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.

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.

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.

In 2024, Nigeria accounted for 7.08 percent of the global Muslim population, the highest share among African countries. Egypt and Algeria followed, with shares of 6.12 percent and 2.67 percent, respectively. Islam has 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 later continued through Islamic scholars and missionaries.

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.

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.

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.

In 2023, approximately 244.4 million people in Indonesia identified as Muslims. Indonesia has the largest Islamic population in the world. However, it is a multi-faith country and officially recognizes six religions: Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism.

This statistic displays the projected Muslim population proportions in selected European countries in 2050, by scenario. In 2010 the proportion of Muslims in the population of Germany was 4.1 percent, compared with 6.3 percent in the UK and 7.5 percent in France. Depending on the different migration scenarios estimated here, Germany's share of Muslims in the population could rise up to 19.7 percent of it's population by 2050, higher than both the UK and France, with projected Muslim populations of 17.2 and 18 percent respectively.

In 2023, around 1.52 million Muslims lived in Italy. Almost 30 percent of them were represented by Moroccan citizens, with 417,000 people. Islam constitutes the first most common religion of foreigners nationwide. The second-largest religion among immigrants living in Italy is the Christian Orthodox one, considering the large Romanian community residing in the country.

This statistic displays the projected Muslim population of Europe from 2010 to 2050, compared with that of non-Muslims. For the 2050 projections, three different scenarios are presented, one for zero migration to Europe, one for medium migration and the last for a high level of immigration. In the scenario where zero-migration occurs the total non-Muslim population of Europe would actually decrease from 495.06 million people to 445.92 million people. In the high migration scenario, Muslims are predicted to number 75.55 million people, in which the total non-Muslim population of Europe is 463.04 million.

In 2023, the total population in the Arab World increased by 8.6 million inhabitants (+1.85 percent) compared to 2022. With 473.27 million inhabitants, the total population thereby reached its highest value in the observed period. Notably, the total population continuously increased over the last years.The total population of a country refers to the de facto number of people residing in a country, regardless of citizenship or legal status.

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.

Christianity is the major religion in numerous African countries. As of 2024, around 96 percent of the population of Zambia was Christian, representing the highest percentage on the continent. Seychelles and Rwanda followed with roughly 95 percent and 94 percent of the population being Christian, respectively. While these countries present the highest percentages, Christianity was also prevalent in many other African nations. For instance, in South Africa, Christianity was the religion of nearly 85 percent of the people, while the share corresponded to 71 percent in Ghana. Religious variations across Africa Christianity and Islam are the most practiced religions in Africa. Christian adherents are prevalent below the Sahara, while North Africa is predominantly Muslim. In 2020, Christians accounted for around 60 percent of the Sub-Saharan African population, followed by Muslims with a share of roughly 30 percent. In absolute terms, there were approximately 650 million Christians in the region, a number forecast to increase to over one billion by 2050. In contrast, Islam is most prevalent in North Africa, being the religion of over 90 percent of the population in Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Libya. Christianity in the world As opposed to other religions, Christianity is widely spread across continents worldwide. In fact, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Europe each account for around 25 percent of the global Christian population. By comparison, Asia-Pacific and North America make up 13 percent and 12 percent of Christians worldwide, respectively. In several regions, Christians also suffer persecution on religious grounds. Somalia and Libya presented the most critical situation in Africa in 2021, reporting the strongest suppression of Christians worldwide just after North Korea and Afghanistan.

According to a survey conducted in South Korea in 2023, over 60 percent of respondents reported no religious affiliation, while approximately 20 percent identified as Christians and 16 percent as Buddhists. Religious population South Korea is a multi-religious society where Christianity, Buddhism, and various other religions coexist with shamanism. According to a previous study, the domestic religious population appeared to decline over time after reaching its peak in 2005, at nearly 25 million people. In contrast, the share of people who are religiously unaffiliated has increased in recent years. Within the last two decades, the religiously unaffiliated population has increased from about 40 percent to more than 60 percent. Shamanism Shamanism has continued to significantly influence the daily lives of many South Koreans. According to a survey conducted in 2023, about 40 percent of respondents reported having consulted a fortune-teller within the past year. Roughly 80 percent of those respondents were already affiliated with a religion.

This statistic shows the market value of halal food worldwide in 2017 and provides a forecast for 2018 to 2023. According to the report, halal foods had a global market value of approximately 1.4 trillion U.S. dollars in 2017 and are expected to reach 2.6 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023.

Halal products - additional information

Halal is an Arabic word for “permissible” and is often used to refer to food and drink which are acceptable for Muslims to consume under the Islamic law. It specifies which food products are allowed, and how to prepare them. For instance, halal animals include goats, sheep, cows, and chicken. Pork is considered “haram” or forbidden. According to the Koran, the proper method of slaughtering halal animals involves killing through a cut to the jugular vein, carotid artery and windpipe. This process is called “dhabihah”. At the time of slaughter, animals have to be alive and healthy, and then the blood is drained from the carcass. In addition to that, the ritual has several terms to be fulfilled — for example, the butcher must be Muslim.

According to the Pew Research Center, Muslims accounted for approximately 23 percent of the total population worldwide in 2010. That year, Indonesia topped the list of countries with the largest number of Muslims. Furthermore, Muslims were the only major religious group projected to grow faster than the global population as a whole. As a consequence, there is a growing market for halal products. In 2016, the global market value of halal products amounted to approximately 45.3 billion U.S. dollars and is expected to increase by roughly 29 percent in 2020.

In 2016, it was estimated that Birmingham had the largest Muslim population of any local authority in England and Wales at approximately 280 thousand people. Newham and Tower Hamlets, both boroughs of London, had the second and third-largest Muslim populations at 135 and 128 thousand respectively.

The Hajj to Mecca in Saudi Arabia is considered the world’s largest human gathering with almost 1.84 million pilgrims in 2023. The Saudi government restricted Hajj to residents in Saudi Arabia only during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The number of Hajj pilgrims dropped to about 58.7 thousand in 2021. Like other religious pilgrimages, Hajj is considered an annual rite of passage to renew ones moral and spiritual connection. Approximately a quarter of the human population identify themselves as Muslims . According to their faith of Islam, it is one of their five religious duties to perform the Hajj at least once in their lifetime.

Who are the pilgrims?

According to Islamic tradition, any Muslim who has reached maturity is due to perform the Hajj. During the last Hajj season before the COVID-19 pandemic, about two thirds of the pilgrims to Mecca came from outside of the Saudi Arabian Kingdom. The government of Saudi Arabia issues each years’ Hajj visas on a country quota system, based on the size of the Muslim population .

Financial aspects

 
One main condition for a mature Muslim to qualify to perform the Hajj is to be free of debt and other financial and social obligations. Many Muslims around the world spend a significant amount of their life-savings to be able to make this spiritual journey. As an example, the cost of performing Hajj for a Malaysian Muslim was calculated at about 22.45 thousand Malaysian ringgits. For first time Hajj pilgrims, the Malaysian government subsidizes more than half of that amount.

Some Muslims who can’t afford the financial or physical challenges of the Hajj sometimes perform the smaller Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca called Umrah, which can be attempted all year round.