The count nearly doubled since 2005
Census reported that the number of same-sex couple households in 2024 was nearly twice the 2005 level. Growth was driven by married households and, to a lesser extent, unmarried partner households.
The series uses ACS one-year estimates for 2005–2024 except 2020, when the standard one-year release was affected by pandemic-era data collection issues.
Female same-sex couple households became more numerous
Female same-sex married couple households grew from about 178,000 in 2005 to roughly 450,000 in 2024. Male same-sex married couple households grew from about 214,000 to 386,000.
By 2024, female same-sex households outnumbered male same-sex households in both the married and unmarried categories.
The ACS household frame has limits
The estimate covers couples where the householder identifies another household member as a spouse or unmarried partner. It does not identify every romantic couple, especially partners who live apart.
Households are not people: a count of 1.4 million couple households implies roughly two partners per household but should not be relabeled as 1.4 million individuals.