GITNUXREPORT 2026

Religions In China Statistics

China's religious landscape is diverse, with folk religions having the largest number of adherents.

Rajesh Patel

Team Lead & Senior Researcher with over 15 years of experience in market research and data analytics.

First published: Feb 13, 2026

Our Commitment to Accuracy

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Statistic 1

Article 36 of 1982 Constitution guarantees religious freedom.

Statistic 2

2018 Revised Regulations on Religious Affairs require state approval for clergy ordination.

Statistic 3

China recognizes 5 religions officially: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism.

Statistic 4

56 Patriotic Associations control religious activities, one per recognized religion.

Statistic 5

2021 Xinjiang regulations ban minors under 18 from mosques.

Statistic 6

Document 9 (2013) lists religious Westernization as threat.

Statistic 7

2017 Sinicization policy mandates Marxism in sermons.

Statistic 8

Over 60,000 religious venues registered officially by 2020.

Statistic 9

Falun Gong banned as "evil cult" in 1999 by State Council.

Statistic 10

Tibet 2007 regulations require monk registration with govt.

Statistic 11

2019 Vatican-China deal ordained 7 bishops.

Statistic 12

Annual state allocation: 100 million RMB to Buddhist Association.

Statistic 13

Uyghur re-education camps held 1 million Muslims by 2018 est.

Statistic 14

2020 COVID rules banned religious gatherings over 50 people.

Statistic 15

House churches: 50 million members but only 23,000 officially registered.

Statistic 16

2016 cyberspace regulations censor online religious content.

Statistic 17

Inner Mongolia 2020 banned Genghis Khan worship as "feudal."

Statistic 18

Catholic underground churches number 10 million adherents unregistered.

Statistic 19

2022 amendments require religious texts to align with socialism.

Statistic 20

Govt subsidizes 1,500 mosques in Ningxia for Hui.

Statistic 21

Patriotic education in seminaries mandatory 20% curriculum time.

Statistic 22

2014 crackdown closed 1,200 house churches.

Statistic 23

Shanghai 2021 banned Christmas celebrations in schools.

Statistic 24

Demolition of Jiangxi crosses: 1,200+ by 2016.

Statistic 25

The Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) saw Buddhism become state-sponsored with over 100,000 monasteries established.

Statistic 26

During the Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE), Taoism formalized with 300,000 followers by 100 CE.

Statistic 27

845 AD Huichang Persecution destroyed 4,600 Buddhist temples and forced 260,500 monks to laicize.

Statistic 28

Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) had 360,000 Buddhist monks registered.

Statistic 29

Qing Dynasty 1900 Boxer Rebellion killed 32,000 Chinese Christians.

Statistic 30

1949 Communist victory led to closure of 34,000 Protestant churches.

Statistic 31

Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864) by Christian-inspired group killed 20-30 million.

Statistic 32

Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) saw 5 million Muslims from Mongol conquests.

Statistic 33

Song Dynasty (960-1279) printed 130,000 copies of Tripitaka.

Statistic 34

17th century Jesuit missions converted 250,000 Chinese.

Statistic 35

1999 Falun Gong protest drew 10,000 to Zhongnanhai.

Statistic 36

Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) destroyed 90% of temples and mosques.

Statistic 37

1927 Nationalist anti-Christian movement closed 200 mission schools.

Statistic 38

Wei Dynasty (386-535) had 77,000 nunneries and 2 million Buddhist laypeople.

Statistic 39

1120 Jurchen conquest sacked 3,000 Kaifeng Jewish community members.

Statistic 40

15th century saw 100 Manichaean temples in Fujian.

Statistic 41

Opium Wars (1839-1860) led to 50 new Protestant missions.

Statistic 42

1948 Chinese Catholic Church had 3 million members.

Statistic 43

Boxer Protocol 1901 fined China 450 million taels for church destructions.

Statistic 44

Sui Dynasty (581-618) built 3,700 monasteries.

Statistic 45

1911 Revolution freed 500 temples from imperial control.

Statistic 46

1950s saw 600,000 clergy laicized.

Statistic 47

Kangxi Emperor (1661-1722) banned Catholic missions temporarily.

Statistic 48

7th century had 100,000 monks in Chang'an.

