I was once a single dad. After my first wife and I divorced, I received primary physical custody of my now-adult daughter.
My present wife was a single mom of two now-adult daughters when we met, as she had custody of them as a result of divorce.
The so-called manosphere loves vilifying single mothers, and vehemently advises men to refrain from dating or “wifing up” single mothers as you are supposedly signing yourself up for misery, potentially being cheated on and taken advantage of, potentially being “divorce raped,” and held responsible for “raising another man’s child(ren).”
I wrote about the rational way to view the situation of dating or entering relationships with single mothers, as well as point out how the prevalence of single mother households in this country not only has a deleterious impact on dating and relationships, but on society as a whole.
I feel the need to revisit this subject with a statistical analysis that includes single father households and how differently single fathers are perceived and represented in the media and treated through government policy as opposed to single mothers.
When most people hear the phrase “single parent”, they automatically think of a single mom. And statistically, that’s true—most single-parent households are led by women.
However, that doesn’t mean single dads don’t exist, or that their stories don’t matter. The numbers paint a much more complex picture of family life in America. A picture I hope to adequately illustrate in objective fashion in this post.
Single Mothers Outnumber Single Fathers by a Wide Margin
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 10.9 million single-parent family households in 2022. Of those, about 80% were led by women. That translates to roughly 14.3 million children living with single mothers, compared to about 3.5 million living with single fathers.
Put simply: for every single dad raising kids, there are about four single moms doing the same.
A Dramatic Rise Over Time
Back in 1960, only about 9% of U.S. children lived in a single-parent household. Today, it’s about 25%—nearly tripled in two generations.
In the vast majority of those homes, the missing figure is the father. Roughly 85% of single-parent families lack a dad in the household.
But here’s a twist: the number of single fathers is growing.
In fact, working single dads have increased by almost 44% since 2000. That growth is slow compared to single mothers, but it shows father-led households aren’t as rare as stereotypes suggest.
Marriage and Responsibility: It’s Not All Divorce
It’s easy to assume single parenthood always means someone “walked away from a marriage.” The numbers tell a different story.
Single mothers: 51% were never married; 29% divorced.
Single fathers: 41% were never married; 38% divorced.
In other words: a large share of both single moms and dads never married in the first place.
That complicates the simple “he left her” or “she left him” narrative.
Economic Realities: Moms Carry the Heavier Burden
Here’s where the divide really shows. On average:
Single dads earn more: Median income for single-father households is about $40,000, compared to $26,000 for single-mother households.
Poverty hits moms harder: Roughly 43% of single-mother households live at or below the poverty line, compared to 24% of single-father households.
Public assistance gap: Single mothers are far more likely to rely on government programs for food and housing, while single dads—though struggling—are less represented in those statistics.
The bottom line: both groups struggle, but single mothers disproportionately bear the economic and social brunt of single parenthood.
Why This Matters
These statistics aren’t just numbers—they shape narratives, policies, and biases.
Because single moms so heavily outnumber single dads, public sympathy, media portrayals, and government support overwhelmingly center on women.
Meanwhile, single fathers often feel invisible, overlooked, or boxed into stereotypes.
The truth is that both groups face unique challenges.
Single moms fight an uphill economic battle, while single dads fight an uphill cultural one.
Both deserve recognition—and both prove that single parenthood comes in many forms.
Closing Thoughts 💭
America’s family structure has changed dramatically in just a few decades.
The rise of single-parent households—whether led by moms or dads—forces us to ask bigger questions: about responsibility, about support systems, and about how society views gender in parenting.
One thing’s clear: “single parent” doesn’t just mean “mom” anymore.
It also doesn’t mean divorce is the main driver behind the prevalence of single mother households in particular and single parent-led households in general.
The manosphere’s misguided and misogynistic points about modern relationships (meaning women having more reproductive and sexual freedom without the stigmas of the past) and their so-called characterization of modern women having loose morals and out-of-wedlock children with “Chad and Tyrone” while looking for “beta male providers” to rescue them when “Chad or Tyrone” abandons them is fueled by the misuse of these statistics to justify their point.
This misguided point also undermines the plight of single fathers, further exacerbated by the feminist agenda that prioritizes single mothers.
Both feminists and the manosphere gloss over the fact that it is the irresponsibility of both men and women in modern society that drive the statistics.
It’s past time to have an honest conversation about single parenthood and look at the complete picture rather using the statistics to fuel a gender war.
-The Rational Ram
The Rational Ram 