Just over half, 52%, of different-sex couples with children under 18 now consist of two full-time working parents, marking the first time in US history that the majority of such families have dual full-time earners, up from 31% in 1975 and 46% a decade ago, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of the US Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey.
The finding anchors a sweeping new Pew report that documents how that historic shift is playing out inside American homes, and how the benefits employers offer have not kept pace with what families say they need.
A half-century of change
About half a century ago, 42% of two-parent families had a full-time working father and a mother who was not employed. That share has since fallen to 23%.
The share of two-full-time-earner households is up from 46% a decade ago and just 31% in 1975.
For the report, Pew surveyed 2,242 working parents from March 2 to 15, 2026. A majority of full-time working parents say their job makes it harder to be a good parent, while 45% say being a parent makes it harder to advance at work.
Based on a sub-sample of nearly 1,000 working parents with at least one child age 5 or younger, the findings show a clear pattern: affordability is the greatest obstacle parents face when securing child care, a challenge made more acute by the fact that, for the first time, more than half of parents in two-parent families both work full time.
Moms absorb the imbalance
Compared with dads, working moms take on more at home and have a harder time finding balance. A total of 62% of full-time working moms say it is difficult for them to balance work and family responsibilities, compared with 47% of dads.
In different-sex couples where both parents work full time, 52% say the mom takes on more parenting tasks, while smaller shares say the dad does more (10%) or that these tasks are shared equally (39%).
That perception gap is reflected in satisfaction scores as well. Dads in dual-earner families are more likely than moms to say they are extremely or very satisfied with how parenting tasks are divided, 55% of dads versus 36% of moms. The same gap appears on household chores: 49% of dads say they are satisfied with the division, compared with 26% of moms.
The data echoes findings on the everyday texture of the working day. About 81% of full-time working moms say they take care of parenting tasks while at work at least sometimes, and 38% say they do so extremely or very often, roughly double the share of dads who say the same.
For families navigating this daily juggle, a moderate commute of up to 44 minutes has been linked to reduced psychological distress for those under the heaviest combined job and home demands, according to earlier GCN reporting on dual-earner research.
Childcare demand vastly outstrips supply
A majority, 59%, of working parents with children age 5 or younger, including 68% of working moms in that group, say it would be extremely or very helpful to have onsite childcare at their workplace. But just 7% say it is available to them.
About four in ten working parents (39%) say they use more than one care arrangement for the same child to cover their working hours, pointing to a patchwork approach born of necessity rather than preference.
Nearly half, 48%, of working parents caring for a child age 5 or younger said it is difficult to find a care arrangement that meets their cost expectations.
The broader benefit gap runs deep: 83% of working parents want paid parental leave but only 50% have it. Another 71% want flexible scheduling but only 25% have it, and 43% want onsite childcare while just 6% have access.
Income divides every outcome
Lower-income parents are far less likely than upper-income parents to have health insurance (58% versus 95%) or paid time off (59% versus 94%). Lower-income parents are also less likely to have paid parental leave (33% versus 70%) or the flexibility to work from home (12% versus 43%).
Lower-income parents are also the most likely to worry about losing pay, or losing their job, if they miss work because a child is sick or childcare falls through.
The compounding nature of those pressures means the newly dominant dual-earner model carries very different weight depending on where a family sits in the income distribution.
The Pew findings arrive as American families have been recalibrating household finances on multiple fronts. Earlier data showed a $1,813 monthly tab landing on parents of adult Gen Z children, adding to the broader picture of sustained financial pressure across different stages of parenthood.
Pew’s survey finds that child care affordability remains a central challenge for working parents across income levels, with demand for employer-provided support consistently outpacing what is currently available.