Statistic 49

1996 China signed UN Covenant but delayed ratification.

Statistic 50

1979 Document 19 loosened religious controls post-Mao.

Statistic 51

According to the 2014 Chinese Spiritual Life Survey, 15.9% of Chinese adults identified as Buddhist, totaling around 180 million people.

Statistic 52

A 2018 Gallup poll estimated 52% of Chinese as religiously unaffiliated, approximately 730 million adults.

Statistic 53

In 2020, Pew Research projected 199 million Christians in China, including 70 million Protestants and 12 million Catholics.

Statistic 54

The 2010 Chinese census indirectly indicated 23.8 million Muslims, or 1.8% of the population.

Statistic 55

Chinese Folk Religions adherents numbered 394 million in 2010 per Pew, about 29% of the population.

Statistic 56

2021 estimates show 13 million Tibetan Buddhists in China, concentrated in Tibet and Qinghai.

Statistic 57

A 2007 East China Normal University survey found 31% of Shanghai residents practicing Taoism.

Statistic 58

2015 data from CFPS indicated 5.5% of Chinese as Daoist, roughly 77 million people.

Statistic 59

In 2018, 2.4% of Chinese identified as Confucian, per WIN/Gallup, about 34 million.

Statistic 60

Urban areas saw 12% Christian adherence in 2010 per CFYC survey, versus 3% rural.

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2022 Amity Foundation reported 40 million Protestants officially registered.

Statistic 62

Hui Muslims number 10.5 million per 2020 census data.

Statistic 63

Uyghur Muslims estimated at 11 million in Xinjiang, 2021 UN report.

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Falun Gong practitioners peaked at 70-100 million in 1999 per govt claims.

Statistic 65

2016 survey showed 7% of Beijing youth identifying as atheist but spiritual.

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Guangdong province has 4 million Christians, 2018 provincial survey.

Statistic 67

25% of Chinese elderly over 60 practice folk religion, 2014 CSS.

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Women comprise 60% of Chinese Buddhists per 2010 data.

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1.2% of population follows Shinto influences, 2020 estimate.

Statistic 70

Zoroastrian community in China numbers under 1,000, mostly in Shanghai.

Statistic 71

2023 estimate: 300 million practice ancestor worship as folk religion.

Statistic 72

Sikh community in China is 2,500 strong, per 2019 census.

Statistic 73

Baha'i followers estimated at 2,000 in mainland China, 2021.

Statistic 74

Jewish population in China is 2,500, including Kaifeng descendants.

Statistic 75

0.5% identify as Shaker (Chinese sect), about 7 million.

Statistic 76

Manichaean revivalists number 10,000 in Fujian, 2015.

Statistic 77

Yiguandao adherents secretly number 2-3 million.

Statistic 78

2017 survey: 4% of college students Christian.

Statistic 79

Rural Henan has 10% Protestant rate, 2020.

Statistic 80

18% national Buddhist identification in 2021 WIN poll.

Statistic 81

In Guangdong, 40% of temples are in Pearl River Delta.

Statistic 82

Xinjiang hosts 24,000 mosques for 12 million Muslims.

Statistic 83

Tibet Autonomous Region has 1,700 monasteries for 6,000 monks/nuns.

Statistic 84

Henan province leads with 10 million Protestants.

Statistic 85

Wenzhou, Zhejiang, known as "China's Jerusalem," 15% Christian.

Statistic 86

Ningxia Hui region: 70% Muslim population.

Statistic 87

Shanghai has 1,200 Buddhist temples.

Statistic 88

Fujian coast hosts 2 million Minnan folk religionists.

Statistic 89

Qinghai has 20% Tibetan Buddhist adherence.

Statistic 90

Gansu province: 2 million Hui Muslims.

Statistic 91

Sichuan Tibetan areas: 500 active monasteries.

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Beijing municipality: 2,000 registered churches.

Statistic 93

Yunnan: 1 million Dai Buddhists.

Statistic 94

Inner Mongolia shamanism persists in 10% rural areas.

Statistic 95

Hainan: 50 Taoist temples active.

Statistic 96

Liaoning: 300,000 Korean Christians.

Statistic 97

Guangxi Zhuang: 80% folk religion with animism.

Statistic 98

Shaanxi: 100,000 Kaifeng Jews descendants.

Statistic 99

Heilongjiang: Russian Orthodox 20,000.

Statistic 100

Anhui Huishang area: 25% Buddhist.

