Overview

• Muslim numbers rose by 347 million—a 21% surge that increased its global share by 1.8 percentage points, outpacing overall population growth.
• Christianity remained the largest faith with 2.3 billion adherents but saw its share drop by 1.8 points due to slower growth and elevated disaffiliation among younger followers.
• The religiously unaffiliated expanded by 270 million to 1.9 billion people, becoming the third-largest group as many former Christians left organized religion.
• Sub-Saharan Africa surpassed Europe as the region with the most Christians, driven by higher birth rates and a youthful demographic.
• Other faiths saw varied trends: Hinduism and Judaism maintained stable global shares, while Buddhism was the only major religion to lose adherents.