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Are you at risk of breaking up before you even get married?
By Ossiana Tepfenhart — Written on Sep 02, 2022
Statisticians love to take a look at peoples’ habits and what they can predict, and when it comes to love, nothing is more studied than divorce. That means that statisticians have found a lot of links that can help you figure out signs of divorce and how likely it is that you’ll break up with your husband.
Here are some of the more surprising factors that statistically predict divorce.
Here are 14 truly surprising things that'll predict if you divorce:
1. If you spend over $20,000 on your wedding, you’re more likely to divorce.
It’s true, and to a point, it makes sense. People who go bridezilla on weddings forget that it’s not just a party that you’re celebrating — it’s the start of your life together. Cheaper weddings often suggest more financially wise choices, which makes for a more stable marriage.
2. If your spouse has an online affair, you’re probably going to divorce.
What’s scary about this is that 54 percent of guys don’t consider this to be cheating. So, this might be a big indicator.
3. If you make under $25,000 per year, you’re very likely to divorce.
Studies show that the chance of divorce decreases with the amount of money you make. This could be because you will lose a lot more if you divorce while rich.
4. Going to church on a regular basis increases your chance of staying together.
Can I get an amen? The same study showed that only attending “sometimes” won’t help your chances of avoiding divorce court.
5. If you or your spouse value money or looks the most, your chances of divorce are very high.
Meanwhile, spouses who valued things like personality and loyalty were less likely to file for divorce. (Hmm, imagine that, guys!)
6. If one partner smokes, your marriage is 75 percent more likely to divorce.
Meanwhile, if neither of you smoke OR both of you smoke, your chances actually go down. This may be a good reason to quit smoking, just saying!
7. Living in a “blue state” decreases your chance of divorce.
Democrats are actually less likely to divorce than their Republican counterparts. Considering how “family values” the Republican stance is, this is pretty ironic.
8. Getting a college degree will make you 13 percent less likely to divorce.
The highest divorce rates are among couples who only have a high school education. See? College is important!
9. If one (or both) partners have a commute longer than 45 minutes, then they have a higher chance of divorce, too.
This might be because they spend less time with their spouse or because the tedium of commuting may put them in a foul mood when they come home.
10. Children of divorce are also 40 percent more likely to divorce.
Studies can’t figure out why this is the case, but that’s what they’re showing. If your parents remarried after divorce, the chances bump up to 91 percent more likely than your non-divorce-child counterparts.
11. Speaking of which, couples with kids are less likely to divorce than couples without kids.
Of course, it’s obvious why this is. No one wants to lose time with their kids.
12. If you invite more than 200 people to your wedding, you’re 92 percent less likely to divorce.
Meanwhile, if you and your hubs were the only ones, you’re way more likely to end up in court.
13. If this is your second marriage, you have a 63 percent chance of divorcing.
Third marriages are even worse, with roughly 3 out of 4 ending in divorce.
14. If you married during ages 18 to 25, you’re pretty damn likely to divorce.
However, if your first marriage happened after age 35, chances are extremely high that you will end up staying together.
RELATED: 9 Divorce Myths You Need To Ignore (And What To Do Instead)
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Ossiana Tepfenhart is a Jack-of-all-trades writer. Follow her on Twitter.