In the majority of EU countries, this is the most common type of household with children. Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands and Greece recorded the highest shares in 2021, with couples representing more than 70 % of the total number of households with children. Bulgaria and Latvia showed the lowest shares, with less than 50 % of households with children being couples.
The highest shares of single parents among households with children in the EU were found in Estonia, Denmark, Lithuania and Latvia (all with more than 20 %).
In 2021, 197 million households resided in the EU with on average 2.2 members per household.
The largest average household size in 2021 was recorded in Slovakia (2.9 members), followed by Croatia (2.8 members) and Portugal (2.7 members), while the smallest was recorded in Sweden, Finland and Estonia (each with 1.9 members).
Between 2009 and 2021, the majority of EU Member States (23 out of 27) recorded a decrease in the average number of people per household. The largest decreases since 2009 were recorded in Estonia (from 2.4 to 1.9 members), Latvia (from 2.6 to 2.1 members) and Malta (from 2.9 to 2.5 members).
