Duggar Siblings: Where Are They Now and the Surprising Secrets of Their Lives After 19 Kids?

Duggar Siblings: Where Are They Now and the Surprising Secrets of Their Lives After 19 Kids?

The nine Duggar sisters — and their super-sized family — spent more than 10 years appearing on television shows.

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are the parents of 19 children, whose names all start with the letter J: Josh, Jana, John-David, Jill, Jessa, Jinger, Joseph, Josiah, Joy-Anna, Jedidiah, Jeremiah, Jason, James, Justin, Jackson, Johannah, Jennifer, Jordyn-Grace and Josie.

The Duggars first rose to fame in 2008, when they landed their own reality television show 19 Kids and Counting. The TLC series became an instant hit and gave viewers a peek into their ever-growing family and ultra-conservative Christian household.However, in 2015 — after nine seasons on the air — the Duggars came under fire after news broke that Josh Duggar, the eldest sibling, had allegedly molested five underage girls when he was a teenager. It was revealed that four of the alleged victims were his sisters, and that both Jim Bob and Michelle were allegedly aware of their oldest son’s abuse. As a result of the molestation scandal, TLC canceled 19 Kids and Counting in July 2015.

But the Duggar girls, particularly Jill Duggar Dillard and Jessa Duggar Seewald, returned to reality television in December 2015 with their own spinoff, Counting On. The show ran for 11 seasons until TLC pulled the plug in June 2021, following Josh’s arrest on child pornography charges.

Throughout the family’s ups and downs, many of the Duggar sisters have forged their own paths — starting their own families, writing books, recording music and more. Jana even returned to social media and posted a YouTube video for the first time in over three years in June 2024.

Here is a look at everything the Duggar sisters have been doing since they left reality television in 2021.

Jana Marie Duggar, 34

The eldest Duggar daughter, Jana and her twin brother John-David were born on Jan. 12, 1990, in Tontitown, Ark. She was first thrust into the spotlight as a teenager in 2008, when her family starred on the TLC reality series 19 Kids and Counting. Following its cancellation in 2015, she appeared with her sisters on the spinoff Counting On — but has led a relatively private life since the show ended in 2021.

Jana, who still lives in her hometown of Tontitown, works as a home remodeler and counts plants, road trips and traveling as her hobbies, according to the Duggar family website.

Though her older brother Josh’s legal troubles have been well publicized over the years, Jana had her own brush with the law in September 2021 when she was charged with endangering the welfare of a minor. While court documents didn’t provide details of the incident, Jana told her side of the story on social media.

“I was babysitting a few months ago when one of the children wandered outside alone. A passerby who saw the child called the police,” she wrote on her Instagram Stories in December 2021. “This resulted in a written citation, as well as a follow-up with child welfare who concluded that it was an accident and the child was unharmed.”

In January 2022, the Counting On alum settled outside of the district court and paid $880 after pleading guilty to the charge, a clerk confirmed to PEOPLE at the time.

After more than a two-year hiatus from social media, Jana returned to Instagram in May 2024 and posted a YouTube video about her life on the farm in June. The eldest Duggar sister shared that Johannah and Josie were helping her to maintain their herd of sheep and put up a new fence on the property.

In another YouTube video, Jana revealed that she moved into her own tiny home “a few years ago.”

“This building used to be one of the city’s temporary office buildings [and] so we got a really good deal on it,” she said. “They were auctioning it off.”

Jana married Stephen Wissmann on Aug. 15, 2024. The “classic, elegant” ceremony took place in Prairie Grove, Ark., in front of 500 guests.

“Coming from two bigger families (Wissmann is one of 13 siblings), we love to be able to get together and celebrate moments like these,” she told PEOPLE. “And so to have all of them there, it just means a lot.”

Jill Michelle Duggar Dillard, 33

Jill Duggar Dillard, the fourth child and second oldest daughter in the Duggar family, was born on May 17, 1991.

In 2013, she began a courtship with Derick Dillard — where their relationship rules included chaperoned dates, saving hand-holding for engagement and permitting only side hugs. The young couple wed in June 2014 and exchanged their first kiss in front of their 1,000 guests — and on-screen, as their nuptials were featured in an episode of 19 Kids and Counting.

