Breadwinning Women Are a Lifeline for Their Families and the Economy

In 2023, working women were the primary drivers of America’s strong labor market, and the share of employed women ages 25 to 54 reached a record high.¹ Women’s labor force participation and earnings are a lifeline to families across the country. In 2023, more than 4 in 10 working mothers and 3 in 10 women without cohabitating children were the breadwinners of their families. These numbers are part of a decadeslong trend in which women are far more likely to be the family breadwinner than in earlier generations. The analysis presented here highlights the critical role working women play in supporting their families and underscores the importance of policy that supports this group for the well-being of families and the economy.

In 2023, more than 4 out of 10 mothers (45 percent) were breadwinners, either single working mothers or married mothers earning at least half of their family’s total income. More than half of breadwinning mothers are single mothers. An additional 24 percent of mothers were co-breadwinners, married mothers earning at least one-quarter of their family’s total income. Women’s earnings are also critical to families without cohabitating children. In 2023, 30 percent of married women without cohabitating children were breadwinners, and about 11 percent were co-breadwinners. (see Figure 1)

Over time, a growing share of women have become breadwinners and co-breadwinners, although rates have plateaued in recent years. In 1967, 14 percent of mothers were their respective family’s sole or primary breadwinner—31 percentage points lower than in 2023. (see Figure 1) This growth reflects intentional policy choices and legal milestones that have advanced gender equality, as well as evolving family structures. From 1970 to 2022, marriage rates for women ages 15 and older fell by 78 percent.³ Birth rates among unmarried women also increased.⁴ After California passed the first no-fault divorce law in 1969, many states followed suit and enacted similar laws that made divorce more attainable.⁵ The Equal Pay Act of 1963, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 prohibited, under the law, sex-based pay discrimination, sex- and race-based discrimination in employment, and discrimination based on pregnancy in employment, respectively. The Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 further empowered women by affirming their right to reproductive choice. Together, such hard-earned legal victories granted women greater freedom and opportunity to shape their lives, facilitated record-high female participation in the workforce,⁶ and paved the way for women to be family breadwinners.⁷

Breadwinning mothers have been on the rise while fertility rates have fallen in nearly every developed country, and the United States is no exception.⁸ In addition to the decrease in the birth rate, the ages at which women typically give birth has shifted dramatically over a short period of time—from ages 24 to 29 in 2006 to between ages 30 to 34 in 2022.⁹ The factors noted above, on top of women’s increased likelihood of completing college and entering into professional careers that pay higher wages, mean that women are more likely to provide for their families even before they decide to have children. Furthermore, fewer women overall are choosing to have children. With that in mind, this report deviates from prior iterations by removing the upper age limit of 60 that had previously been applied to breadwinning mothers, as women older than age 60 may still have children ages 17 and under in the home.

This report also coincides with a renewed political movement toward pronatalist policies from leaders in the Trump administration, including Vice President JD Vance.¹⁰ As policymakers look at the data on changing family structures, fertility, and breadwinner status, Vice President Vance has proposed solutions that would affect the tax code or lending.¹¹ However, it is not evident that these solutions would be as beneficial as the family-friendly policies that have made France, for example, one of the few European countries that has not seen such a decline in fertility rates.¹² Suppose the United States were to adopt policies that support working families such as universal prekindergarten, which has been a long-standing policy in many European countries. In that case, parents’ earnings are estimated to grow by roughly 22 percent, and those gains would persist for about six years after the prekindergarten period.¹³ Furthermore, paid family, medical, and parental leave policies have long existed in most advanced economies around the globe, except the United States.¹⁴ In the limited available research on lending programs mentioned above, these policies appear to need pairing with other interventions such as paid leave and child care, and there is not sufficient evidence to prove their efficacy alone.¹⁵

Furthermore, while Vice President Vance and some congressional Republicans purport to want to boost fertility and help people with children via the tax code, their policy appears to apply only to certain kinds of family structures.¹⁶ Congressional Republicans have proposed raising taxes on single mothers by eliminating the head-of-household status in the tax code.¹⁷ While tax filings do not contain information about gender, it is known that single-parent households are the most likely to use this filing status, and more than 4 in 5 single parents are women.¹⁸ These choices would deepen the financial difficulties of single parents, especially single breadwinning mothers.

With more breadwinning women in the economy, it is important that public policy decisions support these households, especially for single mothers who work to support their families but earn wages that are so low that they still need help from programs such as Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). These programs are currently under attack by congressional Republicans.¹⁹ Simultaneously, a pronatalist movement steeped in Christian nationalist ideology with prominent supporters in both the White House and Congress puts all women at risk of losing decades of progress on gender equity.²⁰

Women continue to be breadwinners at high rates despite facing a gender wage gap.²¹ In 2023, among full-time, year-round workers, breadwinning mothers typically made 76 cents for every dollar made by breadwinning fathers. Among breadwinning adults without cohabitating children, women typically made 82 cents for every dollar earned by their male counterparts. This is similar to the wage gap seen between all working women and working men.²²

