Religion by Country
Religion in Germany: Statistics, Demographics & Trends
No single religious group now holds a majority in Germany, as the unaffiliated population has overtaken both the Catholic and Protestant churches combined.
Quick answer
As of the mid-2020s, around 48% of people in Germany have no religious affiliation, roughly 23% are Catholic and 21% belong to the Evangelical Church (Protestant), with Muslims making up about 5.5% and small Orthodox Christian and other communities making up the remainder. Because Germany's census does not ask about religion, these figures come from official church membership registers and independent research compilations, not a single government count.
- Largest group
- No religion — about 48%
- Largest religion
- Christianity (Catholic + Protestant) — about 44%
- Largest minority faith
- Islam — about 5.5%
- Data source
- fowid; EKD & German Bishops’ Conference membership statistics
- Reference year
- 2023–2025 estimates
Germany at a glance
Germany has no religion question on its official census, a legacy of data-protection sensitivities tracing back to the Nazi era's misuse of religious records. Instead, the most reliable figures come from the two large churches' own membership registers — used to administer Germany's church tax (Kirchensteuer) — supplemented by independent research groups like fowid, which estimate the size of groups the churches don't track, including Muslims and the unaffiliated. On these estimates, people with no religious affiliation now form the single largest group, having overtaken both the Catholic and Protestant churches individually, though Christians combined still outnumber the unaffiliated.
| Religion | Population | Share |
|---|---|---|
| No religion | ≈ 40 million | 48.1% |
| Catholic | ≈ 19 million | 23.0% |
| Protestant (EKD) | ≈ 17.4 million | 20.8% |
| Muslim | ≈ 4.6 million | 5.5% |
| Orthodox Christian | ≈ 1.3 million | 1.5% |
| Other / Jewish / Buddhist | ≈ 0.9 million | 1.1% |
The major religious groups
No religion (about 48%) is the largest single category and has grown steadily for decades, especially in the former East Germany, where decades of state secularism left church membership far lower than in the west. Catholicism (about 23%) and the Evangelical Church in Germany (about 21%), an umbrella of regional Protestant churches, are of comparable size nationally, though their geographic strongholds differ sharply. Islam (about 5.5%) is Germany's largest non-Christian religion, shaped by decades of labour migration from Turkey from the 1960s onward and more recent refugee migration from Syria and elsewhere.
Regional and historical patterns
Germany's religious map still reflects the 16th-century Reformation and the country's 20th-century division. The south and west (Bavaria, parts of North Rhine-Westphalia) remain predominantly Catholic; the north (Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein) leans Protestant. The former East Germany is the most secular region in the country by a wide margin, a legacy of four decades of state-sponsored atheism under the German Democratic Republic — in several eastern states, the unaffiliated make up a clear majority of the population.
Church tax and religious affiliation
A distinctive feature of German religious life is the Kirchensteuer, a church tax of about 8-9% of income tax owed, automatically collected by the state from registered members of the Catholic and Protestant churches (and some smaller groups). Formally leaving a church (Kirchenaustritt) to stop paying this tax is a documented administrative act, which is part of why church register figures are considered a relatively reliable lower bound for formal membership, even though many registered members are not regularly practising. For comparison with another historically Christian, increasingly secular European society, see religion in the United Kingdom.
Frequently asked questions
What is the main religion in Germany?
No single religion holds a majority in Germany. People with no religious affiliation form the largest single group at about 48%, followed by Catholics (about 23%) and Protestants belonging to the Evangelical Church in Germany (about 21%).
Why doesn't Germany's census ask about religion?
Germany's official census does not include a religion question, reflecting data-protection sensitivities that trace back to the misuse of religious registration records under the Nazi regime. Religious statistics instead come from church membership registers, maintained for tax purposes, and independent research compilations.
How many Muslims live in Germany?
Muslims make up an estimated 5.5% of Germany's population, or roughly 4.6 million people, making Islam the country's largest non-Christian religion. This population grew substantially through labour migration from Turkey from the 1960s and later refugee migration, particularly after 2015.
Is Germany becoming less religious?
Yes. The share of people with no religious affiliation has grown steadily for decades and, on current estimates, has overtaken both the Catholic and Protestant churches individually as the single largest group, though Christians combined still outnumber the unaffiliated.
Sources & methodology
Because Germany's census does not collect religion data, these figures are compiled from the official membership statistics published annually by the two largest churches, supplemented by independent research on groups those registers do not cover.
- Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) and German Bishops’ Conference (DBK), annual membership statistics.
- fowid (Forschungsgruppe Weltanschauungen in Deutschland), religious affiliation estimates for Germany (fowid.de).
- Pew Research Center, religious composition estimates for Germany.