In 2023, 27.5 percent of Americans were unaffiliated with any religion. A further 13.4 percent of Americans were White evangelical Protestants, and an additional 13.3 percent were White mainline Protestants. Religious trends in the United States Although the United States is still home to the largest number of Christians worldwide, the nation has started to reflect a more diverse religious landscape in recent years. Americans now report a wide range of religious beliefs and backgrounds, in addition to an increasing number of people who are choosing to identify with no religion at all. Studies suggest that many Americans have left their previous religion to instead identify as atheist, agnostic, or nothing in particular, with many reasoning that they stopped believing in the religion's teachings, that they didn't approve of negative teachings or treatment of LGBTQ+ people, or that their family was never that religious growing up. Christian controversies Over the last few years, controversies linked to Christian denominations have plagued the nation, including reports of child sexual abuse by the Catholic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Southern Baptist Convention. Christian churches have also been accused of supporting discriminatory actions against LGBTQ+ people and people belonging to other religious groups. In addition, there have been increasing concerns about Christian nationalism, the political ideology that asserts that America was founded to be a Christian nation. Although the majority of Americans still think that declaring the United States a Christian nation would go against the U.S. Constitution, studies found that most Republicans would be in favor of this change.

This statistic shows the percentage of church income by individual donations in the United States in 2008, by faith tradition. As of 2008, individual donations make up for about 97 percent of income of Conservative Protestant churches in the United States.

In 2023, about 33 percent of Americans were Protestants, down from 69 percent in 1948. In that same year, about 22 percent of Americans were Catholic, while 22 percent said that they had no religion at all.

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.

The USA: Christians as percent of the total population: The latest value from 2013 is 76 percent, a decline from 76.3 percent in 2012. In comparison, the world average is 51.1 percent, based on data from 145 countries. Historically, the average for the USA from 1960 to 2013 is 82.8 percent. The minimum value, 76 percent, was reached in 2013 while the maximum of 89.6 percent was recorded in 1960.

From 2021 to 2023, Republicans were found much more likely than Democrats to be Protestants in the United States, with 56 percent of surveyed Republicans identifying as Protestants compared to 38 percent of Democrats. However, Democrats were found more likely than Republicans to identify with no religion, with 26 percent of Democrats saying that they have no religious identity compared to 11 percent of Republicans.

The 2008 Conversion Recontact Survey, conducted by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life, is a follow-up to the 2007 "U.S. Religious Landscape Survey." One of the most striking findings from the Landscape Survey was the large number of people who have left their childhood faith. The Landscape Survey found that more than one in four American adults (28%) have changed their religious affiliation from that in which they were raised. This number includes people who have changed from one major religious tradition to another, for instance, from Protestantism to Catholicism or from Judaism to no religion. If change within religious traditions is included (e.g., from one Protestant denominational family to another), the survey found that roughly 44% of Americans now profess a religious affiliation different from that in which they were raised.

The Conversion Recontact Survey is designed to offer a fuller picture of this churn within American religion, with a special focus on the reasons that people change religious affiliation. The Conversion Recontact Survey is based on follow-up interviews with Landscape Survey respondents, including those from the largest segments of the population that have changed religious affiliation as well as those who still belong to the religious faith in which they were raised. Interviews were conducted by telephone with a nationally representative sample of 2,867 adults living in continental United States telephone households. The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI). Interviews were conducted on landline telephones in English and Spanish by Princeton Data Source (PDS), LLC from Oct. 3 to Nov. 7, 2008. Statistical results are weighted to correct known demographic discrepancies. A full report on the survey's findings, "Faith in Flux: Changes in Religious Affiliation in the U.S.," is available on the Pew Forum's "http://www.pewforum.org/2009/04/27/faith-in-flux/" Target="_blank">website.

The Mission Handbook is a catalog of North American Protestant mission agencies that maintain international ministries and has been published in 22 editions from 1953 to 2017 (Dayton 1976; Missionary Research Library 1953, 1956, 1958, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1966; Missionary Research Library and Missions Advanced Research and Communication Center 1968, 1970; Missions Advanced Research and Communication Center 1973; Newell 2017; Roberts and Siewert 1989; Siewert 1995; Siewert and Kenyon 1993; Siewert and Valdez 1997; Siewert and Welliver 2000; Weber 2010; Weber and Welliver 2007; Welliver and Northcutt 2004; Wilson 1979; Wilson and Siewert 1986). Variables were constructed from key data across these editions. Three separate datasets were constructed with these variables. The first, 'American Protestant Mission Agencies Profiles, 1951-2016 v2.1', covers all 22 editions, prioritizing those data that were the most consistent across all 22 editions. The second, 'American Protestant Mission Agencies Profiles, 2016 v2.1' (this one), only focuses on data from the most recent 22nd edition, and includes additional variables. The third, 'American Protestant Mission Agencies Countries, 1951-2016 v2.1', covers all the countries in which mission agencies declared ministries, from the first to the last edition when an agency mentioned a country in which it operated.

