Retention rate of those raised in each religious tradition
Percent of people raised in each tradition who stay in it as adults, GSS analysis (in percent)
Key finding
Highest: Raised Jewish (82%). Lowest: Raised mainline Protestant (58%).
- Raised Jewish: 82%
- Raised evangelical: 73%
- Raised Black Protestant: 71%
Source: Lifeway Research, Could the Rise of the Nones Be Over? · Analysis of General Social Survey religious switching data by Ryan Burge. Article published 2024-01-29.
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Questions about this statistic
What does this statistic show?
Highest: Raised Jewish (82%). Lowest: Raised mainline Protestant (58%). Raised Jewish: 82%. Raised evangelical: 73%. Raised Black Protestant: 71%.
Who published this data?
Lifeway Research, 2024. Source: Lifeway Research, Could the Rise of the Nones Be Over? (https://research.lifeway.com/2024/01/29/could-the-rise-of-the-nones-be-over/).
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- Christian and unaffiliated share, youngest vs. oldest adults Pew Research Center, 2025
- Christian teens who attended youth group in the past 3 months Barna Group, 2025
- Churches with targeted discipleship programs by group Lifeway Research, 2025
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.