We used Saturday Night Science to analyze Connecticut’s most recent Census data to determine the divorce rate for each city in Connecticut based on the percentage of currently divorced residents.
The city with the highest divorce rate in Connecticut is Ansonia, with 8.0% of people over 15 years of age being divorced, per the most recent census data. The city with the lowest divorce rate in Connecticut is Hartford.
Connecticut is 5.0% divorced overall. There are some 144,980 people living in Connecticut over fifteen years of age who are divorced. You can compare that to the 28,339,199 Americans who are currently divorced.
Isn’t the divorce rate in America close to 50%? Yes indeed. But we’re measuring something else; we are looking at counts and percentages of people over 15 years old who are currently divorced. That 50% statistic is for the percentage of people who have ever been divorced.
So now that we have you biting your nails, rethinking your worldview, and pulling out your hair, let’s look at the places in Connecticut with the highest rates of divorcees.
8.0% divorced · #2 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New Haven County, Connecticut
Ansonia is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, on the Naugatuck River, immediately north of Derby, and about 12 miles northwest of New Haven. The population was 19,249 at the 2010 census. The ZIP code for Ansonia is 06401. The city is served by the Metro-North Railroad. Ansonia Station is a stop on the railroad passenger commuter service’s Waterbury line, connecting to New York’s Grand Central Terminal. Ansonia also is served by the Connecticut Transit bus carrier. Connecticut Route 8 serves Ansonia.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
8.0% divorced · #2 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
Hartford County, Connecticut
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
8.0% divorced · #2 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New Haven County, Connecticut
Meriden is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located halfway between the regional cities of New Haven and Hartford. In 2010, the population of the city was 60,868.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
8.0% divorced · #2 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
Litchfield County, Connecticut
Torrington is the largest city in Litchfield County, Connecticut and the Litchfield Hills region. It is also the core city of the largest micropolitan area in the United States. The city population was 36,383 according to the 2010 census.
Data | Movers
7.0% divorced · #5 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New Haven County, Connecticut
Milford is a Coterminous municipality within Coastal Connecticut and New Haven County, Connecticut, between Bridgeport, Connecticut and New Haven, Connecticut. The population was 51,271 at the 2010 census. The city includes the borough of Woodmont and the village of Devon. Milford is part of the New York-Newark, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area. It is the headquarters of the mega business Subway
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
6.0% divorced · #9 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New Haven County, Connecticut
Derby is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 12,903 at the 2010 census. It is the smallest consolidated city of Connecticut by area and population.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
6.0% divorced · #9 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New Haven County, Connecticut
West Haven is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. At the 2010 census, the population of the city was 55,564.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
6.0% divorced · #9 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New London County, Connecticut
Norwich, known as ‘The Rose of New England’, is a city in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 40,493 at the 2010 United States Census. Three rivers, the Yantic, the Shetucket, and the Quinebaug, flow into the city and form its harbor, from which the Thames River flows south to Long Island Sound.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers | Compare
6.0% divorced · #9 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
New Haven County, Connecticut
Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, 33 miles southwest of Hartford and 77 miles northeast of New York City. Waterbury is in New Haven County, Connecticut. As of the 2010 census, Waterbury had a population of 110,366, making it the 10th largest city in the New York Metropolitan Area, 9th largest city in New England and the 5th largest city in Connecticut.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
6.0% divorced · #9 highest divorce rate in Connecticut
Located in
Fairfield County, Connecticut
Shelton is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 39,559 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Connecticut’s statewide median.
Connecticut statewide median: $95,781
On the map
Where Connecticut’s highest divorce rates are
Saturday Night Science
How We Determined The Places In Connecticut That Get Un-Hitched The Most
We used Saturday Night Science to look at the U.S. Census Bureau on divorce rates. Because who likes tracking misery more than the U.S. government?
Specifically, we looked at the 2020-2024 American Community Survey table S1201 — Marital Status. Pretty straightforward on that front — we just had to extract the following column of data:
Today, the analysis focuses on the 21 places in Connecticut with a population of over 9,000.
- Population 15 Years and Over -> Divorced
We ranked each place by the percentage of divorcees over 15 years of age from highest to lowest. We crowned the divorce capital of Connecticut the place with the highest incidence of divorcees, Ansonia.
And if you’re trying to avoid divorce, check out Hartford, the city with the lowest divorce rate in Connecticut. We updated this article for 2026 and this list is our eleventh time ranking the cities in Connecticut with the highest divorce rates.
The full plate
Cities With The Highest Divorce Rates In Connecticut
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Divorcees | Divorce Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Ansonia | 19,033 | 1,218 | 8.0% |
| 2 | Bristol | 61,462 | 3,934 | 8.0% |
| 2 | Meriden | 60,545 | 3,875 | 8.0% |
| 2 | Torrington | 35,547 | 2,275 | 8.0% |
| 5 | Milford | 51,023 | 2,857 | 7.0% |
| 9 | Derby | 12,487 | 599 | 6.0% |
| 9 | West Haven | 55,351 | 2,657 | 6.0% |
| 9 | Norwich | 39,973 | 1,919 | 6.0% |
| 9 | Waterbury | 114,869 | 5,514 | 6.0% |
| 9 | Shelton | 41,889 | 2,011 | 6.0% |
| 9 | Groton | 9,490 | 456 | 6.0% |
| 9 | Middletown | 47,958 | 2,302 | 6.0% |
| 13 | New Britain | 74,223 | 2,969 | 5.0% |
| 13 | Naugatuck | 31,800 | 1,272 | 5.0% |
| 16 | New Haven | 134,349 | 4,299 | 4.0% |
| 16 | Bridgeport | 149,153 | 4,773 | 4.0% |
| 16 | New London | 27,625 | 884 | 4.0% |
| 19 | Norwalk | 92,187 | 1,475 | 2.0% |
| 19 | Stamford | 137,144 | 2,194 | 2.0% |
| 19 | Danbury | 87,263 | 1,396 | 2.0% |
| 19 | Hartford | 121,127 | 1,938 | 2.0% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. 21 cities with more than 9,000 residents.
Summary
Getting Some Closure In Connecticut After Untying The Knot
We now have a sense of what places in the Constitution State don’t pay much attention to the whole “’til death do we part” phrase.
The cities with the highest divorce rate in Connecticut are Ansonia, Bristol, Meriden, Torrington, Milford, Derby, West Haven, Norwich, Waterbury, and Shelton.
Try to keep in mind that the reason cities rank where they do in Connecticut could be because of the age, education, and income distribution, as all of those things impact the rate of divorce. Not sold on Connecticut? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Divorce In Connecticut FAQs
What city in Connecticut has the highest divorce rate?
Ansonia has the highest divorce rate in Connecticut for 2026, with 8.0% of residents over 15 currently divorced. Bristol and Meriden are next.
What is the divorce rate in Connecticut?
Connecticut is 5.0% divorced overall, versus a US divorce rate of 10.9%. That counts residents over 15 who are currently divorced, per the Census American Community Survey.
What are the divorce capitals of Connecticut?
The Connecticut cities with the highest divorce rates are Ansonia, Bristol, Meriden, Torrington, Milford, Derby, West Haven, Norwich, Waterbury, and Shelton. We ranked all 21 cities with more than 9,000 residents.
Where do marriages last in Connecticut?
Hartford posts the lowest divorce rate of the 21 Connecticut cities we ranked. Whatever they are doing there, it appears to be working.
How do you measure divorce rates?
We use the share of residents aged 15 and over who report being currently divorced in the Census American Community Survey. It is a snapshot of marital status today, not a count of divorces filed each year.
