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Going Solo in the USA
By Sperling's BestPlaces
Sep 29th, 2008
Last year, the New York Times published the results of its census analysis stating that 51% of U.S. women live without a spouse. However, Sperling's BestPlaces discovered this might not be the whole story.
"The Times came to some insightful conclusions with their analysis," said Bert Sperling, lead researcher for Sperling's BestPlaces. "We made some different assumptions to more closely reflect our national lifestyle where fifteen year-old girls aren't commonly expected to get married."
The New York Times used, at that time, the latest demographics from the Census Bureau, including women above age fourteen who were unmarried or separated. Indeed, according to a University of Texas survey, the average age of women at their first marriage is 26.
Sperling's firm looked at similar Census data, but restricted its analysis to single, widowed, and divorced women age 25-64. Without this cap on the age range, places with higher concentrations of elderly people would show a misleading number of single women.
Sperling's conclusion is significantly different than the New York Times. In the 379 metro areas nationwide, 34% of women 25-64 are single.
Despite all the attention to this new milestone for single women, the difference between the number of single men and women is not as great as one might think. Nationally, 32% of men are single.
Where do the lonely hearts live?
"As interesting as the nation as a whole is trending," Sperling said, "we want to see which places had the greatest percentage of single men and women."
Sperling's firm broke down the data by metro area, revealing interesting patterns on where singles live.
San Francisco seems to attract single people like a good pickup line, if there is such a thing. Compared to every other metro area in the U.S., the San Francisco region, which includes areas south like San Mateo and Redwood City, has the highest percentage of single people.
Detroit, with 43% singles, is second only to San Francisco. New York, and Boston round out the top four.
Most southern cities are not flush with single people. Those cities in southern states that have more singles are homes to colleges, where students might choose to remain after graduation, or are known for their nightlife. New Orleans, Austin, and a handful of Florida cities all have more singles than the national average.
"There has to be a lot going on for singles," said David Evans in a phone interview with BestPlaces. Evans is an online dating researcher based in Boston, a city that is 39% single. Evans said Boston has the key factors for single living. "It's a college town, it has nightlife, culture, and lots of jobs."
Whether by choice or circumstance, many are living in some of the biggest cities, surrounded by millions, and still find themselves alone.
The Top Ten "Solo Cities:"
Rank Metro % Single
1 San Francisco, CA 44.7
2
Detroit, MI 44
3 New York, NY 39.8
4 Boston, MA 39.2
5 New Orleans, LA 39.1
6 Los Angeles, CA 37.7
7 Fort Lauderdale, FL 37.2
8 Las Vegas, NV 37
9 Miami, FL 36.9
10 Albuquerque, NM 36.8
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