The religious landscape of the United States has changed substantially over the past two decades. Christianity remains the country’s largest religious tradition, but a growing share of adults describe themselves as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular.”
That shift is sometimes described simply as “the rise of atheism,” but that phrase can be misleading. Most religiously unaffiliated Americans are not atheists. Pew Research Center’s 2023–24 Religious Landscape Study found that 29% of U.S. adults were religiously unaffiliated, including about 5% who identified as atheist, 6% as agnostic and 19% as nothing in particular.
The social effects are also more complicated than claims that secularization either destroys morality or automatically produces a more rational society. Religious institutions provide community, ritual, charity and identity. Secular people can also build moral frameworks, civic organizations and strong social relationships without religious belief. The most useful question is therefore not whether atheism is “good” or “bad” for society. It is what changes when religious identification declines, which institutions lose or gain influence, and how communities adapt.
Atheism Is Not the Same as Religious Unaffiliation
Several terms are often mixed together.
| Term | General meaning |
|---|---|
| Atheist | A person who does not believe in God or gods |
| Agnostic | A person who regards God’s existence as unknown or unknowable, or is uncertain about belief |
| Religiously unaffiliated | A broad survey category including atheists, agnostics and people whose religion is “nothing in particular” |
| Secular | A broader description that can refer to nonreligious beliefs, institutions or public arrangements |
| Secularization | A process through which religious authority, participation or identification declines in some areas of society |
These categories overlap, but they are not interchangeable.
A person can be religiously unaffiliated while still believing in God, praying or describing themselves as spiritual.
How Much Has the U.S. Religious Landscape Changed?
Pew Research Center’s 2023–24 Religious Landscape Study found that approximately:
- 62% of U.S. adults identified as Christian.
- 29% were religiously unaffiliated.
- The remaining share belonged to Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and other religious traditions.
In Pew’s 2007 Religious Landscape Study, about 78% of adults identified as Christian and 16% were religiously unaffiliated.
The long-run change is therefore substantial even though recent Pew data suggest the Christian share may have been comparatively stable for several years after a long decline.
Most “Nones” Are Not Atheists
The nickname religious nones refers to people who answer “atheist,” “agnostic” or “nothing in particular” when asked their religion.
Because atheists are only one component, a headline claiming that 29% of Americans are atheists would be wrong.
Pew’s detailed research also shows that many nones retain beliefs or practices often associated with religion or spirituality.
This makes religious change more complex than a simple movement from belief to disbelief.
Why Are More People Religiously Unaffiliated?
There is no single cause.
Researchers examine several overlapping influences:
- Generational replacement.
- Changing family religious transmission.
- Political and cultural associations with religion.
- Lower institutional trust.
- Greater social acceptance of nonreligious identity.
- Intermarriage.
- Individualization and changing community life.
- People leaving a childhood religion without joining another.
The balance varies from person to person.
Generational Change
Younger American adults are generally more likely than older adults to identify as religiously unaffiliated.
This does not mean every young person will remain unaffiliated for life. Some people become more or less religious as they age.
But when younger cohorts begin adulthood with lower religious affiliation than the generations they replace, the population-level effect can continue for decades.
Religious Switching
Religious identity is not fixed at birth.
People may:
- Leave a childhood religion.
- Convert to another religion.
- Become unaffiliated.
- Return to a faith later.
- Change denominations while remaining within a larger tradition.
In the United States, switching out of Christianity into religious unaffiliation has been an important contributor to long-term change.
Does Secularization Mean Religion Is Disappearing?
No.
Christianity remains the majority religion in the United States, and religious communities continue to shape family life, politics, education, charity and culture.
Other religious traditions are also growing in some areas through immigration, demographic change and conversion.
Secularization can mean reduced institutional authority without the elimination of personal spirituality or belief.
Can People Be Moral Without Believing in God?
Most Americans say yes.
Pew’s 2023–24 Religious Landscape Study found that about 68% of U.S. adults said it is possible to be moral and have good values without believing in God.
This does not settle philosophical debates about the ultimate foundation of morality. It does show that most Americans do not view religious belief as a necessary condition for ethical behavior.
Where Do Secular Moral Frameworks Come From?
Nonreligious people can draw moral reasoning from:
- Empathy.
- Human rights.
- Reciprocity.
- Consequences for well-being.
- Virtue ethics.
- Secular philosophy.
- Law and civic norms.
- Family and cultural traditions.
Religious believers can use some of these same sources while also grounding ethics in theology or scripture.
Real moral life rarely divides neatly into “religious morality” and “secular morality.”
Religion and Community
One of the strongest arguments about declining religious participation concerns community infrastructure.
Congregations often provide:
- Regular face-to-face gatherings.
- Volunteer opportunities.
- Support during illness or bereavement.
- Child and family activities.
- Rituals marking major life events.
- Charitable networks.
- Intergenerational relationships.
If participation declines, societies need to consider whether other institutions replace those functions.
Leaving Religion Does Not Automatically Mean Social Isolation
Religiously unaffiliated people can build community through:
- Friends and family.
- Sports and recreation.
- Volunteering.
- Professional groups.
- Neighborhood organizations.
- Political and civic organizations.
- Secular humanist groups.
- Online and interest-based communities.
The challenge is institutional structure. A congregation often meets regularly by default, while secular social networks may require more deliberate maintenance.
What Pew Finds About Civic Participation
Pew’s research on religious nones complicates the assumption that nonreligious Americans are uniformly disengaged from society.
Atheists and agnostics often report civic and political participation at levels that match or exceed religiously affiliated Americans on several measures.