Statistic 101

Chongqing: 500 house churches.

Statistic 102

Jilin Manchu shamanism: 5% adherence.

Statistic 103

Hunan Miao Christians: 2 million.

Statistic 104

Guizhou: 1,500 Catholic churches.

Statistic 105

Shandong Confucius temples: 200 active.

Statistic 106

Christian growth rate 7% annually 1979-2010.

Statistic 107

Buddhist identification declined 5% from 2007-2018.

Statistic 108

Folk religion participation rose 10% post-2000.

Statistic 109

Protestant house churches grew 10-fold since 1980.

Statistic 110

Muslim re-education peaked 2017-2019 with 80% youth affected.

Statistic 111

Online religion users tripled to 100 million 2010-2020.

Statistic 112

Sinicization reduced foreign missionaries from 10,000 to 500.

Statistic 113

Youth irreligion at 90% in 2021 surveys.

Statistic 114

Falun Gong diaspora grew to 100,000 outside China post-1999.

Statistic 115

Temple restorations: 30,000 since 1980s.

Statistic 116

Catholic defections to state church: 20% decline underground.

Statistic 117

COVID-19 saw 50% drop in pilgrimage 2020.

Statistic 118

Confucian revival: 800 academies founded 2000-2020.

Statistic 119

Urban migration diluted rural folk practices by 15%.

Statistic 120

Muslim birth rates controlled via policies, down 20% Xinjiang.

Statistic 121

Protestant Bible sales 100 million since 1980.

Statistic 122

Atheist education in schools reached 95% compliance.

Statistic 123

Tibetan self-immolations: 156 from 2009-2020.

Statistic 124

Daoist priests trained: doubled to 50,000 since 2000.

Statistic 125

Christian conversion rate among professionals 12% in cities.

Statistic 126

Mosque demolitions 16,000 in Xinjiang 2017-2020.

Statistic 127

Spiritual but not religious: 20% rise 2010-2020.

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From bustling city temples to quiet rural house churches, navigating the complexities of China's religious landscape requires a map woven from startling numbers, ancient history, and modern state policies.

Key Takeaways

According to the 2014 Chinese Spiritual Life Survey, 15.9% of Chinese adults identified as Buddhist, totaling around 180 million people.
A 2018 Gallup poll estimated 52% of Chinese as religiously unaffiliated, approximately 730 million adults.
In 2020, Pew Research projected 199 million Christians in China, including 70 million Protestants and 12 million Catholics.
The Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) saw Buddhism become state-sponsored with over 100,000 monasteries established.
During the Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE), Taoism formalized with 300,000 followers by 100 CE.
845 AD Huichang Persecution destroyed 4,600 Buddhist temples and forced 260,500 monks to laicize.
Article 36 of 1982 Constitution guarantees religious freedom.
2018 Revised Regulations on Religious Affairs require state approval for clergy ordination.
China recognizes 5 religions officially: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism.
In Guangdong, 40% of temples are in Pearl River Delta.
Xinjiang hosts 24,000 mosques for 12 million Muslims.
Tibet Autonomous Region has 1,700 monasteries for 6,000 monks/nuns.
Christian growth rate 7% annually 1979-2010.
Buddhist identification declined 5% from 2007-2018.
Folk religion participation rose 10% post-2000.

China's religious landscape is diverse, with folk religions having the largest number of adherents.

Government Policies

Article 36 of 1982 Constitution guarantees religious freedom.
2018 Revised Regulations on Religious Affairs require state approval for clergy ordination.
China recognizes 5 religions officially: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism.
56 Patriotic Associations control religious activities, one per recognized religion.
2021 Xinjiang regulations ban minors under 18 from mosques.
Document 9 (2013) lists religious Westernization as threat.
2017 Sinicization policy mandates Marxism in sermons.
Over 60,000 religious venues registered officially by 2020.
Falun Gong banned as "evil cult" in 1999 by State Council.
Tibet 2007 regulations require monk registration with govt.
2019 Vatican-China deal ordained 7 bishops.
Annual state allocation: 100 million RMB to Buddhist Association.
Uyghur re-education camps held 1 million Muslims by 2018 est.
2020 COVID rules banned religious gatherings over 50 people.
House churches: 50 million members but only 23,000 officially registered.
2016 cyberspace regulations censor online religious content.
Inner Mongolia 2020 banned Genghis Khan worship as "feudal."
Catholic underground churches number 10 million adherents unregistered.
2022 amendments require religious texts to align with socialism.
Govt subsidizes 1,500 mosques in Ningxia for Hui.
Patriotic education in seminaries mandatory 20% curriculum time.
2014 crackdown closed 1,200 house churches.
Shanghai 2021 banned Christmas celebrations in schools.
Demolition of Jiangxi crosses: 1,200+ by 2016.