But since becoming a married woman, Jill has distanced herself from her family — and emerged as one of the most outspoken of the Duggars against their strict religious upbringing and experience on reality television.

In recent years, the wife and mother (she and Derick are the parents of three boys: Israel David, Samuel Scott and Frederick Michael) has ditched several of the traditional rules she was raised with. Jill has a nose ring, wears pants, drinks alcohol and has even modeled swimwear.

But Jill, who lives with her family on the border of Oklahoma and Arkansas, has gone beyond simply embracing a more relaxed lifestyle. In 2023, she appeared in the Prime Video docuseries Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets, exposing what she described as the cult-like and “fear-driven” ways of the Institute in Basic Life Principles (or IBLP).

She also wrote a 2023 memoir, Counting the Cost, that shed light on the darker side of filming a reality television series with her family — including the claims that her father allegedly tricked her into signing a contract and only paid her $175,000 for her 10 years of filming. At the time, Jim Bob and Michelle sent a statement to PEOPLE, responding to Jill’s allegations.

“We’ve aimed to deal honorably with our children, our finances, and our other endeavors,” they said. “We do not believe the best way to resolve conflicts, facilitate forgiveness and reconciliation, or to communicate through difficulties is through the media or in a public forum so we will not comment.”

Ahead of the book’s publication in September 2023, Jill shared with PEOPLE that she no longer had “one-on-one contact” with her father. However, both she and Derick were hopeful that the bond with her father could be repaired, as they said in an October 2023 appearance on Christy Carlson Romano’s Vulnerable podcast.

“We hope for the future that things can get better, but we’re not rushing things either with my family,” Jill said. “We want to have good relationships, we want there to be better trust.”

Jessa Lauren Duggar Seewald, 31

The third Duggar daughter (and fifth overall), Jessa Duggar Seewald, was born on Nov. 4, 1992. She followed closely in her older sister Jill’s footsteps and wed Ben Seewald in November 2014. The couple said “I do” in front of 1,000 guests and also had their nuptials filmed for 19 Kids and Counting, just like Jill and Derick before them.

Within a year of their wedding, Jessa and Ben welcomed their first child — a son named Spurgeon Elliot. Their son, Henry Wilberforce, was born in February 2017, followed by daughters Ivy Jane and Fern in May 2019 and July 2021, respectively. In December 2023, the couple welcomed their fifth child, a boy named George Augustine.

But Jessa and Ben have also experienced loss: In February 2023, the former Counting On star revealed on her YouTube channel that she had a miscarriage between Fern and George.

“Nothing could have prepared me for the weight of those words in that moment,” Jessa recalled about learning she was miscarrying. “At that moment I was just in complete shock. I didn’t have words. I just immediately started crying.”

Jessa, Ben and their five children live in Springdale, Ark. — just a short distance from her hometown of Tontitown — in a home they purchased and remodeled in early 2022.

Jinger Nicole Vuolo, 30

Jim Bob and Michelle welcomed Jinger Duggar Vuolo on Dec. 21, 1993.

Big sister Jessa introduced Jinger to her future husband Jeremy Vuolo — and their relationship took off fast from there. The fourth Duggar daughter and the former professional soccer player began courting in June 2016 and were engaged just a month later. By November 2016, the duo were married — with their matchmaker Jessa serving as matron of honor at the nuptials.

Jeremy and Jinger are now the parents of two daughters: Felicity, born in July 2018, and Evangeline Jo, who was born in November 2020 after Jinger had a miscarriage the year prior. In October 2024, the couple announced that they are expecting their third child in March 2025.

Jinger was one of the first Duggars to speak out publicly against their conservative, religious upbringing. In early 2023, she released her memoir, Becoming Free Indeed — and in it, she detailed what she called the “cult-like tendencies” of the IBLP.

“The teaching I grew up under was harmful, it was damaging, and there are lasting effects,” she told PEOPLE. “But I know other people are struggling and people who are still stuck. I want to share my story, and maybe it will help even just one person to be freed.”

