Fertility rates in the U.S. dropped to a new record low last year, according to new data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This data indicated that the provisional number of births for 2025 was just over 3.6 million (53.1 births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44) representing a 1% decline compared to 2024. Births declined by an average 2% per year from 2015 through 2020.
Audacy previously reported on research that suggested there was a small “baby boom” when women worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic in the early 2020s. Still, the birth rate has generally been in decline since 2007, decreasing by 23%.
What’s causing this decline? The answer to that is that it’s complicated. From teen birth rates falling to economic pressure and dating problems, there are a lot of things that influence the birth rate.
At Audacy station WCCO News Talk in Minnesota, Adam Carter and Jordana Green discussed the new data this week and their thoughts on what is causing the decline. Carter noted that in his own family, people have gone from having more than seven children per couple to just two in his parent’s case.
“My family is a great example of that,” he said. “My parents are both sixth siblings, one six out of 11, one six of seven… and they came from those huge families and got married and had two children.”
Per the CDC data, the fertility rate for teenagers ages 15 to 19 declined 7% in 2025 to 11.7 births per 1,000 females, a record low for this age group and a 72% reduction since 2007. While a reduction in teen pregnancies is often considered a positive, Carter noted that women who have upwards of 10 children generally don’t start their families in their 30s.
That’s when more and more people are deciding to have children. CNN noted that, between 2024 and 2025, birth rates ticked up among women 30 and older. However, those rates were not enough to offset declines in younger age groups.
There was a significant decline in teen birthrates among females born in the 1990s, CNN said. In order to “catch up” to earlier birth rates, Dr. Alison Gemmill said same some models suggest these millennials and older Gen Zers would have to have “an unprecedented birth rate in their late 30s and 40s.”
However, Adam & Jordana’s listeners chimed in to say that one major reason women aren’t having children because raising a child has become too expensive. Just this week, Audacy reported on research that indicates it costs $300,000 to raise a child from birth to age 18.
“Yeah, and not college,” which can cost much more once kids turn 18, said Green. “That’s… $300,000, that’s a lot of money and it’s not because they're all having all of these luxury items and iPhones and things Like that things are just more expensive now,” and some of those “luxury” items are now often more like expected essentials for living a modern life.
Last summer, AP-NORC poll results cited by Audacy showed that 76% of the 1,158 adults polled last month said the cost of childcare is a major problem for them financially. Democrats (83%), independents (74%), Republicans (70%), men (69%) and women (83%) all agreed on the matter.
“Instead of targeting the rate itself, we should frame it as a person-forward approach,” Gemmill, an associate professor of epidemiology at the UCLA School of Public Health cited by CNN. She also noted that “women now have better control over their reproductive lives, so there’s not as much unintended pregnancy as there used to be,” and that “timelines have shifted.”
In addition to economic factors, Gemmill said partnership patterns also shape fertility rates. People in the U.S. are getting married later. Audacy also reported earlier this on research that warned about an impending “sextinction” – not the best sign for people looking to find partners to settle down and start a family with. At the same time, Green noted some women are taking matters into their own hands to preserve their fertility by freezing their eggs.
