Brazil is the largest Catholic country in the world, with an estimated Catholic population of 140 million, ahead of Mexico and the Philippines, with 101 million and 85 million Catholics, respectively. Nevertheless, Brazil's Catholic population is shrinking. By 2050, today's largest Catholic country could have a majority Protestant population.

The average for 2013 based on 84 countries was 43.2 percent. The highest value was in Poland: 95.2 percent and the lowest value was in Ethiopia: 0.6 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2013. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Except for Uruguay, over ** percent of the population in all the selected Latin American countries defined themselves as Catholics in 2000. However, by 2023, that was the case in only three countries: Mexico, Peru and Colombia. Over this 20-year period, Panama experienced the largest decrease in the share of Catholic believers, plummeting from **** to **** percent.

The average for 2013 based on 20 countries was 31 percent. The highest value was in Cape Verde: 87.8 percent and the lowest value was in Ethiopia: 0.6 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2013. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Based on the 2020 census, Region 5 or the Bicol Region registered the highest share of households who reported Roman Catholic as their religious affiliation at 93.5 percent. This was followed by Region 8 or Eastern Visayas with a share of 92.3 percent. In contrast, only five percent of households in BARMM were Roman Catholics. The Philippines is one of the countries in the world with the highest population professing the Catholic faith, after Brazil and Mexico.

Kenya had a Catholic population of roughly 9.7 million people, according to the last country census conducted in 2019. Around one million Catholics lived in the capital Nairobi, the largest amount among all Kenyan counties. Nearly 590,000 people living in Kiambu adhered to Catholicism, while half-million dwelled in Machakos.

aCatholic populations by country from http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/country/sc1.html[4].bOnly the top 31 Catholic countries with more than 5 million Catholics and countries in which at least 50% of the population is Catholic are included (as well as Canada and Uganda, each with more than 40% Catholic population), which excludes India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, and Vietnam.cFrom [6], [7].dFrom [8], [9].eFrom [10], [11].fChagas disease is found in every South American and Central American country listed [5].gFrom [31].

In 2024, Ethiopia had the largest Christian population in Africa, with around 77.5 million people who identified as Christian. The second highest Christian population was in Nigeria, with 74.4 million people. Christianity has a significant presence in Africa, with its history on the continent dating back to the fourth century in Ethiopia. Furthermore, Christianity has spread throughout Africa with different denominations and traditions, taking root in various regions. Some of the largest Christian denominations in Africa include the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, and the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements.

The USA: Catholic Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 24 percent, unchanged from 24 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 43.2 percent, based on data from 84 countries. Historically, the average for the USA from 1960 to 2013 is 24 percent. The minimum value, 23.9 percent, was reached in 1960 while the maximum of 24 percent was recorded in 1983.

Guatemala was the most Christian country among those selected in the Latin America and Caribbean region, with **** percent of its population following Christianity in 2023. The Baháʼí faith, which originates from the Middle East, and preaches the unity of all religions and all people, was present in both Bolivia and Panama. As for agnosticism, it had the most practitioners in Uruguay and Cuba.

Italy: Catholic Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 84 percent, a decline from 84.7 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 43.2 percent, based on data from 84 countries. Historically, the average for Italy from 1960 to 2013 is 94.5 percent. The minimum value, 84 percent, was reached in 2013 while the maximum of 99.1 percent was recorded in 1960.

Historically, Portugal has been a country of Catholics. The 2021 census demonstrated that this trend has not been inverted, as over 80 percent of the population in Portugal identified as Catholic. Protestant or Evangelic believers accounted for more than two percent of the population, while Jehovah's Witnesses constituted one percent of residents. Among non-Christian faiths, Muslims were the most representative group, making up 0.42 percent of the population.

Religious but generally not practicing the faith

In the same year, Catholics numbered more than seven million people spread throughout the country, conquering the religious majority in the mainland and in the two autonomous regions. Citizens without religion totaled more than 1.2 million, which made of them the second most numerous religious group in Portugal. Young people presented the same religious trend, with young Catholics being the most representative group, followed by non-religious. Among youngsters, the attendance of religious events was mostly conducted occasionally, while a quarter did not participate in such proceedings at all.

