Marriage Age by State 2025

State	Marriage Age (w/ Parental Consent)↓	Marriage Age (no Parental Consent)	Additional Details
Delaware	18	18	Younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child.
Kentucky	18	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Louisiana	18	18
Ohio	18	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Rhode Island	18	18
West Virginia	18	18
Arkansas	17	18	Younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child.
Indiana	17	18	Younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child.
Nebraska	17	19
New Hampshire	17	18	Below age of consent parties need parental consent and permission of judge, no younger than 14 for males and 13 for females.
Oregon	17	18	If a party has no parent residing within state, and one party has residence in state for six months, no permission required.
Washington	17	18
Alabama	16	18	Parental consent not required if minor was previously married.
Alaska	16	18	Younger parties may marry with parental and judicial consent.
Arizona	16	18
Colorado	16	18
Connecticut	16	18	Younger parties may marry with parental and judicial consent.
District of Columbia	16	18	Parental consent not required if minor was previously married.
Florida	16	18	Parental consent not required if minor was previously married. Also, younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child.
Georgia	16	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Idaho	16	18
Illinois	16	18	Judicial consent may be given when parents refuse to consent.
Iowa	16	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Kansas	16	18	Younger parties may marry with parental and judicial consent.
Maine	16	18
Maryland	16	18	Parties aged 16 or older need to provide age proof and consent in person. If a parent is ill, an affidavit from the incapacitated parent and a physician's affidavit are necessary
Michigan	16	18
Minnesota	16	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Montana	16	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Nevada	16	18
New Jersey	16	18	Younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child.
New Mexico	16	18	Younger parties may obtain license in case of pregnancy or birth of child.
New York	16	18	Below age of consent parties need parental consent and permission of judge, no younger than 14 for males and 13 for females.
North Carolina	16	18
North Dakota	16	18
Oklahoma	16	18
Pennsylvania	16	18
South Dakota	16	18
Tennessee	16	18
Texas	16	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Utah	16	18	Parental consent not required if minor was previously married.
Vermont	16	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Virginia	16	18	Parental consent not required if minor was previously married.
Wyoming	16	18
South Carolina	16	18
Wisconsin	16	18
Hawaii	15	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
Missouri	15	18
Massachusetts	14	18	Parental consent and/or permission of judge required.
California		18	No age limits.
Mississippi		17	No age limits.

In the United States, the marriage age is set by each state and territory, either by the common law or by individual statutes. Minimum marriage ages are set to prevent child marriages. An individual in the U.S. can marry without parental consent at the age of 18 in all states except for Nebraska, where the age is 19, the District of Columbia where it is 16, and Mississippi where the age of consent is 21.

In the past 15 years, about 200,000 minors have married. Underage marriage in the United States is not permitted unless there are exceptional circumstances including consent of a court clerk or judge, consent of the parents or legal guardians of the minor, if one of the parties is pregnant or has given birth to a child, or if the minor is emancipated. New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware do not allow underage marriage in exceptional circumstances.

Most states have a minimum marriage age for minors with parental consent, ranging from 12-17 years old. However, California, Delaware, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Virginia do not have minimum ages for minors to be allowed to marry with parental consent.

Some states have different minimum ages for males and females, with or without parental consent. For example, in Mississippi, the age of consent to marry with parental consent is 17 for males and 15 for females.

Here are some additional notes by state:

California: must have written consent from at least one parent of each underage person
Florida: the other party cannot be more than two years older than the minor
Georgia: cannot be more than a four-year age difference and those who are 17 must take premarital education classes
Missouri: a person over 21 cannot marry someone under 18
Texas: must have a court order

Marriage Age by State 2025

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