Countries Are Turning Away from Religion

• Canada is the country with the largest decline in religious influence, with a 42% drop in people describing religion as an important part of their lives.
• Christianity is seeing the sharpest decline globally, with nine countries on the list where it remains the national religion now experiencing an average drop in faith of 25%.
• Azerbaijan is the first and only Islamic nation in the top 10 and has experienced a 28% decline in religious beliefs.

Globally, the percentage of people identifying as religious dropped from 68% in 2005 to 56% by the end of last year. To understand which countries are swearing off religion the most, MyCross analyzed shifts in how important people consider religion in their lives.

This study analyzes survey data from 30 countries to assess the evolution of religious importance over time. For each country, the earliest and most recent available survey years were selected. The study focused on the combined percentage of respondents who value religion as “very important” or “rather important in their lives. The final difference was calculated to highlight a clear cross-national view of how attitudes toward religion have shifted over the past few decades.

Here is the summary of the findings:

You can find the full research findings by following this link.

More Canadians are stepping away from religion more than anywhere else in the world, with a 42% drop in people saying faith is an important part of their lives. In 1993, 60% of Canadians felt that religion was central to who they are. By 2022, that number had fallen to just 35%, showing a dramatic decline.

Australia isn’t far behind in second place, with a steep 40% drop in the number of people who say religion is important for them. In 1998, nearly half of Australians (48%) saw faith as a meaningful part of life. By the latest survey, that number had fallen to just 28%, six percent less than Canadians.

Denmark ranks third among countries turning away from religion, with a 38% drop in those who consider faith important. Even in the earliest survey, only 31% of Danes said religion played a significant role in their lives. That number has now slipped below 20%, marking one of the sharpest declines, despite starting from an already low base.

Chile stands fourth, standing out as the only Latin American country on this list. In contrast to Denmark, Chile had one of the highest initial rates of belief, at 78%, but experienced a steep 30% decline, bringing the number of people who now say religion is important in their lives down to just 54%.

Azerbaijan rounds out the top five countries turning away from religion, and it is the only Islamic country on the list. Like Chile, it began with one of the highest levels of religious belief, standing out for the highest survey results overall, with 82% saying faith was important. In just 27 years, it saw a 28% decline, bringing that number down to 58%.

Austria follows in sixth, with a 25% decline in religious belief over time. In the initial 1998 survey, 57% of respondents identified religion as important, but that number has since fallen to just 43%. This drop marks a broader shift in public opinion, as a majority of Austrians, 55%, now say religion plays no role in their lives at all.

Czechia stands seventh among the countries moving away from religion the most, with a 16% decline. Following a pattern similar to Denmark, it began with one of the lowest levels of religious belief, just 25%, even lower than Denmark’s baseline. That number has dropped further, and a vast majority of 78% say religion holds no importance at all in their lives.

Finland follows in eighth place, with a 15% decline in religious belief. In 1993, 37% of respondents said religion was important in their lives. By the most recent survey, that number had dropped to 31%. Meanwhile, 67% now say religion is not important to them at all.

France comes in ninth. Once one of the world’s most Christian countries, it now has only 37% of people identifying as believers, just two percent more than Canada. With a 15% decline in faith, the French have largely embraced secularism, with the majority saying religion no longer plays a role in their lives (63%).

Belgium finishes off the list of countries moving away from religion the most, with a 9% decline in those saying faith plays an important role in their lives. In 1993, 45% of Belgians felt this way; today, that number has fallen to 40%.