Singapore tops spiritual range; world developments present Christians largest, Muslims fastest-growing, Hindus close to 15% | – The Instances of India – Worldwide Dispatch

A congregant of the Re’ese Adbarat Debre Selam Kidist Mariam Church, an Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo church, stands throughout a service, in Washington, D.C., April 5, 2025. (AP Photograph/Jessie Wardarski, File)

Singapore has been named the world’s most religiously numerous nation in a sweeping examine of 201 nations, reflecting how evenly its inhabitants is unfold throughout seven main religion classes.The findings seize broader shifts underway globally. Christians stay the most important group at 2.3 billion, although their share of the world’s inhabitants has edged down. Muslims are the fastest-growing main faith, increasing by 347 million over the previous decade. Hindus grew by 126 million to succeed in 1.2 billion, holding regular at 14.9% of the worldwide inhabitants. In the meantime, the religiously unaffiliated now account for twenty-four.2% worldwide, the third-largest class, and Buddhists are the one main religion to say no in absolute numbers.On the reverse finish of the variety scale, Yemen, Afghanistan and Somalia rank among the many least religiously numerous, whereas the Asia-Pacific area stands out as probably the most assorted total.These findings are drawn from a Pew Analysis Heart report launched in February 2026 as a part of the Pew-Templeton World Spiritual Futures challenge, funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, the John Templeton Basis and Templeton Faith Belief. The examine ranks international locations utilizing a Spiritual Variety Index (RDI) based mostly on how evenly populations are distributed throughout seven teams: Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, adherents of all different religions, and folks with no spiritual affiliation.The rankings depend on demographic estimates beforehand printed in Pew’s 2025 report, How the World Spiritual Panorama Modified From 2010 to 2020, which synthesised greater than 2,700 censuses and surveys. Every of the 201 international locations and territories included had a minimum of 100,000 residents in 2010 or 2020, collectively accounting for 99.98% of the worldwide inhabitants in 2020.

Pew’s Spiritual Variety Index (RDI) assigns international locations a rating between 0 and 10. A rating of 0 represents full homogeneity, a inhabitants composed solely of 1 spiritual group. A rating of 10 would symbolize a wonderfully even break up amongst seven classes: Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, adherents of different religions, and folks with no spiritual affiliation, every group making up roughly 14% of the inhabitants. No nation achieved an ideal 10.The “different religions” class encompasses faiths equivalent to Baha’is, Daoists, Jains, Shintoists, Sikhs, Wiccans and Zoroastrians, in addition to quite a few smaller teams, together with these typically described as people or conventional religions.

Pew Analysis Heart’s Spiritual Variety Index (RDI) scores international locations on a scale from 0 to 10, measuring how evenly their populations are distributed throughout seven spiritual classes.

Of the 201 international locations and territories studied, eight fall into the “very excessive” range vary (scores between 7.0 and 10.0). On the different finish of the dimensions, 41 international locations are labeled as “very low” range, with scores under 1.0. The most important quantity, 89 international locations, sit within the center, categorised as reasonably numerous.

Singapore and the world’s most numerous societies

With a rating of 9.3, Singapore comes nearer than some other nation to a fair distribution throughout the seven classes. Buddhists kind 31% of Singapore’s inhabitants, making them the most important group. However they’re adopted intently by religiously unaffiliated residents at 20%, Christians at 19%, Muslims at 16%, Hindus at 5%, and adherents of different religions at 9%. No single group holds a majority. Suriname ranks second and is the one Latin American nation within the high 10. Its inhabitants is 53% Christian, 22% Hindu, 13% Muslim and eight% religiously unaffiliated, a demographic sample formed partly by descendants of Nineteenth-century indentured labourers from British India.

Singapore is the world’s most religiously numerous nation, with Buddhists, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, unaffiliated, and different faiths all represented/ Pew Analysis

Most different international locations within the high 10 are positioned both within the Asia-Pacific area, Taiwan, South Korea and Australia, or in sub-Saharan Africa, Mauritius, Guinea-Bissau, Togo and Benin. France is the one European nation within the high 10. Its inhabitants is 46% Christian, 43% religiously unaffiliated and 9% Muslim, giving it an RDI rating of 6.9. For comparability, South Korea scores 7.3 and the USA 5.8.

