Where churches stand on attendance compared with before COVID
Percent of U.S. Protestant churches by share of pre-COVID attendance, 2022 (in percent)
Key finding
Highest: 90% or more (35%). Lowest: Below half (8%).
- 90% or more: 35%
- 70% to under 90%: 31%
- More than half, under 70%: 26%
Source: Lifeway Research, Churches Are Open but Still Recovering From Pandemic Attendance Losses · Phone survey of 1,000 Protestant pastors, September 2022; sampling error plus or minus 3.2%. Article published 2022-11-08.
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Questions about this statistic
What does this statistic show?
Highest: 90% or more (35%). Lowest: Below half (8%). 90% or more: 35%. 70% to under 90%: 31%. More than half, under 70%: 26%.
Who published this data?
Lifeway Research, 2022. Source: Lifeway Research, Churches Are Open but Still Recovering From Pandemic Attendance Losses (https://research.lifeway.com/2022/11/08/churches-are-open-but-still-recovering-from-pandemic-attendance-losses/).
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More Attendance statistics
- Change in congregations' worship attendance over two years Lifeway Research, 2026
- Churchgoers' views on the amount of liturgical style in their church Lifeway Research, 2026
- Regular religious service attendance by age group Lifeway Research, 2026
- Americans who rarely or never attend worship services Lifeway Research, 2023
- Americans who say they belong to a church or house of worship Lifeway Research, 2023
- Churchgoers who say experiencing God in person with others is very important Barna Group, 2023
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.