Islam is now the fastest-growing religion on Earth, with Muslims making up one in every four people worldwide — according to a new report.
Between 2010 and 2020, Islam was the fastest-growing religion in the world, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.
During this period, the number of Muslims increased by 347 million – more than all other religions combined.
And the share of the world’s population that is Muslim rose by 1.8 points, to 25.6%.
The report says that Islam’s growth is driven by a mix of factors: high birth rates, a strong family life, youthful populations, and a deep sense of religious identity.
While other religions — especially Christianity in the West — are seeing more people walk away, Muslims tend to stay rooted in their faith.
Pew noted: “Although the global Muslim population grew at a faster rate than any other major religion between 2010 and 2020, this was largely because of overall population growth in the countries where Muslims are concentrated. Muslim shares are estimated to have risen by at least 5 points in Kazakhstan, Benin and Lebanon, and to have dropped by at least 5 points in Tanzania and Oman.”
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Globally, Muslims now make up just over a quarter of the world’s population, with some of the sharpest increases seen in sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, and parts of Europe.
Christians remained the world’s biggest religious group, but Christians (of all denominations, counted as one group) did not keep pace with global population growth from 2010 to 2020.
The number of Christians rose by 122 million, reaching 2.3 billion. Yet, as a share of the world’s population, Christians fell 1.8 percentage points, to 28.8%
This was due largely to population decline and secularisation in traditional Christian heartlands.
The report also found that hundreds of millions now identify with “no religion,” particularly in the West, where atheism, agnosticism and spiritual individualism are on the rise.
However, Pew projects this “nones” cohort will decline over the long term, falling from 16 % in 2010 to about 13 % by 2050, as they are generally older and have lower birth rates.
In parts of the West like the UK, Germany, and Canada, more people are stepping away from organised religion. Many turn instead to secularism or vague spiritual ideas.
Meanwhile, Buddhists decreased in number between 2010 and 2020 (from 343 million to 324 million) due to low fertility and disaffiliation.
Hindus and Jews, by contrast, maintained stable shares.
Jewish adherents are projected to rise modestly in absolute terms — from around 14 million in 2010 to approximately 16 million in 2050 — but will still remain a tiny global share.
