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Demographic Profiles of the GLBT Marketplace

There were an estimated 14.2 million adult gay men and lesbians in the United States in 2002.
The number is expected to reach 15.8 million in 2007; it is estimated that gay men make up 58% of the gay and lesbian population.
Gays tend to be younger.
For example, gay men make up approximately 8% of the U.S. population of males. However, 18 to 29 year old gay men make up 11% of that male population.
More than 3 million gay and lesbian households are domestic partnerships.
An estimated 40% of gay men and 50% of lesbians live in domestic partnerships.
There are more than 2 million gay households that included children under 18. Lesbians are assumed to represent 75% of those households.
The Kaiser Family Foundation survey found that 49% of the gay and lesbian respondents who were not already parents said they would like to have or adopt children someday.
The population of gay men is more concentrated than the lesbian population.
Gay men are more likely to live in metropolitan areas with a population of 2 million or more. Lesbians have a higher propensity to live in the suburbs.
Gays are twice as likely to be self-employed.
Both the Kaiser Family Foundation and Gill foundation studies concluded that about 12% of gay men and lesbians are self-employed. Self-employed individuals make up 6% of the general population.

Packaged Fact's "The Gay and Lesbian Market: New Trends, New Opportunities" draws on multiple data sources including the ongoing research conducted by Harris Interactive in partnership with Witeck-Combs Communications, and surveys conducted on behalf of the Gill Foundation and Kaiser Family Foundation. It also includes an extensive analysis of Census 2000 data on same-sex couples.