As of March 2023, the 'American Protestant Mission Agencies Profiles, 2016 v2.1' dataset has been updated to correct for erroneous entries of several mission agencies. These changes include correcting for the assignment of unique ID numbers for three organizations already present in previous editions, the removal of two agencies that should not have been previously included, the changing of four ID numbers to fill in gaps in the list of IDs due to the deletions and edits (for the purpose of continuity), and the changing of ID numbers for two unique agencies that shared IDs with previous edition entries that were found to be different agencies than these previous editions. These were edited accordingly and any merging of datasets by the user should be kept within the same version number. These changes are more explicitly summarized in the file's codebook.

According to a survey conducted in 2023, 74 percent of all U.S. adults said that they believed in God while 25 percent of Americans who identified with no religion shared this belief. In comparison, 94 percent of Americans who were Protestant or other Christian and 85 percent of Americans who were Catholic also said that they believed in God in that year.

The American Trends Panel (ATP) is a national, probability-based online panel of adults living in households in the United States. On behalf of the "https://www.pewresearch.org/" Target="_blank">Pew Research Center, "https://www.ipsos.com/en" Target="_blank">Ipsos Public Affairs ('Ipsos') conducted the 44th wave of the panel from February 4-19, 2019. For Wave 44, a supplemental sample of "https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/solutions/public-affairs/knowledgepanel" Target="_blank">KnowledgePanel (KP) Hispanic Protestants, Jewish and Mormon members is included. In total, 10,429 ATP members and 542 KP members (both English- and Spanish-language survey-takers) completed the Wave 44 survey. Survey weights were provided for the total responding sample. The margin of sampling error for weighted estimates based on the full sample is +/- 1.46 percentage points.

The ATP Wave 44 asked questions about religious knowledge.

Within Republican friendship networks, nearly half of their social networks are comprised of Protestants, compared with a third in both Democratic and Independent social circles. The highest proportion of religiously unaffiliated individuals (23 percent) were found in Democratic social circles, compared with 11 percent within Republican networks. Catholics make up about a quarter of friendships across party lines.

(UNCLASSIFIED) The Liberian population is religiously heterogeneous, comprised 85.6 percent Christian, 12.6 percent Muslim, 0.6 percent adherents of tribal or indigenous traditions, 1.5 percent non-religious, and less than 1 percent a combination of Bahais, Hindus, Sikhs, and Buddhists. Primary denominations within the country’s Christian majority include Lutheran, Baptist, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, United Methodist, African Methodist Episcopal (AME), AME Zion, and Pentecostal. Many individuals identified as "Christian" retain a mix of Christian and indigenous (often animistic) beliefs. Both Christian and Muslim Liberians are dispersed throughout the country. Most Muslims belong to two distinct ethnic groups, the Mandingo—who are widely distributed—and the Vai who live mostly in western areas.Christianity reached Liberia in the 19th century with the arrival of freed slaves from the United States. Missionaries of various Protestant denominations started arriving in the 1820s, eventually forming what became one of the highest per capita missionary populations in the world. The first permanent Catholic mission in the country was established in the early 1900s. A Liberian Council of Churches composed of Lutheran, Episcopal, Methodist, and other similar groups now exists, and an evangelical association of churches and missions has operated on and off since 1966. Though religiously-motivated violence in Liberia is relatively uncommon, tensions between Christians and Muslims have escalated in the past. In October 2004, approximately 25 people were killed and several churches and mosques were destroyed in Monrovia during clashes between Christians of several ethnic groups and Mandingo Muslims. The Liberian constitution provides religious freedom for all inhabitants, and in practice, the government respects minority religious groups. According to a 2013 document published by the U.S. Department of State, the Liberian government does not discriminate based on religious affiliation, belief, or worship. Although there is no state religion in the country, government ceremonies commonly begin and end with prayers or hymns, the majority of which are Christian, though some are Muslim. Most private schools in the country are operated by churches or missions. The majority receive government funding, though non-religious schools are also heavily subsidized. Religious education is available as an elective in public schools, but is not required. Social welfare institutions are largely managed or affiliated with religious organizations, often in conjunction with international aid agencies. As regards the ongoing Ebola crisis in West Africa, some religious leaders in Liberia have cited “immoral acts” as the cause of the outbreak. In August 2014, Liberia’s Council of Churches agreed, “God is angry with Liberia,” and urged Liberians to seek forgiveness for corruption and immorality by staying indoors and fasting for three days.Attribute Table Field DescriptionsISO3 - International Organization for Standardization 3-digit country code ADM0_NAME - Administration level zero identification / name ADM1_NAME - Administration level one identification / name ADM2_NAME - Administration level two identification / name NAME - Name of religious institution TYPE - Classification in the geodatabase (type of institution) CITY - City location available SPA_ACC - Spatial accuracy of site location (1 – high, 2 – medium, 3 – low) COMMENTS - Comments or notes regarding the religious institution SOURCE_DT - Source one creation date SOURCE - Source one SOURCE2_DT - Source two creation date SOURCE2 - Source two CollectionThe feature class was generated utilizing data from OpenStreetMap, Wikimapia, GeoNames and other sources. OpenStreetMap is a free worldwide map, created by crowd-sourcing. Wikimapia is open-content mapping focused on gathering all geographical objects in the world. GeoNames is a geographical places database maintained and edited by the online community. Consistent naming conventions for geographic locations were attempted but name variants may exist, which can include historical or less widespread interpretations.The data included herein have not been derived from a registered survey and should be considered approximate unless otherwise defined. While rigorous steps have been taken to ensure the quality of each dataset, DigitalGlobe is not responsible for the accuracy and completeness of data compiled from outside sources.Metadata information was collected form U.S. Department of State publications as well as news media articles. Sources (HGIS)"Cathedral of St. Therese of The Child Jesus." GCatholic. July 2014. Accessed October 7, 2014. http://www.gcatholic.org.DigitalGlobe, "DigitalGlobe Imagery Archive." Accessed October 01, 2014. GeoNames, "Liberia." September 23, 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.geonames.org.Google, September 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. www.google.com.OpenStreetMap, "Liberia." September 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.openstreetmap.org.Wikimapia, "Liberia." September 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://wikimapia.org.Sources (Metadata)Baden, Joel and Candida Moss. “Ebola Is Not God’s Wrath: Religious leaders are perpetuating dangerous, dehumanizing beliefs about sin and disease.” Slate. August 20, 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.slate.com.“Country Profile: Liberia.” Soudan Interior Mission. January 01, 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.sim.org.“Education System in Liberia.” Classbase. January 01, 2012. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.classbase.com.“Liberia 2005 International Religious Freedom Report.” United States Department of State: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. January 01, 2005. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.state.gov.“Liberia 2012 International Religious Freedom Report.” United States Department of State: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. January 01, 2005. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.state.gov.“Liberia 2014 International Religious Freedom Report.” United States Department of State. January 01, 2014. Accessed October 01, 2014. http://www.state.gov.