The contribute of immigration to the growth of Evangelical Christianity

Despite being the minority, non-Catholic Christian and non-Christian faiths have been growing in Portugal. In 2011, Evangelical believers totaled 75.6 thousand, more than doubling ten years after. Such growth was partially motivated by the increase in Brazilian immigration, as more than 61 percent of new members of Evangelical churches in 2023 were of Brazilian origin. In fact, Brazil was the place of origin of almost 82 percent of all the immigrant Evangelical Christians residing in Portugal. However, more than a quarter of new Evangelical Christians were Portuguese, which shows that other religions, namely Christian Catholicism, have been losing members to Evangelical Catholicism.

Spain: Catholic Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 88.3 percent, a decline from 88.8 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 43.2 percent, based on data from 84 countries. Historically, the average for Spain from 1960 to 2013 is 95.5 percent. The minimum value, 88.3 percent, was reached in 2013 while the maximum of 98.5 percent was recorded in 1969.

Vietnam: Catholic Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 7.7 percent, an increase from 7.6 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 43.2 percent, based on data from 84 countries. Historically, the average for Vietnam from 1960 to 2013 is 6 percent. The minimum value, 4.6 percent, was reached in 1960 while the maximum of 7.7 percent was recorded in 2013.

Germany: Catholic Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 31.7 percent, a decline from 31.9 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 43.2 percent, based on data from 84 countries. Historically, the average for Germany from 1960 to 2013 is 38.2 percent. The minimum value, 31.7 percent, was reached in 2013 while the maximum of 45 percent was recorded in 1960.

Poland: Catholic Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 95.2 percent, an increase from 95.1 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 43.2 percent, based on data from 84 countries. Historically, the average for Poland from 1960 to 2013 is 92 percent. The minimum value, 87.7 percent, was reached in 1960 while the maximum of 95.2 percent was recorded in 2013.

In 2020, Mexico had a catholic population of ********** people, by far the most followed religion in the country. Almost ** percent of that population was 60 years of age or older. The second age group with the most catholic followers was between 10 and 14 years of age, with *** percent.

Spain has a long history of Islamic tradition under its belt. From cuisine to architecture, the southern European country has been linked to the North of Africa through many common elements. At the end of 2023, there were approximately 2.41 million Muslims in Spain, most of them of Spanish and Moroccan nationality, with upwards of eight hundred thousand believers in both cases. With a Muslim population of more than 660,000 people, Catalonia was home to the largest Muslim community in Spain as of the same date.

The not so Catholic Spain

Believers of a religion other than Catholicism accounted for approximately 3 percent of the Spanish population, according to the most recent data. Although traditionally a Catholic country, Spain saw a decline in the number of believers over the past years. Compared to previous years, when the share of believers accounted for slightly over 70 percent of the Spanish population, the Catholic community lost ground, while still being the major religion for the foreseable future.

A Catholic majority, a practicing minority

Going to mass is no longer a thing in Spain, or so it would seem when looking at the latest statistics about the matter: 50 percent of those who consider themselves Catholics almost never attend any religious service in 2024. The numbers increased until 2019, from 55.5 percent of the population never attending religious services in 2011 to 63.1 percent in 2019. The share of population that stated to be practicing believers and go to mass every Sunday and on the most important holidays accounted for only 15.5 percent.

The share for Catholic and Evangelic believers in Brazil show opposite trends. While in 1994 Catholics gathered 75 percent of the Brazilian population, it is estimated that in 2032 this figure will drop to 39.8 percent. Meanwhile Evangelicals, which at the beginning of the indicated period were only 14 percent of the population, are estimated to reach 38.6 percent by 2032, a growth of 24.6 percentage points. Nevertheless, in 2019, Brazilian catholic believers were still the largest group, with 51 percent.

Roman Catholic was the most common religion affiliation in Mexico in 2023. In a survey carried out that year, roughly **** percent of Mexican respondents claimed to be of catholic faith. Mexico ranks among the Latin American countries with the highest share of Catholics. More than nine percent of respondents answered they didn't profess any religion.