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- Total same-sex married couples: 19,629
- Share of all married couples: 1.35%

Washington鈥檚 history of marriage equality spans over four decades. The first notion of marriage equality came only five years after Stonewall, when came before the Washington Supreme Court in 1974. Plaintiffs argued that 鈥攖he 1973 law that prohibited discrimination on the account of sex鈥攅ffectively made the denial of same-sex marriage discriminatory, an argument which the court rejected. More than three decades later in 2006, the Anderson v. King County case challenged the ban on same-sex marriage under Washington law, which also failed.

Public opinion on same-sex marriage in Washington state didn鈥檛 turn toward equality until the of Kate Fleming and Charlene Strong of Madison Valley. When Fleming was critically injured in a flash flood and died in her hospital room, her partner of nearly a decade wasn鈥檛 allowed to be by her side because the hospital said she needed the permission of Fleming鈥檚 鈥渘ext of kin鈥� to be allowed.

After that story spurred sympathy among Washingtonians, several laws passed giving same-sex couples some of the same rights as heterosexual ones, , until Washington legalized gay marriage on February 13, 2012. Along with Maine and Maryland on November 6, 2012, Washington became one of the first states to legalize same-sex marriage . So it stands to reason that the Evergreen State is continually named one of to live in America.

- Total same-sex married couples: 18,746
- Share of all married couples: 1.51%

On November 18, 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Court , citing that it essentially created 鈥渟econd-class citizens.鈥� On May 17, 2004, Marcia Kadish and Tanya McCloskey鈥攁 couple living in Malden鈥攎arried at Cambridge City Hall, becoming the first legally married same-sex couple in U.S. history. Before the day ended, 77 other same-sex couples followed suit.

Massachusetts is considered聽, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an organization that tracks civic policy for LGBTQ+ citizens.聽The designation is based on the state鈥檚 laws surrounding adoption and equality in employment, housing, public accommodations, credit, and governmental nondiscrimination laws. This may be why 21% of Massachusetts鈥檚 LGBTQ+ population are raising children in the state, .

- Total same-sex married couples: 2,773
- Share of all married couples: 1.56%

Although one of the smallest states in the country, Delaware is big on the rights of its almost . After legalizing civil unions between same-sex couples in 2011, Delaware eventually became the 11th state in the country to legalize marriage equality in July 2013.

Additionally, when same-sex marriage was legalized in the state, officials automatically converted all civil unions into marriages. It鈥檚 that sensitivity to the rights of its LGBTQ+ citizens that makes it one of the top three states in the country with the highest same-sex marriage rates. Delaware is also known for having gay communities in the Northeast, and is host to many destinations that LGBTQ+ folks flock to鈥攊ncluding Rehoboth Beach, Wilmington, and New Castle.

- Total same-sex married couples: 1,939
- Share of all married couples: 1.56%

In 1999, Vermont to afford same sex couples rights as a couple in the eyes of the law. Vermont鈥攍ong known as an LGBTQ+-friendly state鈥攕tarted what some argue was the domino effect that led to marriage equality throughout the country in 2015. The watershed case, Baker v. State, argued that denying same-sex marriage violated the constitutional equality guarantee afforded to every Vermont citizen.

The Vermont Supreme Court agreed and found that denying same-sex couples the rights and protections afforded to different-sex married couples was unconstitutional. Although the courts stopped short of true marriage equality and instead offered same-sex couples 鈥渃ivil unions,鈥� the match was struck. Massachusetts, California, and other states slowly began to implement their own civil union policies, paving the way for marriage equality years later. Vermont鈥檚 trailblazing status could be why the Green Mountain State in the country.

- Total same-sex married couples: 4,586
- Share of all married couples: 6.09%

Although it's the only location on our list to not actually be a state, Washington D.C. tops the list when it comes to same-sex marriage rates. In 2009, Mayor Adrian Fenty in the district, becoming one of the first places in the U.S. to do so after Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, and Iowa.

Even though the nation's capital is 聽(the smallest U.S. state), it boasts a much higher marriage rate for same-sex couples. This could be because Washington D.C. has the highest LGBTQ+ population percentage in the U.S., 聽by the Williams Institute at UCLA聽School of Law. It also has a justifiable reputation as one of the for LGBTQ+ folks.

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