Religion

data essayJun 25, 2025

Nearly seven-in-ten Americans identify with a religion – higher than the shares seen in several other wealthy countries. Explore our interactive feature to see how the U.S. compares with more than 30 countries on questions about spirituality and religion.

Related: Believing in Spirits and Life After Death Is Common Around the World

short readJul 29, 2025

reportJun 16, 2025

Woman praying with rosary beads in hands

reportJun 9, 2025

Bar chart showing that Christians are the world’s largest religious group

All

Religion

Publications

Filtered by:

short readsDec 24, 2013

It’s not just kids who are excited about a visit from Santa

One-in-five adults who don’t have kids that believe in Santa still plan on a visit from Santa this year.
reportDec 18, 2013

Celebrating Christmas and the Holidays, Then and Now

Nine-in-ten Americans say they celebrate Christmas, and three-quarters say they believe in the virgin birth of Jesus. But only about half see Christmas mostly as a religious holiday, while one-third view it as more of a cultural holiday.
short readsDec 12, 2013

‘Merry Christmas’ or ‘Happy Holidays’?

When asked about how stores should greet their customers over the holidays, 42% of Americans prefer “Merry Christmas,” 12% prefer “Happy Holidays” and 46% say it doesn’t matter.
short readsDec 11, 2013

Pope Francis’ big year

Pope Francis began this year as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, an Argentine archbishop. He finishes it as Time magazine’s Person of the Year.
reportDec 11, 2013

How Americans Value Public Libraries in Their Communities

54% of Americans have used a public library in the past year, and 72% live in a “library household.” Most say libraries are very important to their communities.
featureDec 3, 2013

Infographic: Survey of Jewish Americans

Highlights from the Pew Research Survey on Jewish American attitudes on Jewish identity, marriage patterns, child rearing, attitudes towards Israel, and Jewish religious beliefs and practices.
short readsNov 26, 2013

Study: Muslim job candidates may face discrimination in Republican states

Job candidates who posted their Muslim identity on Facebook received fewer interview calls than those whose posts suggested they were Christian. The contrast was particularly notable in Republican-leaning states.
short readsNov 25, 2013

No clear ‘Pope Francis effect’ among U.S. Catholics

The pope’s popularity hasn’t yet produced a Catholic resurgence in the U.S. in terms of the share of Americans who identify as Catholic, or the share of those who report attending Mass weekly.
reportNov 21, 2013

Religious Groups’ Views on End-of-Life Issues

In these summaries, religious leaders, scholars and ethicists from 16 major American religious groups explain how their faith traditions’ teachings address physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia and other end-of-life questions.
reportNov 21, 2013

To End Our Days

The Social, Legal and Political Dimensions of the End-of-Life Debate

Signature Reports

reportFeb 26, 2025

After years of decline, the U.S. Christian share now shows signs of leveling off. The new Religious Landscape Study explores trends in identity, beliefs and practices.

data essayDec 21, 2022

The Global Religious Futures (GRF) project is jointly funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts and The John Templeton Foundation. Here are some big-picture findings from the GRF, together with context from other Pew Research Center studies.

reportMay 21, 2025