Decline of Christianity in U.S. Continues at Rapid Pace

The religious landscape of the U.S. continues to change at a rapid rate, according to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center. In telephone surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019, 65% of American adults describe themselves as Christians when asked about their religion; this figure is down 12 points over the past decade. Meanwhile, the religiously unaffiliated share of the population, consisting of people who describe themselves as atheist, agnostic or "nothing in particular" now stands at 26%, up from 17% in 2009.

Both Protestantism and Catholicism are experiencing losses in their congregations. Currently, 43% of U.S. adults identify as Protestants, down from 51% a decade ago. And just one-in-five adults (20%) identify as Catholic, down from 23% in 2009.  Catholics no longer constitute a majority of the U.S. Hispanic population; 47% of Hispanics now describe themselves as Catholic, down from 57% a decade ago. The trends are clear, the U.S. is steadily becoming less Christian, as the population of adults who describe themselves as non-religious continues to grow.