Share of children living with a single parent in France
France: Share of children living with a single parent was 26.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Share of children living with a single parent in France, 2004–2023
Source: OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
France recorded 26.6% for share of children living with a single parent in 2023. That is the highest value across all 20 years on record.
The figure is up 4.3% on the previous year and up 23.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children living with a single parent in France peaked at 26.6% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 16.8%, in 2006.
That places France 2nd out of 34 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.
Share of children living with a single parent in France, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 19.9% | — |
| 2005 | 18.6% | -6.5% |
| 2006 | 16.8% | -9.7% |
| 2007 | 19.8% | +17.9% |
| 2008 | 21.3% | +7.6% |
| 2009 | 21.6% | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 23.5% | +8.8% |
| 2011 | 22.1% | -6.0% |
| 2012 | 22.0% | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 21.5% | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 21.7% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 22.3% | +2.8% |
| 2016 | 22.8% | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 22.5% | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 22.0% | -2.2% |
| 2019 | 22.6% | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 23.6% | +4.4% |
| 2021 | 24.2% | +2.5% |
| 2022 | 25.5% | +5.4% |
| 2023 | 26.6% | +4.3% |
France compared with similar countries
- France's 26.6% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 15.8%, 1.7× the median. (31 countries reporting)
- France's 26.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 17.6%, 1.5× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 19.7% | 16.8% | 21.6% | 6 |
| 2010s | 22.3% | 21.5% | 23.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.0% | 23.6% | 26.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near France
More reference data data for France
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.48 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 2.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 22.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.81 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 22.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 18.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 11.75 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 14.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 106.68 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 15.3 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children living with a single parent in France?
- Share of children living with a single parent in France was 26.6% in 2023, according to OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children living with a single parent recorded in France?
- The highest recorded value was 26.6% in 2023.
- What is the lowest share of children living with a single parent recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.8% in 2006.
- How does France rank for share of children living with a single parent?
- France ranks 2nd out of 34 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of children living with a single parent rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this France data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children living with a single parent. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of children aged 0-17 living with a single parent.