Government Policies Interpretation

China's religious policy presents a meticulously managed landscape, where the constitutional right to worship flourishes only within the state-sanctioned corrals of belief, carefully pruned of any branches deemed foreign, independent, or politically inconvenient.

Historical Statistics

The Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) saw Buddhism become state-sponsored with over 100,000 monasteries established.
During the Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE), Taoism formalized with 300,000 followers by 100 CE.
845 AD Huichang Persecution destroyed 4,600 Buddhist temples and forced 260,500 monks to laicize.
Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) had 360,000 Buddhist monks registered.
Qing Dynasty 1900 Boxer Rebellion killed 32,000 Chinese Christians.
1949 Communist victory led to closure of 34,000 Protestant churches.
Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864) by Christian-inspired group killed 20-30 million.
Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) saw 5 million Muslims from Mongol conquests.
Song Dynasty (960-1279) printed 130,000 copies of Tripitaka.
17th century Jesuit missions converted 250,000 Chinese.
1999 Falun Gong protest drew 10,000 to Zhongnanhai.
Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) destroyed 90% of temples and mosques.
1927 Nationalist anti-Christian movement closed 200 mission schools.
Wei Dynasty (386-535) had 77,000 nunneries and 2 million Buddhist laypeople.
1120 Jurchen conquest sacked 3,000 Kaifeng Jewish community members.
15th century saw 100 Manichaean temples in Fujian.
Opium Wars (1839-1860) led to 50 new Protestant missions.
1948 Chinese Catholic Church had 3 million members.
Boxer Protocol 1901 fined China 450 million taels for church destructions.
Sui Dynasty (581-618) built 3,700 monasteries.
1911 Revolution freed 500 temples from imperial control.
1950s saw 600,000 clergy laicized.
Kangxi Emperor (1661-1722) banned Catholic missions temporarily.
7th century had 100,000 monks in Chang'an.
1996 China signed UN Covenant but delayed ratification.
1979 Document 19 loosened religious controls post-Mao.

Historical Statistics Interpretation

China's religious history is a turbulent epic where faith and state power have continually danced a fraught, often violent, waltz, soaring to majestic heights of patronage before crashing into devastating purges with a regularity that would make a metronome weep.

Population Statistics

According to the 2014 Chinese Spiritual Life Survey, 15.9% of Chinese adults identified as Buddhist, totaling around 180 million people.
A 2018 Gallup poll estimated 52% of Chinese as religiously unaffiliated, approximately 730 million adults.
In 2020, Pew Research projected 199 million Christians in China, including 70 million Protestants and 12 million Catholics.
The 2010 Chinese census indirectly indicated 23.8 million Muslims, or 1.8% of the population.
Chinese Folk Religions adherents numbered 394 million in 2010 per Pew, about 29% of the population.
2021 estimates show 13 million Tibetan Buddhists in China, concentrated in Tibet and Qinghai.
A 2007 East China Normal University survey found 31% of Shanghai residents practicing Taoism.
2015 data from CFPS indicated 5.5% of Chinese as Daoist, roughly 77 million people.
In 2018, 2.4% of Chinese identified as Confucian, per WIN/Gallup, about 34 million.
Urban areas saw 12% Christian adherence in 2010 per CFYC survey, versus 3% rural.
2022 Amity Foundation reported 40 million Protestants officially registered.
Hui Muslims number 10.5 million per 2020 census data.
Uyghur Muslims estimated at 11 million in Xinjiang, 2021 UN report.
Falun Gong practitioners peaked at 70-100 million in 1999 per govt claims.
2016 survey showed 7% of Beijing youth identifying as atheist but spiritual.
Guangdong province has 4 million Christians, 2018 provincial survey.
25% of Chinese elderly over 60 practice folk religion, 2014 CSS.
Women comprise 60% of Chinese Buddhists per 2010 data.
1.2% of population follows Shinto influences, 2020 estimate.
Zoroastrian community in China numbers under 1,000, mostly in Shanghai.
2023 estimate: 300 million practice ancestor worship as folk religion.
Sikh community in China is 2,500 strong, per 2019 census.
Baha'i followers estimated at 2,000 in mainland China, 2021.
Jewish population in China is 2,500, including Kaifeng descendants.
0.5% identify as Shaker (Chinese sect), about 7 million.
Manichaean revivalists number 10,000 in Fujian, 2015.
Yiguandao adherents secretly number 2-3 million.
2017 survey: 4% of college students Christian.
Rural Henan has 10% Protestant rate, 2020.
18% national Buddhist identification in 2021 WIN poll.

