nonfamily

households in 2000 consisted of two or more

unrelated people living together.

7

The counties are the District of Columbia;

New York County, New York; Suffolk County,

Massachusetts; and San Francisco County,

California.
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS

ON HOUSEHOLDS AND

FAMILIES

Has the number of unmarriedpartner households changed

since 1990?

Tabulations of unmarried-partner

households were first presented in

the 1990 census, which showed 

3.2 million unmarried-partner

households.8 By Census 2000, the

number of unmarried-partner

households had increased to 

5.5 million, of which 4.9 million

consisted of partners of the opposite sex. In 1990, unmarried-partner

households accounted for 3.5 percent of all households, while in

Census 2000 they accounted for

5.2 percent of all households. The

number and percentage of unmarried-partner households increased

in all states since 1990. California

contained the largest number of

unmarried-partner households in

2000 (684,000). Vermont and

Alaska had the highest percentage

of unmarried-partner households

(7.5 percent), while Alabama and

Utah had the lowest percentage 

(3.4 percent). 

Has the number of female

family households with own

children changed since 1990?

Female family households (no husband present) with own children9

under 18 years have increased both

in number and proportion, from 

6.0 million (6.6 percent of all households) in 1990 to 7.6 million 

(7.2 percent of all households) in

2000. Mississippi had the highest

proportion of female family households with own children under 18

(10.1 percent), closely followed by

Louisiana (9.8 percent). North

Dakota had the lowest proportion, at

5.3 percent, closely followed by Iowa

at 5.6 percent. Approximately one

out of ten households in the District

of Columbia (9.9 percent) and Puerto

Rico (10.4 percent) were female family households with own children.

Nationally, there were more than

three times as many married-couple

households with children as female

family households with children. All

50 states had at least twice as

many married-couple households

with children as female family

households. For the District of

Columbia, however, Census 2000

shows more female family households with children (25,000) than

married-couple households with

children (21,000). 

How many multigenerational

families were there?

A topic of recent interest is that of

multigenerational families — family

households consisting of more than

two generations, such as a

householder living with his/her children and grandchildren. Multigenerational family households may be

more likely to reside in areas where

new immigrants live with their relatives, in areas where housing shortages or high costs force families to

double up their living arrangements,

or in areas that have relatively high

rates of out-of-wedlock childbearing

and where unwed mothers live with

their children in their parents’ home. 

In 2000, there were 3.9 million family households in the three types of

commonly encountered multigenerational households examined here.

They made up 3.7 percent of all

households.10 Hawaii had the highest percentage of multigenerational

family households, accounting for

8.2 percent of all households in

Hawaii. Other states exceeding 

5 percent in 2000 were California

(5.6 percent) and Mississippi 

(5.2 percent). The state with the

smallest percentage of multigenerational family households was North

Dakota (1.1 percent). Puerto Rico

also recorded a relatively high percentage of multigenerational households (7.4 percent).

In looking at multigenerational family households in more detail, those

with a householder and the householder’s child(ren) and

grandchild(ren) are the largest

group, making up 2.6 million

households or 65 percent of the

three types of multigenerational

family households examined here.

Those family households consisting

of a householder, the householder’s

parent(s)/parent(s)-in-law, and the

householder’s child(ren) numbered

U.S. Census Bureau 7

8

Unmarried-partner households were

derived from self-identified responses to the

relationship item where one adult was identified as an unmarried partner of the householder. An unmarried partner is defined as a person

who is not related to the householder, but who

shares living quarters and has a close personal

relationship with the householder. Depending

on the presence or absence of any relatives of

the householder, an unmarried-partner household may either be classified as a family or nonfamily household. Statistics on unmarried partners for 1990 were based on data collected

from the approximately one-sixth of the households in the United States who received the

long form of the questionnaire. For information

concerning the comparability of data on unmarried partners in 1990 and 2000, see 

www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/

samesex.html.

9

For 1990, own children consisted of natural

born, adopted, or stepchildren under 18 years

old of the householder, who were never married. For the Census 2000 results in this brief,

own children consisted of natural born, adopted, or stepchildren under 18 years old of the

householder, regardless of marital status,

because information on marital status was collected on a 100-percent basis in 1990, but only

on a sample basis in Census 2000. For sample

data from Census 2000, the definition of own

children will use marital status information and

will be comparable to the definition used in

1990. 

10The numbers in this report only identify

three types of commonly encountered multigenerational households: (1) householder-childgrandchild, (2) parent/parent-in-law of householder-householder-child, and (3) parent/

parent-in-law of householder-householder-childgrandchild. These numbers, then, represent a

subset of all possible multigenerational households. Data were not tabulated in 1990 for

multigenerational households.
1.3 million households or one-third

of all multigenerational families.

Four-generation family households

— consisting of the three generations noted above plus the householder’s grandchild(ren) — are considerably rarer, making up only

78,000 households or only 2 percent of the identified multigenerational family households. 

ABOUT CENSUS 2000

Why did we ask this question?

We asked the relationship question

to observe the changing composition of families and households in

the United States. The census provides essential information for planning and carrying out federal programs. Relationship data are used,

in part, to determine how money is

spent in federally funded nutrition

and education programs such as the

Special Supplemental Food Program

for Women, Infants, and Children,

and by the Social Security

Administration to handle a number

of planning issues under the Old

Age, Survivors, and Disability

Insurance and the Supplemental

Security Income Programs. In addition, the relationship item is a key

variable in implementing the poverty definition, which is based on

income thresholds that vary by size

of family and number of children.

Numbers and percentages of people

in poverty are used in allocating

funds by many federal programs,

such as Title I, which funds assistance for educationally disadvantaged students, and the HOME

Investment Partnerships Program.

In addition, information derived

from the relationship item helps to

identify areas which have experienced changes in the number of

children, elderly parents living with

the householder, and single-parent

households, so that government

agencies can develop and evaluate

programs to help these populations.

Policymakers can use the data to

inform their decisions on issues

such as single parenting or cohabitation. Businesses can use the data

to find potential new markets, or

change what they are selling in a

present market, to reflect changes in

family structure and associated consumer habits.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Data on households and families

from the Census 2000 Summary

File 1 were released on a state-bystate basis during the summer of

2001 and are available on the

Internet via factfinder.census.gov

and for purchase on CD-ROM and

later on DVD. One can also investigate household and family data

from other Census Bureau surveys

like the American Community

Survey, the Current Population

Survey, and the Survey of Income

and Program Participation, and

access recently released reports

related to the topic, by going to

www.census.gov. 

For information on confidentiality

protection, nonsampling error, and

definitions, see www.census.gov/

prod/cen2000/doc/sf1.pdf or contact our Customer Services Center

at 301-763-INFO (4636). 

Information on other population

and housing topics is presented in

the Census 2000 Brief Series, located on the U.S. Census Bureau’s Web

site at www.census.gov/

population/www/cen2000/briefs.html.

This series presents information

about race, Hispanic origin, age,

sex, household type, housing

tenure, and other social, economic,

and housing characteristics.

For more information about Census

2000, including data products, call

our Customer Services Center at

301-763-INFO (4636) or e-mail 

webmaster@census.gov.

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Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

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