{"id":260426,"date":"2025-06-09T13:47:10","date_gmt":"2025-06-09T17:47:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?p=260426"},"modified":"2025-08-14T10:29:38","modified_gmt":"2025-08-14T14:29:38","slug":"buddhist-population-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/buddhist-population-change\/","title":{"rendered":"6. Buddhist population change"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Buddhists are the only group in this report whose number declined worldwide between 2010 and 2020. This was due both to religious disaffiliation among Buddhists in East Asia<\/a> and to a relatively low birth rate among Buddhists, who tend to live in countries with older populations. Most of the world\u2019s Buddhists (98%) reside in the Asia-Pacific region, the birthplace of Buddhism. Outside Asia, only North America and Europe have more than 1 million Buddhists each.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Challenges of measuring Buddhist identity<\/summary>\n

Estimating the global size of the Buddhist population is challenging because our standard measure of religious affiliation does not work as well in East Asian societies \u2013 where Buddhism is prevalent \u2013 as it does in other parts of the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Size estimates in this report are based primarily on censuses and surveys that ask about religious identity,<\/em> typically with the question, \u201cWhat is your religion, if any?\u201d In several East Asian places, common translations of \u201creligion\u201d often are understood to refer to organized, hierarchical forms of religion, such as Christianity, and some people who engage in Buddhist beliefs and practices may not consider themselves to be \u201cBuddhist\u201d in the formal sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, in places like China<\/a> and Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam<\/a>, Buddhism tends to be deeply embedded with local folk religions, and the lines between Buddhism and other religious traditions are blurry \u2013 both to practitioners of these traditions and the scholars who study them.

In other words, our Buddhist estimates do not reflect the full influence of Buddhism, as they exclude people who do not formally consider themselves Buddhist, even though they may engage in Buddhist beliefs or practices. But our estimates do<\/em> capture respondents who feel formally affiliated with Buddhism and are actively engaged in Buddhist beliefs and practices. (For more on the characteristics of self-identified Buddhists, read our reports \u201cMeasuring Religion in China<\/a>\u201d and \u201cReligion and Spirituality in East Asian Societies<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

Global change<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The number<\/em> of Buddhists around the world declined 5%, from 343 million in 2010 to 324 million in 2020. No other major religious group shrank in absolute numbers during this period. The decrease in Buddhists was largely due to declines in East Asian countries, such as China (down 23 million) and Japan (down 7 million).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During this decade, the rest of the world\u2019s population grew by 13%. As a result, Buddhists declined as a share<\/em> of the world\u2019s population, from just under 5% in 2010 to just over 4% in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Table<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Regional change<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In two regions, there were fewer Buddhists in 2020 than in 2010. In the Asia-Pacific region, the number (or count<\/em>) of Buddhists declined by 6% to 316 million. In Latin America and the Caribbean, it declined by 3% to 330,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elsewhere, the Buddhist count increased between 2010 and 2020. In North America, it rose by 27% to 5.0 million. In Europe, the number of Buddhists grew by 26% to 2.5 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Table<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The small Buddhist populations in the Middle East-North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa regions also are estimated to have grown sharply while still numbering fewer than 100,000 in each region in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the Buddhist count changed in every region between 2010 and 2020, the share<\/em> of the population that is Buddhist did not change much in most regions. In the Asia-Pacific region, the Buddhist share dropped by about 1 percentage point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regional distribution of Buddhists<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Since 2010, the geographic distribution of the world\u2019s Buddhists has changed little. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Table<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As of 2020, the Asia-Pacific region remains home to most of the world\u2019s Buddhists (98%), and the rest continue to live mostly in North America (2%) and Europe (1%).[24. numoffset=”24″ Percentages do not add up to 100% because of rounding.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, there was a slight shift in the geographic concentration of Buddhists between 2010 and 2020. The percentage of the world\u2019s Buddhists living in Asia declined slightly, while North America and Europe experienced small increases in their shares of the global Buddhist population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Countries with the highest Buddhist counts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Thailand has the world\u2019s largest number of Buddhists, with 68 million, making up 94% of the country\u2019s population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Table<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

