Grandchildren Living in Grandparent-Headed Households, 2022
Family Profile No. 18, 2024
Author: Jaden Loo
This is an update of
FP-18-01 & FP-21-07
In recent decades, a growing share of children reside in grandparent-headed households (Wu, 2018). This Family Profile uses data from the child’s perspective in the American Community Survey to chart grandchildren living in grandparent-headed households since 2008. Here, we focus on differentiating between multigenerational grandparent-headed households (parent present) and skipped-generation grandparent-headed households (no parent present). We then describe variation in these grandparent-headed households by minor children’s age, household economic disadvantage, and race/ethnicity. This profile is the first in our updated series on grandparenthood.
Trend in the Proportion of Children Living in a Grandparent’s Household and Presence of a Parent
- The share of minor children living in a grandparent-headed household has risen modestly from 6.79% of households with minor children in 2008 to 7.81% in 2022.
- This share reached its peak in 2020 when 8.80% of minor children were living in a grandparent-headed household.
- In 2022, roughly three-quarters of minor children who resided in a grandparent-headed household lived in a multi-generational household (with a parent present) and the remaining quarter lived in a skipped-generation household (without a parent present).
- Among households where minor children reside with their grandparents, the distribution of those in skipped-generation households has remained relatively consistent from 2008 to 2022 (pattern not shown).
Figure 1. Percentage of Minors Living in a Grandparent-Headed Household, 2008-2022
Figure 2. Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent, 2022
Source: NCFMR analyses of American Community Survey 1-year estimates (IPUMS USA University of Minnesota, www.ipums.org), 2022
Children Living in a Grandparent’s Household by Presence of Parent and Age of Child
- In 2022 most minor children residing in a grandparent-headed household were living in a multigenerational household regardless of age group. Levels ranged from a high of 83% among those aged 6 and under to 62% among those aged 13 to 17.
- Compared with younger children, older children more often reside in a skipped generation household. Approaching two-fifths (38%) of children aged 13 to 17 in grandparent-headed households lived in a skipped generation household, which is more than double the share among children aged 6 and under (17%).
Figure 3. Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent and Age Groups, 2022
Economic Disadvantage Among Children Living in a Grandparent’s Household by Presence of Parent
- For children living in a grandparent-headed household, those in a skipped generation household fared worse economically than those in a multigenerational household.
- More than two fifths (43%) of children in a grandparent-headed household below the poverty line lived in a skipped generation household, whereas among those between 100% and 200% of the poverty line just 29% were in a skipped generation household. For children above 200% of the poverty line, two in ten were in a skipped generation household.
Figure 4. Economic Disadvantage among Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent, 2022
Variation by Race/Ethnicity
Figure 5. Minor Children Living in Grandparent-Headed Households by Presence of Parent by Race/Ethnicity, 2022
- Across all five racial/ethnic groups, minor children living in a grandparent-headed household more frequently lived in a multigenerational household compared with a skipped generation household.
- The shares living in multigenerational households were larger for Hispanic and Asian children (82% and 83%, respectively) than for children of all other racial/ethnic groups.
- The greatest percentage of children in skipped-generation households was among Black children (31%), followed closely by White children (30%), and then children of other racial/ethnic groups (26%)
Data Source:
Flood, S., King, M., Rodgers, R., Ruggles, S., Warren, J. R., Warren, D., Chen, A., Cooper, G., Richards, S., Schouweiler, M., & Westberry, M. (2024). IPUMS USA: Version 15.0 American Community Survey. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2024. https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V15.0
References:
Wu, H. (2018). Grandchildren living in a grandparent-headed household. Family Profiles, FP-18-01. Bowling Green, OH: National Center for Family & Marriage Research. https://doi.org/10.25035/ncfmr/fp-18-01
Carlson, L. (2021). Grandchildren living in grandparent-headed households, 2019. Family Profiles, FP-21-07. Bowling Green, OH: National Center for Family & Marriage Research. https://doi.org/10.25035/ncfmr/fp-21-07
Suggested Citation:
Loo, J. (2024). Grandchildren living in grandparent-headed households, 2022. Family Profiles, FP-24-18. Bowling Green, OH: National Center for Family & Marriage Research. https://doi.org/10.25035/ncfmr/fp-24-18
Updated: 05/04/2026 11:31AM