51% of ‘nones’ who left their childhood religion say an important reason they did so is that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings | Pew Research Center

December 10, 2025

Why many U.S. adults are ‘nones,’ and why some former ‘nones’ have joined a religion

51% of ‘nones’ who left their childhood religion say an important reason they did so is that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings

51% of ‘nones’ who left their childhood religion say an important reason they did so is that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings

Download

51% of ‘nones’ who left their childhood religion say an important reason they did so is that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings

1 234 5

Infographic Gallery

Why many U.S. adults are ‘nones,’ and why some former ‘nones’ have joined a religion
Most U.S. religious ‘nones’ were raised in a religion
78% of ‘nones’ say an extremely or very important reason why they have no religion is that they can be moral without it
51% of ‘nones’ who left their childhood religion say an important reason they did so is that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings
6 in 10 former ‘nones’ who now identify with a religion say they do so because they believe in the religion’s teachings, it fulfills their spiritual needs
Americans who identify with a religion much more likely than ‘nones’ to say they had a mostly positive experience with religion as kids