China has the second-largest number of Buddhists (53 million), although Buddhists account for just 4% of China\u2019s overall population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buddhists form a majority in seven countries: Cambodia (97%); Thailand (94%); Myanmar, which is also called Burma (89%); Bhutan (75%), Sri Lanka (70%); Laos (64%); and Mongolia (51%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 10 countries with the largest numbers of Buddhists are home to 91% (or 296 million) of the global Buddhist population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the 10 countries with the largest numbers of Buddhists, only four \u2013 Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar and Sri Lanka \u2013 have Buddhist majorities. Elsewhere, Buddhists form minorities and sometimes comprise a tiny fraction of the overall population. For example, India\u2019s Buddhists (approximately 10 million) make up less than 1% of the country\u2019s population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where did the Buddhist share of the population change the most?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Between 2010 and 2020, the share of a country\u2019s population identifying as Buddhist only changed substantially (by at least 5 percentage points) in South Korea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How is \u2018substantial change\u2019 defined?<\/summary>\n

This section highlights countries that experienced substantial change in the size of their religious populations between 2010 and 2020. We focus on cases where a religious group\u2019s share of a country\u2019s population grew or shrank by at least 5 percentage points. We set that threshold because wide variations in data sources make it difficult to test the statistical significance of differences in population estimates in 2010 and 2020. Refer to the Methodology<\/a> for details.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

