Declining Importance of Religion Among Young Americans

For many years, Gallup has surveyed Americans regarding the significance of religion in their lives. This pattern shows an overall decline since 2000 across various age groups and genders.

Men aged 18-29 had a noticeable decrease in valuing religion after a temporary uptick from 2010 to 2013. However, recent observations indicate a shift.

Interestingly, young Republican women are also showing a renewed interest in religion alongside their male counterparts.

There seems to be a collective movement among young people recognizing religion as “very important” to their lives. In the 2022-2023 period, only 28% expressed this sentiment, which surged to 42% in 2024-2025.

Shifts Among Young Women

On the other hand, the percentage of young women who consider religion important has hit a historic low, with only 29% in 2024-2025, down from 52% in 2000-2001. Conversely, older age groups still see women rate the importance of religion higher than men.

The acknowledgment of religion’s importance among young men reflects more than just talk; actual church attendance increased by 7 percentage points from the previous years, now reaching 40%. This aligns closely with young women’s attendance rates, marking the highest since 2012-2013. Recent data suggests that many young people are attending places of worship regularly, reinforcing the trend.

Across Political Lines

When breaking it down by political affiliation, there’s been a notable rise in religious attendance among young men: a 7 percentage point jump for Republican men (from 45% to 52% from 2022-2023) and a 3 percentage point increase for Democratic men (from 23% to 26%).

Alongside increased attendance, 63% of young individuals now express a sense of belonging to a particular religion, a peak not seen since the early 2010s. While this number has risen, it still falls short of the 80% recorded in 2000-2001.

Religious ties among young women have also shown a promising rise, reaching 60% in 2024-2025, marking the first growth since 2002-2003.

Political Factors at Play

Gallup noted that the increase in religious attendance among young Republicans, including young women, hints that political dynamics might influence the shifting religious landscape among America’s youth.

This surge in interest in faith coincides with a record number of conversion baptisms, notably within Catholic and Mormon communities. Despite recent declines in religiosity, there seems to be a resurgence in certain demographics.