Pew Research Center's Religious Landscape Study: 3.0.0

Religious Landscape Study

People who say religion does more harm than good on society

Among adults who say religion does more harm than good on society …

Religious composition

2023-24
2014
2007
Christians
of adults who say religion does more harm than good on society identify as Christians.
  • Evangelical Protestant
    6%
    • Baptist family (evangelical trad.)
      2%
      • Southern Baptist Convention
        1%
      • Independent Baptist (evangelical trad.)
        1%
      • Missionary Baptist (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
      • Conservative Baptist Association of America
        <1%
      • Free Will Baptist
        <1%
      • General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
        <1%
      • Other Baptist (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Methodist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Global Methodist Church
        <1%
      • Other Methodist (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Nondenominational family (evangelical trad.)
      2%
      • Nondenominational evangelical
        1%
      • Nondenominational fundamentalist
        <1%
      • Nondenominational charismatic
        <1%
      • Interdenominational (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
      • Community Church (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
      • Other nondenominational (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Lutheran family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod
        <1%
      • Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
        <1%
      • Other Lutheran (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Presbyterian family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Presbyterian Church in America
        <1%
      • Other Presbyterian (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Pentecostal family (evangelical trad.)
      1%
      • Assemblies of God
        <1%
      • Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)
        <1%
      • Foursquare Church
        <1%
      • Pentecostal Church of God
        <1%
      • Pentecostal Holiness Church
        <1%
      • Calvary Chapel
        <1%
      • Apostolic Pentecostal (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
      • Nondenominational Pentecostal (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
      • United Pentecostal Church International
        <1%
      • Other Pentecostal (evangelical trad.)
        1%
    • Episcopalian/Anglican family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
    • Restorationist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Churches of Christ
        <1%
      • Christian Churches and Churches of Christ
        <1%
      • Other Restorationist (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Congregationalist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Conservative Congregational Christian Conference
        <1%
      • Other Congregationalist (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Holiness family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Church of the Nazarene
        <1%
      • Wesleyan Church
        <1%
      • Free Methodist Church
        <1%
      • Christian and Missionary Alliance
        <1%
      • Church of God (Anderson, Indiana)
        <1%
      • Other Holiness (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Reformed family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Christian Reformed Church
        <1%
      • Other Reformed (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Adventist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
      • Seventh-day Adventist
        <1%
      • Other Adventist (evangelical trad.)
        <1%
    • Anabaptist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
    • Pietist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
    • Friends family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
    • Other evangelical/Fundamentalist family (evangelical trad.)
      <1%
    • Nonspecific Protestant family (evangelical trad.)
      1%
      • Nonspecific/Other Protestant family (evangelical trad.)
        1%
  • Mainline Protestant
    6%
    • Baptist family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
      • American Baptist Churches USA
        <1%
      • Other Baptist (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Methodist family (mainline trad.)
      1%
      • United Methodist Church
        1%
      • Other Methodist (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Nondenominational family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
      • Interdenominational (mainline trad.)
        <1%
      • Other nondenominational (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Lutheran family (mainline trad.)
      1%
      • Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
        <1%
      • Other Lutheran (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Presbyterian family (mainline trad.)
      1%
      • Presbyterian Church (USA)
        1%
      • Other Presbyterian (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Episcopalian/Anglican family (mainline trad.)
      1%
      • Episcopal Church
        1%
      • Anglican Church
        <1%
      • Other Episcopalian/Anglican (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Restorationist family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
      • Disciples of Christ
        <1%
      • Other Restorationist (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Congregationalist family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
      • United Church of Christ
        <1%
      • Other Congregationalist (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Reformed family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
      • Reformed Church in America
        <1%
      • Other Reformed (mainline trad.)
        <1%
    • Anabaptist family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
    • Friends family (mainline trad.)
      <1%
    • Nonspecific Protestant family (mainline trad.)
      1%
      • Nonspecific/Other Protestant family (mainline trad.)
        1%
  • Historically Black Protestant
    3%
    • Baptist family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
      1%
      • National Baptist Convention of America
        <1%
      • National Baptist Convention, USA
        1%
      • Progressive National Baptist Convention
        <1%
      • Independent Baptist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
      • Missionary Baptist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
      • Other Baptist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
    • Methodist family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
      <1%
      • African Methodist Episcopal Church
        <1%
      • African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
        <1%
      • Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
        <1%
      • Other Methodist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
    • Pentecostal family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
      1%
      • Church of God in Christ
        <1%
      • Apostolic Pentecostal (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
      • Other Pentecostal (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
    • Holiness family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
      <1%
    • Nondenominational family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
      <1%
    • Nonspecific Protestant family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
      <1%
      • Nonspecific/Other Protestant family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
        <1%
  • Catholic
    9%
  • Latter-day Saint (Mormon)
    <1%
  • Orthodox Christian
    <1%
  • Jehovah's Witness
    <1%
  • Other Christian
    1%
    • Metaphysical family
      <1%
      • Spiritualist
        <1%
      • Unity Church
        <1%
      • Other metaphysical Christian ("Other Christian" trad.)
        <1%
    • Others in the "Other Christian" tradition
      <1%
Other religions
of adults who say religion does more harm than good on society identify with other religions.
  • Jewish
    3%
  • Muslim
    1%
  • Buddhist
    1%
  • Hindu
    1%
  • Other world religions
    1%
  • Something else
    5%
    • Unitarians and other liberal faiths
      2%
      • Unitarian
        <1%
      • Humanist
        <1%
      • Deist
        <1%
      • Spiritual but not religious
        1%
      • Eclectic/A bit of everything/"I have my own beliefs"
        <1%
      • Other in the "Unitarian and other liberal faiths" family
        <1%
    • New Age
      2%
      • Pagan or Wiccan
        1%
      • Other in the New Age family
        1%
    • Native American religions
      <1%
Religiously unaffiliated
of adults who say religion does more harm than good on society identify as religiously unaffiliated.
  • Atheist
    18%
  • Agnostic
    15%
  • Nothing in particular
    28%

Note: 1% did not answer the question. Figures may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Margin of error for 2023-24 figures based on adults who say religion does more harm than good on society is ±1.6 percentage points.

Contents

Related RLS content

Recommended citation: Pew Research Center. 2025. “2023-24 U.S. Religious Landscape Study Interactive Database.” doi: 10.58094/3zs9-jc14.