Childhood faith experiences of those who stayed Protestant vs. left
Percent of U.S. adults who grew up Protestant, by whether they are still Protestant or now unaffiliated (in percent)
Key finding
- Attended church at least monthly: 83%
- Mostly positive church experience: 72%
- Regularly did four to five religious activities: 49%
Source: Lifeway Research, 5 Keys to a Faith That Carries Into the Next Generation · Pew Research data on U.S. adults raised Protestant, reported by Lifeway Research. Article published 2026-02-03.
See all 5 categories, the full chart and more
Free account: full chart, CSV and PNG downloads, ready-to-paste citation, branded share image, and a discussion question for your team.
Questions about this statistic
What does this statistic show?
Attended church at least monthly: 83%. Mostly positive church experience: 72%. Regularly did four to five religious activities: 49%.
Who published this data?
Lifeway Research, 2026. Source: Lifeway Research, 5 Keys to a Faith That Carries Into the Next Generation (https://research.lifeway.com/2026/02/03/5-keys-to-a-faith-that-carries-into-the-next-generation/).
Where can I get the full data and a citation?
Create a free Leader Insights account to open the full chart, download CSV or PNG, copy a citation and save the statistic to your own library.
More Next Generation statistics
- Churchgoers who say their church is multigenerational Lifeway Research, 2026
- Pastors who say engagement among men ages 18 to 35 has increased Barna Group, 2026
- Pastors who say their church is multigenerational, by church attendance Lifeway Research, 2026
- Pastors who say their church is multigenerational Lifeway Research, 2026
- Senior pastors reporting higher engagement among Gen Z Barna Group, 2026
- Senior pastors reporting higher engagement among Millennials Barna Group, 2026
About this data
Leader Insights collects statistics about U.S. churches from published research by organizations such as Lifeway Research, Barna Group, Springtide, the American Bible Society and PRRI. Every number is checked against the wording of the original source before it is published, and each statistic links back to the study it came from. Figures are reproduced from the publishers named above; see the source for full methodology.