Research also finds that all working mothers, not just breadwinners, make less than men. This motherhood wage gap, also called the motherhood penalty, describes the decrease in pay that women experience after having a child. All working mothers earned 62 cents for every dollar earned by working fathers in 2023, and full-time working mothers earned 74 cents compared with full-time working fathers.²³ Factors such as stepping away from the labor force to take care of their children,²⁴ the tendency of mothers to work part time,²⁵ and discrimination in the workplace²⁶ affect mothers’ earnings. In 2023, almost 60 percent of breadwinning mothers worked full time, while more than 30 percent worked part time. Conversely, these rates are lower for married women without cohabitating children, among whom nearly 30 percent worked full time and slightly more than 20 percent worked part time in 2023. (see Figure 2)

Occupational segregation also contributes to the gender wage gap.²⁷ Breadwinning mothers were most likely to work in “educational services, health care and social assistance”; “professional services”; and “finance and insurance, and real estate, rental and leasing.” (see Figure 3) While there is some overlap, breadwinning fathers were most likely to work in “construction”; “professional services”; and “manufacturing.” In 2022, the median salaries in these industries for women were $53,267, $70,245, and $73,978, respectively, while men made $83,568, $101,405, and $125,958 in their top industry categories, respectively.²⁸ Policies such as strengthening anti-harassment and antidiscrimination measures and enforcement, passing paycheck fairness laws, and investing in apprenticeship programs would help women, especially breadwinning women, close the wage gap and enter occupations in which they have traditionally been underrepresented.²⁹

The motherhood wage gap is wider for mothers of color. Over time, the consequences of this wage gap significantly affect the economic security of women of color and their families—especially families with women as the sole or primary breadwinner. In 2023, the National Women’s Law Center found that Black mothers make 52 cents,³⁰ Native American mothers make 50 cents,³¹ and Hispanic mothers make 46 cents³² for every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic fathers.

The likelihood of breadwinner status varies by race and ethnicity. Black, Hispanic, Native American, and multiracial mothers are more likely to be breadwinners for their families than are white women, with Black mothers being the most likely. In 2023, 69 percent of Black mothers, 56 percent of Native American mothers, 45 percent of Hispanic mothers, and 53 percent of multiracial mothers were sole or primary breadwinners. Thirty-five percent of Asian or Pacific Islander mothers were breadwinners, although this may mask differences among ethnic subgroups.³³ Comparatively, 40 percent of white, non-Hispanic mothers were breadwinners for their families.

Figure 4 shows the statistics presented above in a slightly different way to compare the racial and ethnic composition of each group of breadwinners and co-breadwinners. Rather than taking the percentage of mothers of each race or ethnicity who are breadwinners, the data present the racial demographics across types of earners and gender.

In 2023, mothers of color comprised a little more than half of all breadwinners and 37 percent of co-breadwinners. White men accounted for 60 percent of breadwinning fathers and nearly three-quarters of breadwinning married men without cohabitating children. Women of color were less likely than white women to be co-breadwinners, largely due to differences in marriage rates. For example, single mothers are disproportionately Black and Hispanic women.³⁴

Black mothers are most likely to be unmarried breadwinners

As noted in the methodology, some breadwinners are unmarried single mothers—those who have never married, as well as those who are divorced, separated, or widowed. Black mothers are more likely than any other racial or ethnic group to be unmarried breadwinners. In 2023, more than 50 percent of Black mothers were unmarried breadwinners, and about 1 in 5 were married breadwinners. In comparison, 17 percent of white mothers were unmarried breadwinners, and 23 percent were married breadwinners. (see Figure 5) Fifty-one percent of all breadwinning mothers were single.

Women in low-income families are most likely to be breadwinners

Mothers’ earnings are critical to families in every income bracket, but mothers in families in lower income quintiles are more likely to be breadwinners than are mothers in higher income quintiles. In 2023, 88 percent of mothers in families in the lowest income quintile were the sole or primary breadwinner—almost 2.7 times higher than the share of breadwinning mothers in the top income quintile. (see Figure 6) Despite their earnings being essential to their families’ economic security, women who earn lower wages experience the motherhood pay gap more severely than higher-earning mothers.³⁵

Similar trends are seen in families without cohabitating children. Women are more likely to be breadwinners in low-income families and less likely to be breadwinners in high-income families. In 2023, 95 percent of married women without cohabitating children in the lowest income quintile were breadwinners, compared with 30 percent in the highest income quintile.

The relationship between marriage and earnings can explain a portion of these differences. Single mothers, who are sole breadwinners, have lower median incomes than married parents, making them more likely to be in a lower income quartile.³⁶ Additionally, married couples are increasingly likely to be dual-income households, putting them in higher income quintiles.³⁷ Still, significant shares of mothers in high-income families are breadwinners or co-breadwinners. Among families in the top income quintile, 33 percent of mothers were sole or primary breadwinners, and another 36 percent were co-breadwinners in 2023.