In 1972, an estimated 90 percent of the population in the United States identified as Christian. By 2020, this number dropped down to 64 percent, a phenomenon which may be attributed to recent trends where many Americans have left Christianity to instead identify as atheist, agnostic, or nothing in particular. If these trends continue, the number of Americans who are Christian has been projected to fall to 35 percent by 2070.

In the United States, the share of Americans affiliated with one of the three main white Christian religious denominations has been declining since 2006. While 23 percent of Americans identified as White evangelical Protestants in 2006, the number was 13.4 percent in 2023.

According to a 2022 survey, 31 percent of Americans never attend church or synagogue, compared to 20 percent of Americans who attend every week.

Religiosity in the United States

Despite only about a fifth of Americans attending church or synagogue on a weekly basis, almost 40 percent consider themselves to be very religious. Additionally, states in the Deep South such as Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana had the most residents identifying as very religious. In contrast, New England states like Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire had the most people identifying as nonreligious.

A Christian nation?

Despite the official separation of church and state embedded in the Constitution, many would still consider the United States to be a Christian nation. Catholicism has the largest number of adherents in the United States, due to there being many different Protestant denominations. The Southern Baptist Convention had the largest number of Evangelical adherents, while the United Methodist Church was the largest Mainline Protestant denomination.

According to a study conducted between July 2023 and March 2024, Hindus and Jews are most likely to have the highest household incomes in the United States, with 57 percent of Hindus and 54 percent of Jews earning 100,000 U.S. dollars or more annually. In contrast, only 27 percent of Protestants, including Evangelical, Mainline, and Historically Black Protestants, reported an annual household income of 100,000 U.S. dollars or more during this time period.

The 119th U.S. Congress, sworn in January 2025. There are 535 total members of Congress. This session of Congress consisted of 295 Protestant members, as well as 150 Catholic members. The number of Protestant members has declined since the 87th Congress, when 398 members were Protestant.

According to a study conducted between July 2023 and March 2024, the majority of the Jewish population in the United States was white, at 90 percent. Christians and Christian denominations, such as Latter-day Saints (Mormons), Orthodox Christians, Protestants, and Catholics, were also made up of white majorities, in addition to those who identified as religiously unaffiliated, including atheists, agnostic, or nothing in particular.

This statistic shows the educational attainment of religious groups in the United States as of January 2017, by faith tradition. In 2017, about 38 percent of Hindu believers in the United States had a post-graduate degree.

The statistic shows the religious affiliation of the population in the United States in 2017, by age. In 2017, about 38 percent of respondents aged 18 to 29 years old were unaffiliated with any religious belief.