The least numerous international locations

No nation scores an ideal zero. However Yemen, Afghanistan and Somalia come closest. In every, Muslims account for 99.8% or extra of the inhabitants. General, Muslims make up a minimum of 99% of the inhabitants in eight of the ten least religiously numerous international locations and territories. The remaining two, Timor-Leste and Moldova, are virtually solely Christian.

Afghan worshippers attend Friday prayer throughout the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday. (File photograph: AP)

Regionally, the Center East and North Africa has the bottom range rating at 1.3. The area’s inhabitants is 94% Muslim and consists of 5 of the world’s ten least numerous locations: Yemen, Morocco, Western Sahara, Iraq and Tunisia.

What modified globally between 2010 and 2020

The examine additionally revisits how the world’s spiritual composition shifted over the last decade. Christians stay the most important spiritual group globally. Their numbers rose by 122 million to succeed in 2.3 billion. However as a share of the worldwide inhabitants, Christians declined by 1.8 proportion factors, falling to twenty-eight.8%. Muslims have been the fastest-growing group. Their inhabitants elevated by 347 million, greater than all different religions mixed, and their world share rose by 1.8 proportion factors to 25.6%. Folks with no spiritual affiliation, typically referred to as “nones,” grew by 270 million to 1.9 billion, rising their share to 24.2% of the worldwide inhabitants. This progress occurred regardless of the group being older on common and having decrease fertility charges, partly due to spiritual “switching,”significantly Christians disaffiliating. Hindus elevated by 126 million to 1.2 billion and held regular at 14.9% of the worldwide inhabitants.

An idol of elephant-headed Hindu god Ganesha is taken for immersion on the ultimate day of the ten-day lengthy Ganesh Chaturthi competition in Mumbai, India, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (AP Photograph/Rafiq Maqbool)

Buddhists have been the one main group to say no numerically, dropping by 19 million to 324 million and slipping to 4.1% of the worldwide inhabitants. The worldwide Jewish inhabitants grew by almost 1 million to 14.8 million and remained about 0.2% of the world’s inhabitants, the smallest group within the examine. All different religions mixed account for two.2% of the worldwide inhabitants and grew according to total inhabitants growth. As of 2020, 75.8% of the world’s inhabitants identifies with a faith, whereas 24.2% doesn’t. In 2010, these figures have been 76.7% and 23.3%, respectively.

Variety among the many world’s largest international locations

Among the many 10 most populous international locations, every with a minimum of 120 million folks and collectively accounting for almost 60% of the worldwide inhabitants, the USA is probably the most religiously numerous. Christians make up 64% of its inhabitants, religiously unaffiliated folks account for about 30%, and the remaining 6% are Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews and adherents of different religions, every representing roughly 1–2%. Nigeria is the second-most numerous amongst these giant international locations. Muslims and Christians every comprise greater than 40% of its inhabitants, making it probably the most evenly break up international locations between two spiritual teams. Pakistan, against this, is the least numerous among the many ten. Muslims account for 97% of its inhabitants, giving it an RDI rating of 0.8, in contrast with 5.8 in the USA.

Regional patterns

The Asia-Pacific area is probably the most religiously numerous total, with an RDI rating of 8.7. No single group kinds a majority there. The most important class, religiously unaffiliated folks, represents roughly one-third of the area’s inhabitants. The area consists of giant populations of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and adherents of different religions; Jews have a comparatively small presence. North America (6.0), sub-Saharan Africa (5.9) and Europe (5.6) are labeled as extremely numerous. In every of those areas, Christians kind the bulk. The second-largest group contains a minimum of 1 / 4 of the inhabitants, religiously unaffiliated folks in North America and Europe, and Muslims in sub-Saharan Africa. Latin America and the Caribbean fall into the reasonable class, with an RDI rating of three.1. The area has a robust Christian majority and a smaller share of unaffiliated residents.