Pastors & Staff2025LI-0013

The aging of America's pastors

Name: The aging of America's pastors
Creator: Barna Group

Percent of Protestant senior pastors in each age group (in percent)

Key finding

Pastors under 40 fell from one in three to one in seven.

Under 40: 33%
55 and older: 25%
65 and older: 6%

Source: Barna Group, The Aging of America's Pastors · n=900 Protestant senior pastors, Apr to Dec 2015, MoE ±3.1. Published Mar 1, 2017. Older data, but the most recent Barna age breakdown.

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Questions about this statistic

What does this statistic show?

Pastors under 40 fell from one in three to one in seven. Under 40: 33%. 55 and older: 25%. 65 and older: 6%.

Who published this data?

Barna Group, 2025. Source: Barna Group, The Aging of America's Pastors (https://www.barna.com/research/aging-americas-pastors/).

Where can I get the full data and a citation?

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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.