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What states recognize gay marriage

Marriage Equality Around the World

The Human Rights Campaign tracks developments in the legal recognition of same-sex marriage around the planet. Working through a worldwide network of HRC global alumni and partners, we lift up the voices of collective, national and regional advocates and divide tools, resources, and lessons learned to empower movements for marriage equality.

Current State of Marriage Equality

There are currently 38 countries where same-sex marriage is legal: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, the Together Kingdom, the Together States of America and Uruguay. 

These countries have legalized marriage equality through both legislation and court decisions. 

Countries that Legalized Marriage Equality in 2025

Liechtenstein: On May 16, 2024, Liechtenstein's government passed a bill in favor of marriage equality. The law went into effe

MAP Report: The National Patchwork of Marriage Laws Underneath Obergefell

MEDIA CONTACT:   
Rebecca Farmer, Movement Advancement Project
rebecca@lgbtmap.org | 303-578-4600 ext 122

As the Respect for Marriage Act moves through Congress, MAP’s March 2022 report on the landscape of varying state marriage laws around the country is a resource. MAP researchers are available to acknowledge questions and our infographics are present for use.  

MAP’s report, Underneath Obergefell, explores the patchwork of marriage laws around the country. The describe highlights the reality that a majority of states still have existing laws on the books that would prohibit marriage for homosexual couples – even though those laws are currently unenforceable under the U.S. Supreme Court verdict in Obergefell.  

If the U.S. Supreme Court were to revisit the Obergefell conclusion, the ability of same-sex couples to marry could again fall to the states, where a majority of states still have in place both bans in the rule and in express constitutions.   

The policy lands

Date Same Sex Marriage Legalized By State

All 50 states in the United States have legalized gay marriage. Below are the dates when each state did so. On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that gay marriage is a right guaranteed by the Constitution, thus making same-sex marriage legal in the 13 states that have not legalized same-sex marriage up to that point.

By Dine
Rank
State Name
Date Same Sex Marriage Legalized
1
MassachusettsMay 17, 2004
2
ConnecticutNovember 12, 2008
3
IowaApril 24, 2009
4
VermontSeptember 1, 2009
5
New HampshireJanuary 1, 2010
6
New YorkJuly 24, 2011
7
WashingtonDecember 9, 2012
8
MaineDecember 29, 2012
9
MarylandJanuary 1, 2013
10
CaliforniaJune 28, 2013
11
DelawareJuly 1, 2013
12-T
MinnesotaAugust 1, 2013
12-T
Rhode IslandAugust 1, 2013
14
New JerseyOctober 21, 2013
15
HawaiiDecember 2, 2013
16
New MexicoDecember 19, 2013
17
OregonMay 19, 2014
18
PennsylvaniaMay 20, 2014
19
IllinoisJune 1, 2014
20-T
IndianaOctober 6, 2014
20-T
OklahomaOctober 6, 201

The Journey to Marriage Equality in the Together States

The road to nationwide marriage equality was a long one, spanning decades of United States history and culminating in victory in June 2015. Throughout the long struggle for marriage equality, HRC was at the forefront.

Volunteer with HRC

From gathering supporters in small towns across the country to rallying in front of the Supreme Court of the United States, we gave our all to guarantee every person, regardless of whom they love, is recognized equally under the law.

A Growing Call for Equality

Efforts to legalize homosexual marriage began to pop up across the state in the 1990s, and with it challenges on the state and national levels. Civil unions for same-sex couples existed in many states but created a separate but equivalent standard. At the federal level, couples were denied access to more than 1,100 federal rights and responsibilities associated with the institution, as well as those denied by their given state. The Defense of Marriage Act was signed into law in 1996 and defined marriage by the federal government as between a gentleman and woman, thereby allowing states to deny m