The rate of marriages between men and women fell to a record low in 2019, according to figures by the Office of National Statistics (ONS).
There were 18.6 marriages per 1,000 unmarried men and 17.2 per 1,000 unmarried women, the lowest since records began in 1862.
A total of 213,122 heterosexual couples tied the knot in 2019, which is down 50% from the peak in 1972 and the lowest number since 1888.
The figures have also revealed that fewer than one in five opposite-sex marriages were religious ceremonies, which at 18.7% is the lowest percentage on record.
Rates of same-sex marriage have remained roughly the same, with 0.5 marriages per 1,000 unmarried men and 0.6 per 1,000 unmarried women.
The number of same-sex marriages was 6,728, down slightly year-on-year from 6,925 in 2018.
Dr James Tucker, head of ONS health and life events analysis, said: “Today’s data show a decline in marriage rates for opposite-sex couples while rates for same-sex couples have remained the same.
“This decline is a likely consequence of increasing numbers of men and women delaying marriage, or couples choosing to live together rather than marry, either as a precursor to marriage or as an alternative.
“Future analysis will show the impact of the pandemic on marriages rates.”
The average age of men and women getting married in heterosexual marriage reached a record high in 2019, to 32.3 years for women and 34.3 years for men.
In 1999, women were 29.4 years and men were 31.6 years old on average, while in 1969 they were 23.7 and 21.8 years old.
In 2019, the most popular day to tie the knot was a Saturday and August was the most popular month for both opposite-sex and same-sex marriages.
Saturday 27 July was the most popular date of all, when 3,628 marriages took place.
The most popular day to get married was 1 September over the last two decades, followed by 25 August and 28 July, the ONS found.
