Gayest places in Delaware research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to research the cities in Delaware with the highest percent of same-sex households for 2026. The data comes from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year vintage, which counts same-sex married spouses and same-sex unmarried partners at the city level.
4.9% gay households · #1 gayest in Delaware
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
3.5% gay households · #2 gayest in Delaware
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3.2% gay households · #3 gayest in Delaware
2.5% gay households · #4 gayest in Delaware
Located in
New Castle County, Delaware
Elsmere is a town in New Castle County, Delaware, United States, bordering the city of Wilmington along Wilmington’s western border. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the town is 6,131.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.4% gay households · #5 gayest in Delaware
Located in
Sussex County, Delaware
Milford is a city in Kent and Sussex counties in the U.S. state of Delaware. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 9,559.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
2.4% gay households · #6 gayest in Delaware
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.7% gay households · #7 gayest in Delaware
1.7% gay households · #8 gayest in Delaware
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1.6% gay households · #9 gayest in Delaware
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.6% gay households · #10 gayest in Delaware
Located in
New Castle County, Delaware
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Delaware’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Delaware’s LGBTQ households are
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the gayest places in Delaware for 2026
In order to rank the gayest cities in Delaware, we used Saturday Night Science and the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the U.S. Census. We looked at:
- Percentage of all households that are unmarried, same-sex partners
We limited the analysis to non-CDPs that have over 1,000 households.
We ranked each place from 1 to 37 with the city containing the highest percentage of unmarried, same-sex partner households being the most gay.
In the end, Harrington ended up being the most gay place with 4.9% gay households.
Skip to the end to see the list of all the places in the state from gayest to straightest.
We updated this report for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the gayest places in Delaware.
The full plate
Gayest Places In Delaware
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Households | LGBTQ Households | % Gay Households |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harrington | 1,718 | 85 | 4.9% |
| 2 | Milton | 1,617 | 56 | 3.5% |
| 3 | Ocean View | 1,376 | 44 | 3.2% |
| 4 | Elsmere | 2,238 | 55 | 2.5% |
| 5 | Milford | 5,560 | 136 | 2.4% |
| 6 | Lewes | 1,747 | 42 | 2.4% |
| 7 | Bridgeville | 1,359 | 23 | 1.7% |
| 8 | Clayton | 1,195 | 20 | 1.7% |
| 9 | Laurel | 1,609 | 26 | 1.6% |
| 10 | Edgemoor | 3,131 | 50 | 1.6% |
| 11 | Wilmington Manor | 3,429 | 52 | 1.5% |
| 12 | Greenville | 1,701 | 23 | 1.4% |
| 13 | Wilmington | 31,655 | 428 | 1.4% |
| 14 | Brookside | 5,845 | 79 | 1.4% |
| 15 | Smyrna | 4,869 | 52 | 1.1% |
| 16 | Bear | 8,746 | 93 | 1.1% |
| 17 | Middl | 9,013 | 95 | 1.1% |
| 18 | New Castle | 2,774 | 28 | 1.0% |
| 19 | Pike Creek | 2,690 | 24 | 0.9% |
| 20 | Long Neck | 1,235 | 11 | 0.9% |
| 21 | Selbyville | 1,185 | 10 | 0.8% |
| 22 | Claymont | 4,302 | 35 | 0.8% |
| 23 | Highland Acres | 1,247 | 10 | 0.8% |
| 24 | Dover | 15,428 | 117 | 0.8% |
| 25 | North Star | 3,035 | 19 | 0.6% |
| 26 | Dover Base Housing | 1,113 | 6 | 0.5% |
| 27 | Georg | 2,529 | 9 | 0.4% |
| 28 | Millsboro | 3,276 | 11 | 0.3% |
| 29 | Newark | 8,594 | 28 | 0.3% |
| 30 | Pike Creek Valley | 5,389 | 16 | 0.3% |
| 31 | Hockessin | 4,812 | 13 | 0.3% |
| 32 | Millville | 1,291 | 3 | 0.2% |
| 33 | Glasgow | 5,690 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 34 | Camden | 1,779 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 35 | Riverview | 1,071 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 36 | Seaford | 3,516 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 37 | Rising Sun-Lebanon | 1,226 | 0 | 0.0% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. Places with over 1,000 households.
Summary
There You Have It – The Most LGBT Friendly Cities In Delaware For 2026
If you’re looking at the number of gay households in Delaware, this is an accurate list.
The gayest cities in Delaware are Harrington, Milton, Ocean View, Elsmere, Milford, Lewes, Bridgeville, Clayton, Laurel, and Edgemoor. Not sold on Delaware? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Gayest Places In Delaware FAQs
What is the gayest city in Delaware?
Harrington is the gayest place in Delaware for 2026, with same-sex couples making up 4.9% of households. Milton and Ocean View are next.
What are the gayest places in Delaware?
The gayest places in Delaware are Harrington, Milton, Ocean View, Elsmere, Milford, Lewes, Bridgeville, Clayton, Laurel, and Edgemoor. We ranked all 37 places with over 1,000 households by their share of same-sex partner households.
How do you measure the gayest places?
The Census does not ask about sexual orientation, so we use the closest thing it tracks: the share of households headed by same-sex partners, from the American Community Survey. It undercounts single LGBT residents, but it is consistent from place to place.
What is the straightest place in Delaware?
Rising Sun-Lebanon is the straightest place in Delaware by this measure, with same-sex couples at 0.0% of households. It anchors the other end of the ranking.
Does a town have to be big to make the list?
No. Any Delaware place with more than 1,000 households qualifies, and 37 made the cut this year. Small towns can and do out-rank the big cities on this one.