In South Korea,<\/strong> the percentage of Buddhists dropped over the decade by about 7 points (0r 2.6 million people) to 19%. Many South Koreans who were raised Buddhist have left their childhood religion<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Table<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The number<\/em> of Buddhists in China and Japan declined considerably, but their shares<\/em> in these countries \u2013 which have relatively large overall populations \u2013 changed by less than 5 points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buddhists are losing adherents in these countries not only due to widespread disaffiliation \u2013 people leaving religion after having been raised Buddhist \u2013 but also because Buddhists in these places tend to be older than the general population and therefore closer to the end of their lives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Buddhism is the only major religion that declined in number globally between 2010 and 2020, mostly due to religious disaffiliation in East Asia and to low birth 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the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020","slug":"how-the-global-religious-landscape-changed-from-2010-to-2020","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/how-the-global-religious-landscape-changed-from-2010-to-2020\/","is_active":false},{"id":260365,"title":"1. Factors driving religious change, 2010-2020","slug":"factors-driving-religious-change-2010-2020","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/factors-driving-religious-change-2010-2020\/","is_active":false},{"id":260372,"title":"2. Christian population change","slug":"christian-population-change","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/christian-population-change\/","is_active":false},{"id":260385,"title":"3. Muslim population change","slug":"muslim-population-change","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/muslim-population-change\/","is_active":false},{"id":260391,"title":"4. Religiously unaffiliated population change","slug":"religiously-unaffiliated-population-change","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religiously-unaffiliated-population-change\/","is_active":false},{"id":260423,"title":"5. 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Religion in Asia and the Pacific","slug":"religion-in-asia-and-the-pacific","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-asia-and-the-pacific\/","is_active":false},{"id":260455,"title":"10. Religion in Europe","slug":"religion-in-europe","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-europe\/","is_active":false},{"id":260457,"title":"11. Religion in Latin America and the Caribbean","slug":"religion-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean\/","is_active":false},{"id":260459,"title":"12. Religion in the Middle East and North Africa","slug":"religion-in-the-middle-east-and-north-africa","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-the-middle-east-and-north-africa\/","is_active":false},{"id":260490,"title":"13. Religion in North America","slug":"religion-in-north-america","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-north-america\/","is_active":false},{"id":260607,"title":"14. Religion in sub-Saharan Africa","slug":"religion-in-sub-saharan-africa","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-sub-saharan-africa\/","is_active":false},{"id":260378,"title":"15. Why we revised our estimates for 2010","slug":"why-we-revised-our-estimates-for-2010","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/why-we-revised-our-estimates-for-2010\/","is_active":false},{"id":260611,"title":"Acknowledgments","slug":"global-religious-change-acknowledgments","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/global-religious-change-acknowledgments\/","is_active":false},{"id":260613,"title":"Methodology","slug":"global-religious-change-methodology","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/global-religious-change-methodology\/","is_active":false}],"report_materials":[{"key":"_3pi6z37oo","type":"report","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/06\/PR_2025.06.09_global-religious-change_report.pdf","label":"Report PDF","attachmentId":261693},{"key":"_t509pgqtr","type":"link","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/06\/PR_2025.06.09_global-religious-change_appendix-a.pdf","label":"Appendix A: Sources","icon":"link"},{"key":"_d2dnc5rqw","type":"link","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2025\/06\/PR_2025.06.09_global-religious-change_appendix-b.pdf","label":"Appendix B: Religious composition table","icon":"link"},{"key":"_2pwbpkp0p","type":"link","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/feature\/religious-composition-by-country-2010-2020\/","label":"Interactive table: Religious composition by country, 2010-2020","icon":"link"},{"type":"dataset","id":2763,"label":"Dataset of Global Religious Composition Estimates for 2010 and 2020","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/dataset\/dataset-of-global-religious-composition-estimates-for-2010-and-2020\/"}],"report_pagination":{"current_post":{"id":260426,"title":"6. 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Buddhist population change","slug":"buddhist-population-change","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/buddhist-population-change\/","is_active":true,"page_num":7},{"id":260432,"title":"7. \u2018Other religions\u2019 population change","slug":"other-religions-population-change","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/other-religions-population-change\/","is_active":false,"page_num":8},{"id":260450,"title":"8. Jewish population change","slug":"jewish-population-change","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/jewish-population-change\/","is_active":false,"page_num":9},{"id":260452,"title":"9. Religion in Asia and the Pacific","slug":"religion-in-asia-and-the-pacific","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-asia-and-the-pacific\/","is_active":false,"page_num":10},{"id":260455,"title":"10. Religion in Europe","slug":"religion-in-europe","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-europe\/","is_active":false,"page_num":11},{"id":260457,"title":"11. Religion in Latin America and the Caribbean","slug":"religion-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean\/","is_active":false,"page_num":12},{"id":260459,"title":"12. Religion in the Middle East and North Africa","slug":"religion-in-the-middle-east-and-north-africa","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-the-middle-east-and-north-africa\/","is_active":false,"page_num":13},{"id":260490,"title":"13. Religion in North America","slug":"religion-in-north-america","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-north-america\/","is_active":false,"page_num":14},{"id":260607,"title":"14. Religion in sub-Saharan Africa","slug":"religion-in-sub-saharan-africa","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/religion-in-sub-saharan-africa\/","is_active":false,"page_num":15},{"id":260378,"title":"15. Why we revised our estimates for 2010","slug":"why-we-revised-our-estimates-for-2010","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/why-we-revised-our-estimates-for-2010\/","is_active":false,"page_num":16},{"id":260611,"title":"Acknowledgments","slug":"global-religious-change-acknowledgments","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/global-religious-change-acknowledgments\/","is_active":false,"page_num":17},{"id":260613,"title":"Methodology","slug":"global-religious-change-methodology","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2025\/06\/09\/global-religious-change-methodology\/","is_active":false,"page_num":18}]},"parent_info":{"parent_title":"How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020","parent_id":260333},"materialsOrdered":[],"chaptersOrdered":[],"partsOrdered":[],"partsEnabled":false,"datacite_doi":"Hackett, Conrad, Marcin Stonawski, Yunping Tong, Stephanie Kramer, Anne Fengyan Shi and Dalia Fahmy. 2025. \"How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020.\" Pew Research Center. doi: 10.58094\/fj71-ny11.","prc_seo_data":{"title":"Countries with the most Buddhists & global Buddhist population change, 2010-2020","description":"Buddhism is the only major religion that declined in number globally between 2010 and 2020, mostly due to religious disaffiliation in East Asia and to low birth rates, according to Pew Research Center.","og_title":"6. 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