Very or extremely important reasons for switching to a different religion
Percent of U.S. adults who grew up in one religion and later chose a different one, 2026 (in percent)
Key finding
Highest: Felt called to a new faith (48%). Lowest: Married someone with a different religion (24%).
- Felt called to a new faith: 48%
- Spiritual needs not met in previous religion: 45%
- Stopped believing old faith's teachings: 33%
Source: Lifeway Research, What Causes Some to Stay With Their Faith While Others Leave? · Article published 2026-01-29.
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Questions about this statistic
What does this statistic show?
Highest: Felt called to a new faith (48%). Lowest: Married someone with a different religion (24%). Felt called to a new faith: 48%. Spiritual needs not met in previous religion: 45%. Stopped believing old faith's teachings: 33%.
Who published this data?
Lifeway Research, 2026. Source: Lifeway Research, What Causes Some to Stay With Their Faith While Others Leave? (https://research.lifeway.com/2026/01/29/what-causes-some-to-stay-with-their-faith-while-others-leave/).
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More Belief & Culture statistics
- Age at which people switched religious identification Lifeway Research, 2026
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- Catholics with a favorable view of Pope Leo XIV Public Religion Research Institute, 2026
- Confidence in organized religion or the church Lifeway Research, 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.