Conversely, mothers whose family incomes are below the federal poverty level are overwhelmingly breadwinners for their families. In 2023, 77 percent of mothers in families living below the federal poverty level were breadwinners, compared with only 38 percent of mothers whose family income was 150 percent or more above the poverty level. Mothers’ incomes become even more crucial to their families’ budgets when families are living in or near the federal poverty level. (see Figure 7)

Educational attainment for breadwinning mothers

Co-breadwinning mothers are substantially more likely to have bachelor’s degrees, professional degrees, or doctorates than any other group, with 56 percent of co-breadwinning mothers holding at least a bachelor’s degree, compared with 43 percent of breadwinning mothers and 44 percent of breadwinning fathers. Among women without cohabitating children, 42 percent of breadwinners and 48 percent of co-breadwinners have a bachelor’s degree or higher. (see Figure 8)

These similar rates of educational attainment among breadwinning mothers and fathers are a product of decades of advancement for women in higher education, with more women than men obtaining college degrees since the mid-1990s.³⁸ Despite their educational gains, women still make less than men overall and breadwinning mothers still experience a gender wage gap compared with breadwinning fathers, earning 76 cents on the dollar for those working full time, year-round. For breadwinning women without cohabitating children, that gap closes slightly to 82 cents for every dollar earned by their male peers, notwithstanding their very similar educational levels.

In 2023, mothers of school-age children, those ages 6 to 17, were more likely to be breadwinners than mothers of younger children. Forty percent of mothers with at least one child ages 3 or younger were sole or primary breadwinners, and one-quarter were co-breadwinners. In comparison, among mothers with children ages 12 to 17, half were breadwinners, and 23 percent were co-breadwinners. As their children age, mothers’ likelihood of being a breadwinner increases. (see Figure 9) This may be due to mothers’ lower labor force participation rates when children are younger. In 2024, more than two-thirds of mothers with a child under age 6 (68.9 percent) were in the labor force, compared with three-quarters of mothers whose youngest child was ages 6 to 17 (78 percent).³⁹

The motherhood pay gap increases during the first year of a child’s life and rises at a slower pace as the child ages.⁴⁰ Breadwinning mothers are more likely to work full time as their children grow older. In 2023, 60 percent of breadwinning mothers who worked full time had children ages 12 to 17, compared with 52 percent of breadwinning mothers who had children younger than 3 years old. Comparatively, mothers who work part time are less likely to be breadwinners regardless of their children’s age. Women often provide the bulk of unpaid caregiving, making them more likely to work part time—especially when children are young.⁴¹ It is only when the child reaches school age that mothers are able to enter full-time employment and the earnings gap between parents begins to decrease. However, that gap never fully closes.⁴² This illustrates the impact that the absence of a national paid family and medical leave program and accessible child care has on mothers’ earnings and their ability to be breadwinners for their families. (see Figure 10)

To support women who bring home the bulk of their family’s income, it is critical to enact policies that help them overcome labor market barriers, including discrimination and harassment,⁴³ the gender wage gap,⁴⁴ and caregiving responsibilities.⁴⁵ Trump administration actions that would strip women of their health insurance coverage and food security⁴⁶ and remove benefits in the tax code that help single mothers make ends meet,⁴⁷ as well as the lack of federal investment in work-family policies,⁴⁸ would not only harm women but also economic output.

Breadwinning mothers are not going anywhere. Policymakers must take action to uplift breadwinning mothers—who are disproportionately women of color—as they work hard to support their families, especially as people experience quickly rising prices. Policymakers must work to close the gender wage gap, which causes breadwinning mothers to earn $20,000 less per year than breadwinning fathers.⁴⁹ Policymakers should also guarantee paid family and medical leave and sick time⁵⁰ and provide affordable, accessible, high-quality child care.⁵¹ By supporting breadwinners, such policies will uplift families and the American economy.

The authors would like to thank the previous CAP authors for their prior work on this topic; Sophie Cohen and Amina Khalique for their research assistance; Bianca Serbin, Carl Chancellor, and Meghan Miller for their editorial work; and Chester Hawkins for his graphic design work.

Breadwinning mothers include single mothers and married mothers who earn as much as or more than half of their family’s income. Additionally, the authors analyze breadwinning women without children in the family. For the purposes of this analysis, married women are women with an opposite-sex spouse who is in the home or absent. Women and men in same-sex relationships are excluded from the sample because all same-sex female households who have earned income would have a breadwinner in the household, and the inverse would apply to same-sex male spouses, who are excluded in the comparator of breadwinning fathers. Co-breadwinning mothers are working married mothers who bring home at least 25 percent—but less than half—of the couple’s earnings. 

This minimum threshold describes women who are not breadwinners but still make substantial financial contributions, the absence of which would be destabilizing for most households who rely on this income for essentials such as rent or mortgage payments, food, utilities, and transportation. The data only include primary families in a household with a mother over age 18 who has children under age 18 living with her, and the same age restriction is used for married women without children.

Breadwinning women without cohabitating children are married women without children in the home who earn as much as or more than half of their combined income with their husbands. Co-breadwinning women without cohabitating children bring home at least 25 percent—but less than half—of the couple’s earnings. Earned income was calculated using three income variables—business, wage, and farm income—and breadwinner status was calculated by comparing the woman’s income with the couple’s total income. The income questions in the 2024 Annual Social and Economic Supplement ask about the previous year, meaning the latest available data are from 2023. This report features an updated methodology and definitions compared with previous CAP reports.