Weddings bells ring out again in 2022

A record number of marriages were registered in 2022, following two years of fewer nuptials during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

James Eynstone-Hinkins, ABS head of health and vital statistics, said there were 127,161 couples who married in 2022, over 13,000 more than 2019.

“There were around 79,000 marriages in 2020 and 89,000 in 2021, showing the impact the pandemic had on couples’ ability to get married in these years,” Mr Eynstone-Hinkins said.

“While this was the highest number of marriages on record in Australia, the marriage rate of 6.1 for every 1,000 people aged 16 years and up, is comparable with pre-pandemic years (5.6 in 2019 and 6.0 in 2018).”

All states and territories except for Western Australia recorded more marriages than the last pre-pandemic year of 2019, with pent up demand clear in the data across most states and territories.

Normal seasonal trends for weddings were disrupted during the pandemic but were re-established in 2022 as many couples opted for spring and autumn weddings. The most popular wedding date was 22 October 2022 – with just over 2,200 weddings.

Around 1,700 male couples and 2,600 female couples married in 2022. Same gender marriage numbers remained lower than 2018 and 2019, the first two years after changes to the Marriage Act.

Meanwhile, 49,241 couples divorced in 2022, with a rate of 2.4 divorces for every 1,000 people aged 16 years and up.