FAMILY STUDIES: High-Earning Women Are More Likely to Marry
Ken Burchfiel, Family Studies, November 10, 2025
It's no secret that men who earn more money are more likely to marry. After all, as a Pew report noted, "Americans place a higher value on a man’s role as financial provider." But does this relationship hold true for women? Or are high earnings irrelevant—or even detrimental—for women in the marriage market?
Recent American Community Survey (ACS) data shows that, among women ages 25 to 39, the lowest earners are about as likely to be married (56%) as the highest earners (57%).1 At first glance, this suggests that there is no connection between a woman's personal income2 and her odds of tying the knot. However, the same data reveals that women with higher personal incomes are much more likely to have gotten married in the past year than those with lower incomes. This article will explore this apparent contradiction—and examine how higher education helps explain the link between income and marriage.
