All of the figures below come from our Canadian sex-statistics hub, where the full sourcing and methodology for each is documented — this page pulls the married-specific findings together in one place rather than re-deriving them.
Frequency: higher than the stereotype suggests
Fetner's Sex in Canada survey found married respondents reported sex in the past month at a notably higher rate than single respondents: 56% versus 35%. The "married couples barely have sex" joke doesn't hold up against this specific comparison.
Happiness and orgasm: also higher
Both measures favor married respondents in this data, which cuts directly against the "settled and unsatisfying" stereotype.
Oral sex: the one place the stereotype has support
This is a genuine exception worth naming honestly rather than smoothing over: married respondents received oral sex at their most recent encounter less often than single respondents — 29% versus 45%. It's one specific measure, not a verdict on married sex overall, but it's real and worth taking seriously if it's part of what's changed for a specific couple. Our oral sex guide covers the practical side directly.
Toys and other habits, in committed relationships specifically
Leger's 2025 Canadian Sex Life Survey, which specifically measured "committed relationship" respondents rather than married-only, found sex toy use "always or often" reported by 23% of respondents, alongside high rates of orgasm and masturbation within the relationship — see the hub for the full frequency distribution and habits breakdown. Toy use in committed, long-term relationships is well-documented and far from rare.
Porn in marriage
See our full guide to porn and your sex life, which includes the specific Canadian data on porn viewing by relationship status, including married respondents.
What this actually adds up to
The aggregate picture doesn't match "married sex is rare and boring" — on several major measures, married respondents report more, not less. That doesn't erase real gaps some married couples experience (oral sex being one specific, documented example) or make every individual marriage's experience match the average. See our guide to how married sex changes over time for the longer-term picture, and our guide to sexless marriage if frequency has genuinely dropped to near zero.
Frequently asked questions
Do married couples really have less sex than singles?
Not by the numbers — Canadian survey data actually shows married respondents reporting sex in the past month at a higher rate than single respondents (56% vs. 35%), along with higher rates of reported happiness with their sex life and orgasm at their most recent encounter. The "sexless marriage" stereotype doesn't match the aggregate data, even though it's a real experience for some couples specifically.
Do married couples have oral sex less often than singles?
This is one place where the stereotype has some support — Canadian data found married respondents received oral sex at their most recent encounter less often than single respondents (29% vs. 45%). That's one specific measure, not a verdict on married sex overall, which shows a more mixed and often more favorable picture across other measures.
Do married couples use sex toys?
Yes, commonly — see our full Canadian sex-statistics hub for toy-use data by relationship status. Toy use in committed relationships is well-documented and far from rare.
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