Why Does a Husband Cheat on His Wife But Will Not Leave Her?

Lily Evans - September 4, 2025

Marriages aren’t easy. While millions of people around the United States say To death do us part, about half of them end up in divorce. What’s more, indecision is one of the main reasons that these marriages come to a screeching halt. However, there are some interesting cases where husbands may cheat, not get caught, and stay in the marriage. Unfortunately, this is a common problem that can be difficult to spot and understand.

So, why does a husband cheat on his wife but will not leave? While we wish we could give you a single answer, it’s a lot more complicated than that. You’ll find that this happens for a lot of reasons, some of which don’t even have to do with the wife or family.

The good news is that we’re here to break this all down for you. Read on to learn more below.

Why Does a Husband Cheat on His Wife But Will Not Leave Her? 

The sad reality of many marriages is that loyalty doesn’t last forever. While many husbands will choose to leave before cheating, sometimes husbands will cheat on their wives and stick around. 

We take you through the reasons that a husband may cheat on their wife without leaving.

1. He Doesn’t Want to Break Up His Family 

The biggest reason that a husband will cheat and not leave is that he doesn’t want to leave his family. If your husband has children, a house, and other ties to you, he may not want to leave that all behind. In fact, he may feel as if doing so would break up your family and cause problems for you and the children.

While this may seem noble, if your husband isn’t responsive to you and your needs, it may still lead to a bad environment for your children. This is because children are impressionable and may see that interaction. Therefore, this isn’t a valid excuse for someone to try to stick around.

2. They Still Have an Emotional Attachment to You 

One of the many reasons that a husband won’t leave after cheating, or even during it, is that they may still love you. While this might seem contradictory, love isn’t usually something that disappears right away. 

For this reason, your husband may be sticking around simply because they haven’t lost any love for you at this point. Even if it’s not love, if your husband has been with you for many years, there may be some emotional attachment there that keeps him around. Still, that doesn’t give them the right to cheat or stick around, especially if they’re not telling you.

3. Divorce Is a Painful Process 

Another reason that a husband may not leave is that divorce may be a painful process. Divorce requires a lot of time, money, and sometimes even fighting. This long and daunting process may turn your husband off to the idea of leaving. 

What’s more, he may like the other perks of being married and not want to leave them behind when he leaves. There is also a stigma with divorce, or he may be worried about what others think of him once he leaves.

4. Financial Reasons 

Money is one of the biggest reasons your husband may not leave if he’s cheating. Even if he’s spending money on a new lover or affair partner, divorce puts him at risk of losing up to half of his wealth and assets. This is a lot of money for some people, and your husband may not want to leave it behind. What’s more, he may have to pay alimony, which can be about 20% in states like New York.

If you have young children, this may become an even bigger issue. This is because child support may enter the mix, and child support can cost thousands per month. For this reason, your husband may not want to leave to save money as well.

5. He Doesn’t Want to Leave the Marriage 

Your husband might simply not want to leave the marriage, and there may not be any underlying reason for that. Instead, he may simply enjoy the adventure and sense of fun that a mistress or affair partner offers. 

He may also love the idea of a mini vacation away from his family, wife, and responsibilities. This may be the reason for business trips, hotel stays, and other common escapes that your husband may go on to cheat without leaving.

How to Find Out if Your Husband Is Cheating on You 

Are you curious about whether or not your husband is cheating on you and not leaving? Thankfully, there are a few ways that you can find out if he’s cheating on you. Learn about the best things you can do below.

1. CheckPeople.com 

The best way to find out if your husband is cheating on you is to use one of our people search tools. These tools allow you to run a search on someone to learn more about their online activity and public records. In other words, we’ll help you follow your husband’s digital and public footprint.

What makes our people search tool the best option is its effectiveness and accuracy. We comb through millions of public records to help you compile a full report that contains information about your public records. For example, we can help you find hidden dating profiles, secret social media accounts, and much more. This can help you identify any behaviors that indicate your husband is cheating.

We can also help you find public records, so if your husband has left behind a paper trail, we’ll help you follow it. Getting started is free, and you can view the full report you’re looking for in a matter of minutes.

2. Talk to Your Husband 

It’s always a good idea to talk to your husband, especially if you feel like he’s cheating. We know it might be scary to think about, but sometimes an honest conversation is the best way to discover a cheating husband. Therefore, sit him down and have a conversation about the situation and how you’re feeling. 

With any luck, he’ll offer you reassurance that he’s not cheating. On the other hand, he may also come clean, and you can move on or try to salvage the relationship from there. If talking to your husband doesn’t seem to be working, you can always try checking his phone, computer, or other electronic devices. 

Simply asking to view them should also be enough to discover if he’s cheating. If he has something to hide, he won’t be very forthcoming with it.

3. Hire a Private Investigator 

Another way to find out if your husband is cheating on you but not leaving is to work with a private investigator. Now, this method is a bit of a last resort because private investigators aren’t cheap, especially the best ones. So, before you get started, assume that you’ll have to spend at least $50 to $150 per hour. 

Depending on what you’re looking for or what you have your PI do, this can result in them costing several thousand dollars. That said, if you’re looking for evidence in preparation for a divorce, it’s worth the cost. If you plan on going the PI route, there are a lot of benefits, with the first one being discretion. PIs will do all the investigative work for you, so you don’t have to worry about snooping around. You can also have a PI visit specific locations and go places you can not.

A private investigator can also help you find online dating profiles and other things they may be using to cheat on you. Plus, if a PI is experienced with cheating spouses, they may be able to notice signs that you recognize.

So, Why Does a Husband Cheat on His Wife But Will Not Leave Her?

Ultimately, whether a husband leaves is up to him. That said, some common reasons cause husbands to cheat and stay with their wives. Unfortunately, this can make it difficult to know if they’re cheating and hard to determine how they feel about you.

The good news is that our people search tools can help you monitor your husband’s online activity. What’s more, we make it easy to find any paper trails they’re leaving behind. Plus, we have some other tips you can use to catch a cheating spouse if you still have concerns.

That said, if you’re suspicious about your husband’s cheating, you may want to enlist the help of a private investigator or take matters into your own hands by checking their phone.