The U.S. Religion Census is a count of religious congregations, and where available, the number of people affiliated (adherents) with those congregations. The 2020 U.S. Religion Census has data on 372 religious bodies across the nation. The material on the website includes counts of congregations and adherents for each of the 372 groups in every county (or county equivalent) in the United States. This data is available in report form and in maps, and the entire dataset can be downloaded in spreadsheet format.
2020 U.S. Religion Census publication
The 2020 publication includes 11 chapters outlining the history of congregation-level data collection and data analyses covering such topics as immigration, diversity, and trends. The authors of these chapters use maps, tables, and charts to help illustrate their findings. There are also four tables summarizing the data by nation, state, metropolitan/micropolitan area, and county. Finally, there is a section of 37 full page maps. In total, the publication has 284 pages.
Entire book (PDF; 284 pages; free download)
Print-on-demand ($50) (you will be redirected to the printer's site)
Individual Chapters from the book
The U.S. Religion Census: Introduction and National Overview – Clifford Grammich
Quick Answers to Important Questions from the U.S. Religion Census – Alexei Krindatch
Historical Efforts to Collect U.S. Data on Religious Congregations – Clifford Grammich
Trends in US Religion Census Adherents Data, 2010-2020 – Erica J. Dollhopf
Patterns of Historical and Organizational Events and Conflict – Richard Houseal
Religious Diversity in the United States – Dale E. Jones
Regional Differences in Religious Congregations and Adherence – Mary L. Gautier
The Rise and Geographic Dispersion of Non-Christian Faith Traditions in the United States – Mike McMullen
Religion and Metropolitan Status in the United States – Dale E. Jones
A Portrait of Immigration, Race, and Religious Congregations and their Adherents in the United States – Allison L. Norton
What are “Religious Bodies?” Denominations, Non-denominations, and the Gray Areas in Between – Scott Thumma
Tables 1-4: Nation, State, Metropolitan/Micropolitan Areas, and County listings (Excel file)
Methodology
The links below are to PDF files with information on how the 2020 U.S. Religion Census data was collected. The Preface and Introduction provide an overview of the study's methodology and summarizes participation. Appendix A contains basic information for each of the groups listed in the study. Appendices B through K describe special efforts to count various groups.
Appendix A--Definitions, Procedures, and Comments
Appendix B--Non-denominational Christian Churches
Appendix D--African American Groups
Appendix E--Mailing Address Lists
Appendix F--Orthodox Christian Groups
