Italy's divorce rate has risen significantly since laws made it easier to divorce in 2015, reaching around 43.4 divorces per 100 marriages in 2023, placing it high in European rankings despite historical lows, with factors like later marriages and increased female workforce participation driving the trend. While rates climbed, they've also seen fluctuations, with a surge during the pandemic and some decline from earlier peaks, but remain elevated compared to pre-reform levels.
With 48.7 divorces for every 100 marriages, Italy ranked right behind the European top ten countries with the highest divorce rates in 2016. The ranking was led by Portugal and Luxembourg, which in the year considered registered about 69 and 66 divorces for every 100 marriages, respectively.
The EU countries with the highest divorce rates are Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Luxembourg. Some researchers believe that the more religious the society, the more stable the family units. For instance, Ireland and Italy, having conservative Roman Catholic beliefs, have the least divorces in Europe.
Among college-educated couples, the percentage of divorces initiated by wives is a whopping 90 percent. There's one slight issue with this statement: women tend to initiate divorce more than men in all relationships outside of even college-educated couples. In the US, it ranges between 65-70% in a given year.
The 80/80 Marriage pushes couples beyond the limited idea of “fairness” toward a new model grounded on radical generosity and shared success, one that calls for each partner to contribute 80 percent to build the strongest possible relationship.
1. Lack of Honesty. Often when we think of honesty, notably honesty in marital relationships, we think of a very tangible “where were you last night” kind of honesty. While this is obviously critically important, there are many other kinds of dishonesty that can destroy marriages.
Libya has recorded the highest divorce rate in the Arab world, with 2.5 divorces per 1,000 people, followed closely by Egypt at 2.3 and Saudi Arabia at 2.1 per 1,000. Experts suggest these figures highlight the growing pressures on family structures amidst shifting societal norms and economic challenges.
Lowest divorce rates: Ireland & Mexico
With just 0.7 divorces per 1,000 residents annually, Mexico and Ireland are the two countries on our list where marriages are the least likely to end in legal separation. Ireland ranks fourth overall in our index, with a total score of 66.96.
In contrast, the lowest annual marriage rates are found in Qatar, French Guiana, and Peru. Not only do these countries have the lowest marriage rates, but have also some of the world's lowest divorce rates.
Most nations allow for residents to divorce under some conditions except the Philippines (although Muslims in the Philippines do have the right to divorce) and the Vatican City, an ecclesiastical sovereign city-state, which has no procedure for divorce. In these two countries, laws only allow annulment of marriages.
For many it's simple: exceptional food, insane scenery and the opportunity for guests to stay on and discover more of 'La Dolce Vita'. Italian heritage also plays a large part in this decision-making, with couples wanting to celebrate their wedding in a place where they have roots.
It may sound improbable, but there is a country that bans divorce: the Philippines. To be exact, both Vatican City and the Philippines prohibit divorce. But considering Vatican City's peculiarity as a theocracy, the Philippines are often referred to as the only nation that forbids divorce.
Among those who have ever married, Black Americans are the most likely to have gotten divorced (41%). Asian Americans are the least likely (16%). Americans who were born in the U.S. are more likely than those born outside the U.S. to have ever divorced (36% vs. 22%).
In 2023, the European country with the highest divorce rate per 100 marriages was Finland, with more than 55 divorces.
Not only did the Maldives have the highest divorce rate in the world in 2021, but it also has the highest divorce rate of any country of time in history. They were awarded a Guinness World Record for the highest divorce rate on record in 2002, with 10.97 divorces per 1000 Maldivians.
The Pew Research Center has taken a closer look by breaking down divorce rates among specific religious groups:
Norway. Norway operates a no-fault divorce system, meaning that no reason is required to request a divorce. The spouses must file for separation one year before getting divorced.
While arranged marriages have a lower divorce rate, this is often due to societal pressure, financial dependencies, and family obligations. Love marriages, on the other hand, are more likely to end in divorce because they are based purely on personal compatibility rather than family considerations.
Theres a rule out there called the 777 rule that offers couples a gentle, intentional way to keep their bond strong and their hearts aligned. The concept is simple yet powerful: have a date night every seven days, a weekend getaway every seven weeks, and a romantic holiday every seven months.
When a disagreement comes up, each partner will take 5 minutes to speak while the other simply listens, and then they use the final five minutes to talk it through. “My job is to just listen, and then she'll listen and I'll talk for 5 minutes, and then we dialogue about it for the last five minutes,” Clarke says.
But it does provide some rough guidelines as to how soon may be too soon to make long-term commitments and how long may be too long to stick with a relationship. Each of the three numbers—three, six, and nine—stands for the month that a different common stage of a relationship tends to end.