Women’s History Month: March 2026
Women’s History Month honors the successes and sacrifices of U.S. women. It dates to March 8, 1857, when hundreds of women from New York City garment and textile factories rallied to protest harsh working conditions. In 1909, New York City became the site of the nation’s first Women’s Day celebration, a year after 15,000 women there marched to demand shorter working hours, better pay, an end to child labor and the right to vote. More than seven decades later, in 1981, Congress set aside the second week of March as Women’s History Week. Six years later, Congress expanded the week to a month. As we celebrate Women’s History Month, we reflect upon the advances women have made, including increased earnings, educational attainment and job opportunities.
The following facts are possible thanks to the invaluable responses to U.S. Census Bureau surveys. We appreciate the public’s cooperation as we measure America’s people, places and economy.
Did You Know?
172 million
The number of women in the United States as of July 1, 2024. There were about 168 million men in the United States as of the same date.
Source:
4.0 million
The number of women age 85 and over in the United States as of July 1, 2024. There were about 2.4 million men this age as of the same date.
Source:
83.7 million
The number of women age 16 and older who participated in the civilian labor force in 2024. This comprises 59.5% of women in this age group.
Source:
80.9%
Women's median earnings as a percentage of men's median earnings for full-time, year-round workers age 15 and older in 2024.
Source:
Select Occupations
Education
Previous Facts for Features
Stats for Stories
America Counts
- Teachers Are Among Most Educated, Yet Their Pay Lags
- Cost of Motherhood on Women’s Employment and Earnings
- Women More Likely Than Men to Have No Retirement Savings
- Fertility Rates Declined for Younger Women, Increased for Older Women
- Are Women Really Opting Out of Work After They Have Babies?
- The Choices Working Mothers Make
- Shhh...I Make More than My Husband
Graphics
Entrepreneurship
Observances in our Facts for Features series:
- National Black History Month (February)
- Women's History Month (March)
- Irish-American Heritage Month (March)
- Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (May)
- The Fourth of July
- Anniversary of Americans With Disabilities Act (July 26)
- National Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 – Oct. 15)
- Halloween (Oct. 31)
- National Native American Heritage Month (November)
- Veterans Day (Nov. 11)
- Holiday Season (November — December)
Editor’s note: These data come from a variety of sources and may be subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. We generally release Facts for Features about two months before observances to accommodate magazine production timelines. For more information, contact the Census Bureau’s Public Information Office at (301)763-3030 or <[email protected]>.
Profile America's Facts for Features provides statistics related to observances and holidays not covered by Stats for Stories. For observances not listed above, visit our Stats for Stories webpage.
Stats for Stories provides links to timely story ideas highlighting newsworthy Census Bureau statistics that relate to current events, observances, holidays and anniversaries. The story ideas are intended to assist the media in story mining and producing content for their audiences. Dates with presidential proclamations are marked with (P).