A new Pew Research Center survey finds that 59% of LGBTQ U.S. adults under age 50 who have never been married say they want to marry someday — nearly the same as the 63% of non-LGBTQ adults who do. About 12% of each group say they never want to marry, while more than one-quarter are unsure of their future marriage plans.
By age, younger Americans who have never been married are more eager to wed than older peers, who are less certain and more doubtful about ever marrying.
Among those aged 18 to 29 who have never married, 67% of LGBTQ adults and 73% of non-LGBTQ adults say they want to marry someday. By contrast, just 48% of LGBTQ adults and 49% of non-LGBTQ adults aged 30 to 49 say the same, with nearly one-third in each group unsure.
More adults aged 30 to 49 say they never want to marry, including 17% of LGBTQ adults and 19% of non-LGBTQ adults. Among those aged 18 to 29, just 8% of LGBTQ adults and 6% of non-LGBTQ adults say the same.
Among adults under 50 who are divorced, widowed, or separated, 46% of LGBTQ adults say they want to marry again, compared with 33% of non-LGBTQ adults.
Just over one-quarter of previously married LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ adults say they don’t want to remarry. But 37% of non-LGBTQ adults are unsure, compared with 25% of LGBTQ adults.
The findings come from two Pew Research Center surveys conducted in January and February, which also asked respondents if they want children someday.
Overall, 33% of childless LGBTQ adults and 47% of childless non-LGBTQ adults say they want children someday. Thirty-nine percent of LGBTQ adults and 23% of non-LGBTQ adults say they don’t want children, while similar shares in both groups are unsure.
By gender, there’s little difference between LGBTQ men and women on wanting or raising children, but a notable gap exists between non-LGBTQ men and women.
Among LGBTQ men, 36% want children, 36% do not, and 28% are unsure. For LGBTQ women, 37% want children, 36% do not, and 27% are unsure.
Fifty-four percent of childless non-LGBTQ men want children, while 18% do not. By comparison, 39% of childless non-LGBTQ women want children, and 30% do not. Similar shares in both groups are unsure.
Pew found the gender gap is largely driven by non-LGBTQ Republican and Republican-leaning men, 56% of whom want children someday. By comparison, 42% of non-LGBTQ Republican and Republican-leaning women, 43% of non-LGBTQ Democratic and Democratic-leaning men, and 38% of non-LGBTQ Democratic and Democratic-leaning women express a strong desire for children.
As with marriage, younger adults are more enthusiastic about having children: 59% of non-LGBTQ adults aged 18 to 29 say they want children, compared to 34% of those aged 30 to 49. Among LGBTQ adults, the gap is smaller, with 36% of 18- to 29-year-olds wanting children, versus 27% of those aged 30 to 49.
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With Obergefell at risk and 32 states poised to restrict same-sex marriage, LGBTQ advocates push to enshrine protections at the state level.
By Maximilian Sandefer
August 6, 2025
On June 22, 2022, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision with Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. Abortion rights were now no longer guaranteed nationwide as the issue was left up to the states. This shock reversal of over 49 years of precedent left reproductive rights activists scrambling as anti-choice state laws stemming from as far back as 1864 were revived and reinstituted.
As people's ability to access to reproductive care dwindled in conservative-led states, activists also found their footing. The 2024 election saw abortion rights ballot measures win in seven out of ten states. As we navigate a landscape where it will likely be a long time before we see any form of successful federal legislation protecting a woman's right to choose, state-by-state activism seems to be the driving force behind change.
A new Williams Institute report shows LGBTQ adults are more likely to rely on food assistance -- and could be disproportionately harmed by Republican-led efforts to slash SNAP funding.
A new report from the Williams Institute, an LGBTQ-focused think tank at UCLA School of Law, finds that 15% of LGBTQ adults -- nearly 2.1 million people -- received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits in the past year.
The report arrives as Congress prepares to pass legislation backed by President Donald Trump that would make his 2017 tax cuts permanent. In exchange -- particularly for high-income earners and corporations -- the Republican-backed bill proposes significant cuts to domestic social safety net programs.
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