After growing up in fear that breaking any of the religion’s strict rules (such as wearing pants or listening to music with drums) would bring her and her family harm, Jinger walked away from the IBLP entirely. She still views herself as a Christian, but she has left behind the rigid teachings of her childhood.

“My faith is still intact, but it has changed. Instead of leaving the faith entirely, I’ve been disentangling it,” she said in a video announcing her book.

Jeremy, Jinger and their children currently reside in Santa Clarita, Calif., where they purchased a Tudor-style home in August 2024.

Joy-Anna Forsyth, 26

Jim Bob and Michelle welcomed Joy-Anna Duggar Forsyth, the ninth of the 19 Duggar children, on Oct. 28, 1997.

She and her husband Austin Forsyth were friends for 15 years before the two married in May 2017. Not long after their nuptials, Joy-Anna and Austin welcomed their first child in February 2018: A son named Gideon Martyn. The couple opened up about the challenges of first-time parenthood on an episode of Counting On.

“Being a mom is in a lot of ways easier than I thought and then in a lot of ways, harder than I thought,” Joy-Anna said in the episode. “It’s given me a whole new appreciation for moms out there that have kids.”

Joy-Anna and Austin announced they were expecting their second baby in May 2019, but learned at their 20-week ultrasound that the fetus was stillborn.

Since their miscarriage, Joy-Anna and Austin have had two more children. Their daughter, Evelyn Mae, was born in August 2020 and their son Gunner followed in May 2023. They live in Arkansas where Austin works as a home builder and Joy-Anna chronicles their family life on their YouTube channel, Follow the Forsyths.

Johannah Faith Duggar, 19

After six straight boys, Johannah Duggar — the sixth Duggar daughter and 16th child overall — was born on Oct. 11, 2005.

Her birth was featured on one of the family’s first reality television specials, Raising 16 Children, which aired in March 2006.

Though she spent her childhood appearing on 19 Kids and Counting, Johannah leads a relatively private life as a young adult. Her hobbies include playing volleyball and drawing, according to the family website, and she recorded an album in 2018 called Happy Heart with her three younger sisters, Jennifer, Jordyn-Grace and Josie.

Jennifer Danielle Duggar, 17

Jim Bob and Michelle welcomed Jennifer Duggar on Aug. 2, 2007.

In June 2022, Jennifer — along with her sisters Jana and Jessa — visited Jinger in California. Jinger shared a handful of photos from the trip on her Instagram, including ones with her “little sis Jennifer.” Michelle also posted a birthday tribute to her 17th child on the family’s Instagram account in August 2021.

According to the Duggar family website, Jennifer is an animal lover and the “most crafty” member of their large family.

Jordyn-Grace Makiya Duggar, 15

Jordyn-Grace Makiya Duggar, the 18th of the 19 Duggar children, was born on Dec. 18, 2008.

When she was born, the first season of 19 Kids and Counting (then called 17 Kids and Counting) was underway and her birth was featured on a special episode.

As one of the youngest Duggars, Jordyn-Grace has served as a flower girl in several of her older siblings’ weddings. She’s described as a “sweet-hearted, confident girl” who loves calligraphy, art and fashion, on the family website.

Josie Brooklyn Duggar, 14

The baby of the Duggar family, Josie Brooklyn Duggar, was born prematurely on Dec. 10, 2009, at just 25 weeks. She weighed only 1 lb. 6 oz. at birth — and viewers of 19 Kids and Counting watched as she spent the first several months of her life struggling to survive.

Her health issues continued throughout her childhood, with Josie even having a seizure while filming 19 Kids and Counting in 2014. Her oldest sister, Jana, helped care for her during the medical emergency.

The Duggars have reflected on Josie’s scary birth on both her birthday and World Prematurity Day.

“That was the most difficult time in our family’s life,” the Duggars shared on Instagram about Josie’s birth, “but by God’s grace Josie and our whole family made it through!”

Josie, who is now a teenager, lives at home with her family in Arkansas. According to the family website, she is a talented musician and a “ball of energy.”