America's 50 Divorce Capitals: Panama City to Lake Charles
Courteney, Christina, and Laura all heading to splitsville in one week. Is Los Angeles America’s divorce hub? Not so. The Daily Beast crunches the numbers on which cities reign as hotspots for marital discord.
Getty Images
To compile the list of America's divorce capitals, The Daily Beast looked at the most recent city-centric divorce statistics in metro areas across the country. We considered two things: the percentage of the population that is divorced and the number of divorces filed in 2009. The population percentage is according to U.S. Census Bureau data on residents over 15 years old who are divorced for more than 200 metropolitan areas. The volume of divorces filed is based on the Census Bureau’s statistical estimations for each metro area.
1, Panama City, FL
Divorced population: 15.5%Divorced population rank: 22009 Divorces: 4.3%2009 Divorce rank: 14
2, Sierra Vista, AZ
Divorced population: 13.6%Divorced population rank: 152009 Divorces: 5.5%2009 Divorce rank: 5
3, Charleston, WV
Divorced population: 13.4%Divorced population rank: 212009 Divorces: 5.6%2009 Divorce rank: 3
4, Medford, OR
Divorced population: 15.1%Divorced population rank: 32009 Divorces: 3.7%2009 Divorce rank: 23
5, Reno, NV
Divorced population: 13.9% Divorced population rank: 9 2009 Divorces: 3.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 20
6, Deltona, FL
Divorced population: 13.5% Divorced population rank: 19 2009 Divorces: 4.2% 2009 Divorce rank: 15
7, Pueblo, CO
Divorced population: 13.4% Divorced population rank: 25 2009 Divorces: 4.5% 2009 Divorce rank: 12
8, Palm Bay, FL
Divorced population: 13.3% Divorced population rank: 28 2009 Divorces: 4.1% 2009 Divorce rank: 17
9, Jacksonville, FL
Divorced population: 13.0% Divorced population rank: 37 2009 Divorces: 4.7% 2009 Divorce rank: 9
10, Grand Junction, CO
Divorced population: 12.8% Divorced population rank: 45 2009 Divorces: 5.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 2
11, Dalton, GA
Divorced population: 13.4% Divorced population rank: 20 2009 Divorces: 3.6% 2009 Divorce rank: 28
12, Anderson, IN
Divorced population: 14.6% Divorced population rank: 7 2009 Divorces: 3.3% 2009 Divorce rank: 43
13, Pittsfield, MA
Divorced population: 12.8% Divorced population rank: 42 2009 Divorces: 4.2% 2009 Divorce rank: 16
14, Billings, MT
Divorced population: 13.3% Divorced population rank: 24 2009 Divorces: 3.4% 2009 Divorce rank: 36
15, Tucson, AZ
Divorced population: 13.8% Divorced population rank: 12 2009 Divorces: 3.1% 2009 Divorce rank: 55
16, Flint, MI
Divorced population: 12.8% Divorced population rank: 44 2009 Divorces: 3.6% 2009 Divorce rank: 27
17, Port St. Lucie, FL
Divorced population: 12.2% Divorced population rank: 74 2009 Divorces: 4.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 7
18, Montgomery, AL
Divorced population: 13.0% Divorced population rank: 36 2009 Divorces: 3.2% 2009 Divorce rank: 47
19, Fort Smith, AR-OK
Divorced population: 13.6% Divorced population rank: 16 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 78
20, Florence, AL
Divorced population: 12.0% Divorced population rank: 98 2009 Divorces: 6.0% 2009 Divorce rank: 1
21, Albany, GA
Divorced population: 12.2% Divorced population rank: 71 2009 Divorces: 3.6% 2009 Divorce rank: 29
22, Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA
