In 2023, it was estimated that approximately 87 percent of the Indonesian population were Muslim, accounting for the highest share of Muslims in any Southeast Asian country. Indonesia also has the world's largest Muslim population, with an estimated 229 million Muslims.

Demographics of Indonesia

The total population of Indonesia was estimated to reach around 290 million in 2028. The median age of the population in the country was at an all-time high in 2020 and was projected to increase continuously until the end of the century. In 2020, the population density in Indonesia reached its highest value recorded at about 145.7 people per square kilometer.

Shopping behavior during Ramadan in Indonesia

Nearly all Muslims in Indonesia celebrated Ramadan in 2022. During the month of Ramadan, 60 percent of Indonesian users utilized online applications to order food. Many Indonesians planned to shop online or offline during Ramadan, with around 76 percent of online users planning to purchase fashion wear and accessories. Shopee was the most used app for shopping purposes during that period.

In 2022, Indonesia has the largest population of Muslims worldwide with around 241.5 million. This was followed with around 225.6 million Muslims in Pakistan and 211.16 million Muslims in India.

This statistic shows the number of Muslims in the United States from 2007 to 2017. According to the survey, there were approximately 3.45 million Muslims in the U.S. in 2017, up from about 2.75 in 2011.

In 2024, Nigeria had the largest Muslim population in Africa, with around 105 million people who belonged to an Islamic denomination. Egypt and Algeria followed with 90.4 million and 39.4 million Muslims, respectively. Muslims have a significant presence in Africa, with an estimated 50 percent of the continent's population identifying as Muslim. The spread of Islam in Africa began in the 7th century with the arrival of Arab traders, and it continued through Islamic scholars and missionaries.

This statistic displays the estimated and actual Muslim population share in Denmark and Sweden in 2018. In Denmark, respondents on average guessed that 18 out of every 100 people in Denmark were Muslims. In fact, 4. percent of the Danish population was Muslim in 2018. Swedes estimated 23 percent of every hundred people to be Muslim, but the actual number was 8 percent.

In 2020, around 98.5 percent of the Iranian population identified as Muslim. Around 81 percent identified as Shia Muslims in the same year, while a much smaller share followed the Sunni Muslim religion. In Iran, most Sunni Muslims belong to ethnic minority groups.

Iran’s demographics
The total population in Iran has grown steadily and is expected to surpass 90 million in 2028. The vast majority of the population in the country was between 15 and 64 years of age. At the same time, the share of people aged above 64 increased in recent years and constituted over seven percent of the total population.

Muslim population worldwide

In Europe, it was estimated that the Muslim population could triple by the middle of the century. In Southeast Asia, Indonesia had the largest share of Muslims as a proportion of its population. On the African continent, the highest number of Muslims was estimated in Nigeria, with close to a hundred million Islam followers. In the United States, less than one percent of the population identified as Muslims.

Islam is the major religion in many African countries, especially in the north of the continent. In Comoros, Libya, Western Sahara, at least 99 percent of the population was Muslim as of 202. These were the highest percentages on the continent. However, also in many other African nations, the majority of the population was Muslim. In Egypt, for instance, Islam was the religion of 79 percent of the people. Islam and other religions in Africa Africa accounts for an important share of the world’s Muslim population. As of 2019, 16 percent of the Muslims worldwide lived in Sub-Saharan Africa, while 20 percent of them lived in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Together with Christianity, Islam is the most common religious affiliation in Africa, followed by several traditional African religions. Although to a smaller extent, numerous other religions are practiced on the continent: these include Judaism, the Baha’i Faith, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Number of Muslims worldwide Islam is one of the most widespread religions in the world. There are approximately 1.9 billion Muslims globally, with the largest Muslim communities living in the Asia-Pacific region. Specifically, Indonesia hosts the highest number of Muslims worldwide, amounting to over 200 million, followed by India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Islam is also present in Europe and America. The largest Islamic communities in Europe are in France (5.72 million), Germany (4.95 million), and the United Kingdom (4.13 million). In the United States, there is an estimated number of around 3.45 million Muslims.

With almost all major religions being practiced throughout the country, India is known for its religious diversity. Islam makes up the highest share among minority faiths in the country. According to the Indian census of 2011, the Muslim population in Uttar Pradesh more than 35 million, making it the state with the most Muslims.

Socio-economic conditions of Muslims
Muslims seem to lag behind every other religious community in India in terms of living standards, financial stability, education and other aspects, thereby showing poor performance in most of the fields. According to a national survey, 17 percent of the Muslims were categorized under the lowest wealth index, which indicates poor socio-economic conditions.

Growth of Muslim population in India
Islam is one of the fastest-growing religions worldwide. According to India’s census, the Muslim population has witnessed a negative decadal growth of more than 16 percent from 1951 to 1960, presumably due to the partitions forming Pakistan and Bangladesh. The population showed a positive and steady growth since 1961, making up 14 percent of the total population of India . Even though people following Islam were estimated to grow significantly, they would still remain a minority in India compared to 1.3 billion Hindus by 2050.

As of 2021, approximately 98.6 percent of the population in Aceh, Indonesia were Muslims. Despite being the largest Muslim-majority country, Indonesia is a multi-faith country by the constitution and officially recognizes six religions – Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism.