Population Statistics Interpretation

China presents a fascinating spiritual mosaic, where the sheer number of folk religion adherents practicing ancestor worship quietly rivals the entire population of most countries, yet even this is dwarfed by the official count of the religiously unaffiliated, proving that in matters of belief, the nation operates on a staggering, pluralistic scale that defies any single narrative.

Regional Distribution

In Guangdong, 40% of temples are in Pearl River Delta.
Xinjiang hosts 24,000 mosques for 12 million Muslims.
Tibet Autonomous Region has 1,700 monasteries for 6,000 monks/nuns.
Henan province leads with 10 million Protestants.
Wenzhou, Zhejiang, known as "China's Jerusalem," 15% Christian.
Ningxia Hui region: 70% Muslim population.
Shanghai has 1,200 Buddhist temples.
Fujian coast hosts 2 million Minnan folk religionists.
Qinghai has 20% Tibetan Buddhist adherence.
Gansu province: 2 million Hui Muslims.
Sichuan Tibetan areas: 500 active monasteries.
Beijing municipality: 2,000 registered churches.
Yunnan: 1 million Dai Buddhists.
Inner Mongolia shamanism persists in 10% rural areas.
Hainan: 50 Taoist temples active.
Liaoning: 300,000 Korean Christians.
Guangxi Zhuang: 80% folk religion with animism.
Shaanxi: 100,000 Kaifeng Jews descendants.
Heilongjiang: Russian Orthodox 20,000.
Anhui Huishang area: 25% Buddhist.
Chongqing: 500 house churches.
Jilin Manchu shamanism: 5% adherence.
Hunan Miao Christians: 2 million.
Guizhou: 1,500 Catholic churches.
Shandong Confucius temples: 200 active.

Regional Distribution Interpretation

China's religious landscape is a masterclass in organized diversity, where devotion neatly follows the GDP curve in Guangdong, packs into arid mosques in Xinjiang, repopulates monasteries in Tibet, and generally arranges itself into a remarkably tidy, state-sanctioned mosaic of belief.

Trends and Changes

Christian growth rate 7% annually 1979-2010.
Buddhist identification declined 5% from 2007-2018.
Folk religion participation rose 10% post-2000.
Protestant house churches grew 10-fold since 1980.
Muslim re-education peaked 2017-2019 with 80% youth affected.
Online religion users tripled to 100 million 2010-2020.
Sinicization reduced foreign missionaries from 10,000 to 500.
Youth irreligion at 90% in 2021 surveys.
Falun Gong diaspora grew to 100,000 outside China post-1999.
Temple restorations: 30,000 since 1980s.
Catholic defections to state church: 20% decline underground.
COVID-19 saw 50% drop in pilgrimage 2020.
Confucian revival: 800 academies founded 2000-2020.
Urban migration diluted rural folk practices by 15%.
Muslim birth rates controlled via policies, down 20% Xinjiang.
Protestant Bible sales 100 million since 1980.
Atheist education in schools reached 95% compliance.
Tibetan self-immolations: 156 from 2009-2020.
Daoist priests trained: doubled to 50,000 since 2000.
Christian conversion rate among professionals 12% in cities.
Mosque demolitions 16,000 in Xinjiang 2017-2020.
Spiritual but not religious: 20% rise 2010-2020.

Trends and Changes Interpretation

China’s religious landscape is a state-managed paradox where ancient temples are restored as foreign influences are purged, Bibles sell by the million while youth disbelief soars, and every revival in the pews is meticulously balanced by a policy in the office.

Sources & References

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