Divorced population: 13.4% Divorced population rank: 22 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 81
23, Prescott, AZ
Divorced population: 14.5% Divorced population rank: 8 2009 Divorces: 2.6% 2009 Divorce rank: 101
24, Beaumont, TX
Divorced population: 12.1% Divorced population rank: 82 2009 Divorces: 3.5% 2009 Divorce rank: 31
25, Oklahoma City, OK
Divorced population: 12.7% Divorced population rank: 47 2009 Divorces: 2.9% 2009 Divorce rank: 66
26, Miami, FL
Divorced population: 12.5% Divorced population rank: 54 2009 Divorces: 2.9% 2009 Divorce rank: 62
27, Bradenton, FL
Divorced population: 12.9% Divorced population rank: 38 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 82
28, Springfield, IL
Divorced population: 12.0% Divorced population rank: 95 2009 Divorces: 3.7% 2009 Divorce rank: 26
29, Orlando, FL
Divorced population: 11.9% Divorced population rank: 99 2009 Divorces: 3.7% 2009 Divorce rank: 24
30, Joplin, MO
Divorced population: 12.4% Divorced population rank: 62 2009 Divorces: 3.0% 2009 Divorce rank: 61
31, Olympia, WA
Divorced population: 14.8% Divorced population rank: 5 2009 Divorces: 2.5% 2009 Divorce rank: 119
32, Homosassa Springs, FL
Divorced population: 12.5% Divorced population rank: 58 2009 Divorces: 2.9% 2009 Divorce rank: 67
33, Birmingham, AL
Divorced population: 12.2% Divorced population rank: 73 2009 Divorces: 3.1% 2009 Divorce rank: 53
34, Redding, CA
Divorced population: 13.7% Divorced population rank: 13 2009 Divorces: 2.6% 2009 Divorce rank: 114
35, Tampa, FL
Divorced population: 13.5% Divorced population rank: 17 2009 Divorces: 2.6% 2009 Divorce rank: 111
36, South Bend, IN
Divorced population: 12.0% Divorced population rank: 90 2009 Divorces: 3.3% 2009 Divorce rank: 39
37, Albuquerque, NM
Divorced population: 12.8% Divorced population rank: 43 2009 Divorces: 2.7% 2009 Divorce rank: 90
38, Decatur, AL
Divorced population: 11.9% Divorced population rank: 101 2009 Divorces: 3.4% 2009 Divorce rank: 34
39, Phoenix, AZ
Divorced population: 11.9% Divorced population rank: 97 2009 Divorces: 3.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 38
40, Muskegon, MI
Divorced population: 12.4% Divorced population rank: 61 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 74
41, Huntsville, AL
Divorced population: 12.4% Divorced population rank: 65 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 72
42, Cape Coral, FL
Divorced population: 11.6% Divorced population rank: 126 2009 Divorces: 4.4% 2009 Divorce rank: 13
43, Warner Robins, GA
Divorced population: 12.1% Divorced population rank: 83 2009 Divorces: 3.1% 2009 Divorce rank: 56
44, Parkersburg-Marietta, WV-OH
Divorced population: 12.3% Divorced population rank: 69 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 71
45, Tyler, TX
Divorced population: 11.9% Divorced population rank: 96 2009 Divorces: 3.2% 2009 Divorce rank: 46
46, Santa Fe, NM
Divorced population: 16.4% Divorced population rank: 1 2009 Divorces: 2.4% 2009 Divorce rank: 142
47, Eureka, CA
Divorced population: 12.2% Divorced population rank: 78 2009 Divorces: 2.9% 2009 Divorce rank: 69
48, Santa Rosa, CA
Divorced population: 12.3% Divorced population rank: 66 2009 Divorces: 2.8% 2009 Divorce rank: 83
49, Ocala, FL
Divorced population: 11.5% Divorced population rank: 133 2009 Divorces: 4.0% 2009 Divorce rank: 18
50, Lake Charles, LA
Divorced population: 11.7% Divorced population rank: 122 2009 Divorces: 3.5% 2009 Divorce rank: 33