This statistic shows the estimated number of Muslims living in different European countries as of 2016. Approximately 5.72 million Muslims were estimated to live in France, the most of any country listed. Germany and the United Kingdom also have large muslim populations with 4.95 million and 4.13 million respectively.

In 2022, around 31.6 percent of the global population were identify as Christian. Around 25.8 percent of the global population identify as Muslims, followed by 15.1 percent of global populations as Hindu.

According to the latest census data, Lakshadweep, the island union territory had the highest share of Muslim population in the country, where 97 percent of its population identified as followers of the Islamic faith. Jammu & Kashmir ranked second at 68 percent during the same time period. With almost all major religions being practiced throughout the country, India is known for its religious diversity. Islam makes up the highest share among minority faiths in the country.

In 2023, over 87 percent of Indonesians declared themselves to be Muslim, followed by 7.4 percent who were Christians. Indonesia has the largest Islamic population in the world and for this reason is often recognized as a Muslim nation. However, Indonesia is not a Muslim nation according to its constitution. The archipelago is a multifaith country and officially recognizes six religions – Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism.

Not all provinces in Indonesia are Muslim majority
The spread of Islam in Indonesia began on the west side of the archipelago, where the main maritime trade routes were located. Until today, most of the Indonesian Muslim population are residing in Western and Central Indonesia, while the majority religion of several provinces in Eastern Indonesia, such as East Nusa Tenggara and Bali, is Christian and Hindu, respectively.

Discrimination towards other beliefs in Indonesia The Indonesian constitution provides for freedom of religion. However, the Government Restrictions Index Score on religion in Indonesia is relatively high. Indonesians who practice unrecognized religions, including Indonesia’s indigenous or traditional belief systems, such as animism, dynamism, and totemism, face legal restrictions and discrimination. Indonesian law requires its citizens to put one of the recognized religions on their national identity cards, with some exceptions for indigenous religions. Although legally citizens may leave the section blank, atheism or agnosticism is considered uncommon in Indonesia.

From 2022 to 2060, the worldwide population of Muslims is expected to increase by 45.7 percent. For the same period, the global population of Buddhists is expected to decrease by 12.2 percent.

As of 2010, Christianity was the religion with the most followers worldwide, followed by Islam (Muslims) and Hinduism. In the forty years between 2010 and 2050, it is projected that the landscape of world religions will undergo some noticeable changes, with the number of Muslims almost catching up to Christians. The changes in population sizes of each religious group is largely dependent on demographic development, for example, the rise in the world's Christian population will largely be driven by population growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, while Muslim populations will rise across various regions of Africa and South Asia. As India's population is set to grow while China's goes into decline, this will be reflected in the fact that Hindus will outnumber the unaffiliated by 2050. In fact, India may be home to both the largest Hindu and Muslim populations in the world by the middle of this century.

This statistic shows the Muslim population of England and Wales in 2011, broken down by age group. As can be seen in the statistic there are more under 16s than any other age group, numbering 895,137 people. Those aged over 55 compose around 229 thousand of the 2.7 million Muslims recorded in this census.

The statistic displays the results of a survey conducted by Ipsos of the perceived and actual Muslim population share in the Netherlands and Belgium in 2018. The survey results show that as of 2018, there was a significant gap between the public perception and actual share of the population who were Muslim in the Netherlands and in Belgium.

Survey respondents in the Netherlands estimated that one fifth of the population were Muslim, whereas this figure increased to over 25 percent among Belgian survey participants. In reality, just five percent of the population in the Netherlands and in Belgium was Muslim in 2018.

According to the population census data in 2010, 54.14 percent of the population in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia were Catholics. East Nusa Tenggara is the province with the least Muslim population in Indonesia. Indonesia has the largest Islamic population in the world. However, Indonesia is a multi-faith country that recognizes six official religions – Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism.

Between 2010 and 2021 in the Netherlands, the percentage of people who do not identify with any religion increased from 45 percent to 57 percent. The largest religious group in 2021 was the Roman Catholic group, with 18 percent of Dutch people identifying as Roman Catholic. In 2021, 14 percent of the Dutch population considered themselves a member of the three main protestant churches, the Dutch Reformed Church, the Protestant Church in the Netherlands, and the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands. The percentage of people who identify as Muslim has remained the same at five percent over the years.

Do the people who identify with a religion always participate?

The percentage of people in the Netherlands who participate in a religion is not necessarily the same as that of people who identify with a religion. The most prominent religious group, the Roman Catholics, only saw a participation of three percent, the same as those identifying with the Protestant Church, despite only six percent identifying with that denomination. The highest participation rate is in the group 'other' with four percent, despite only 10 percent identifying in those religions. It shows, therefore, that some religions see significantly higher participation rates despite a lower percentage identifying with it.

Does the percentage of Muslims in the Netherlands align with the perceived percentage of Muslims?

In 2018, the Dutch population believed that 20 percent of the population was Muslim, even though only five percent were Muslim. This overestimation of the Muslim population is in line with the rest of Europe. Germany, for example, predicted a Muslim population of 21 percent while the actual Muslim population was four percent. In Belgium, residents believed that 27 percent of the population was Muslim, while in reality, it was only five percent.

As of 2020, around 98.5 percent of the Iranian population identify as Muslims. According to forecasts for 2050, the share of Muslims in Iran was projected to slightly decline by 0.3 percent.