People who identify as “nothing in particular,” however, tend to show lower participation on some measures.
This is another reason not to treat all religiously unaffiliated people as one social group.
Religious Institutions and Charity
Faith communities are major providers of charitable activity.
They may operate:
- Food programs.
- Schools.
- Hospitals.
- Refugee assistance.
- Homeless services.
- Disaster relief.
- International development programs.
A decline in affiliation does not automatically eliminate these organizations, but long-term reductions in membership and donations can affect their capacity.
Secular nonprofits and government programs also perform many of the same functions.
Religion and Mental Well-Being
Research often finds associations between religious participation and some measures of well-being or social support.
Interpretation requires care.
Possible pathways include:
- Community support.
- Shared meaning.
- Regular routines.
- Hope and coping frameworks.
- Reduced isolation.
These benefits do not prove theological claims, nor do they mean nonreligious people are destined to have worse mental health.
People who have experienced religious discrimination, coercion or conflict may experience leaving a community very differently.
Meaning Without Religion
Nonreligious people can find meaning through:
- Relationships.
- Parenthood.
- Work.
- Art.
- Science.
- Service.
- Nature.
- Learning.
- Humanistic commitments.
A society with more religious diversity and nonreligion therefore contains multiple systems of meaning rather than no meaning at all.
Family Life
Religious change can affect families when generations have different beliefs.
Potential points of tension include:
- Marriage ceremonies.
- Religious education for children.
- Dietary or holiday practices.
- Funerals.
- Expectations about worship attendance.
Interfaith and religious-secular families often develop practical compromises.
The social change is therefore partly about learning to maintain close relationships despite different worldviews.
Marriage and Religious Homogamy
Historically, many people married within their religious tradition.
As affiliation becomes more diverse and nonreligion grows, mixed-belief relationships become more common.
This can further reduce automatic transmission of one religious identity to children.
It can also broaden tolerance within families when different traditions are handled respectfully.
Politics and Religion
Religion remains strongly connected to American politics.
Religious groups differ significantly in party identification and views on issues such as:
- Abortion.
- LGBTQ rights.
- Education.
- Immigration.
- Race.
- Church-state relations.
Religiously unaffiliated Americans are also politically diverse, although as a group they lean differently from some major religious constituencies.
These patterns can contribute to the perception that religion is part of partisan identity.
Political Backlash Can Affect Religious Identity
Some scholars argue that when religious institutions become strongly associated with a political faction, people who reject that politics may distance themselves from the religion as well.
This does not explain every case of disaffiliation, and political influence can run in both directions.
But it highlights an institutional risk: a faith community that becomes perceived primarily as a political identity may lose people whose religious beliefs do not align with that political package.
Church and State
A more religiously diverse and secular population can increase attention to government neutrality toward religion.
In the United States, the First Amendment protects both:
- Free exercise of religion.
- Limits on government establishment of religion.
Protecting religious freedom therefore includes protecting believers, minority faiths and people who hold no religious belief.
Schools
Public schools often become a major arena for religious-pluralism questions.
Schools may need to distinguish between:
- Teaching about religion academically.
- Government-sponsored religious practice.
- Students’ rights to express personal religious views.
- Accommodation of religious observance.
- Rights of nonreligious students.
Religious literacy can become more important as direct familiarity with particular traditions declines.
Does Less Religion Cause More Crime?
Simple national or historical comparisons cannot establish that religious decline causes crime.
Crime is affected by many factors, including:
- Age distribution.
- Economic conditions.
- Policing.
- Drug markets.
- Firearm availability.
- Urban design.
- Family and social networks.
Highly secular countries are not uniformly high-crime societies, and highly religious societies are not uniformly low-crime societies.
Claims about causation need stronger evidence than a correlation between two national statistics.
Does Atheism Produce Scientific Progress?
Science does not require atheism.
Scientists include atheists, agnostics and religious believers.
Modern science depends on methods such as:
- Observation.
- Measurement.
- Testing.
- Replication.
- Peer criticism.
A secular scientific institution means explanations are evaluated through publicly testable evidence, not that every scientist must hold a nonreligious worldview.
Religion Can Also Change in Response to Secularization
Declining affiliation does not make religious institutions passive.
Congregations may respond by changing:
- Worship styles.
- Community programs.
- Digital outreach.
- Leadership models.
- Approaches to young adults.
- Public engagement.
Some religious communities become smaller but more committed. Others broaden participation.
Secularization can therefore reshape religion rather than simply eliminate it.
Religious Diversity and Tolerance
A society containing Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, agnostics and many other identities needs norms that allow deep disagreement without exclusion.
Useful principles include:
- Freedom of conscience.
- Equal citizenship.
- No religious test for ordinary civic participation.
- Protection from discrimination.
- Ability to criticize religious and secular ideas peacefully.
Tolerance does not require treating every belief as true. It requires allowing people with incompatible beliefs to share institutions fairly.
Why “Atheism vs Religion” Is Often the Wrong Frame
The modern religious landscape is multidimensional.
A religious person may rarely attend services. An atheist may participate actively in civic organizations. A “nothing in particular” respondent may believe strongly in a higher power. A person may retain cultural religious identity without theological belief.
Questions about community, morality and politics are therefore better analyzed through actual behavior and institutions than labels alone.
What Could Be Lost When Religious Participation Declines?
Potential losses can include:
- Regular intergenerational gathering spaces.
- Local volunteer infrastructure.
- Shared rituals.
- Some charitable capacity.
- Institutional continuity.
Whether these losses occur depends on whether other institutions perform similar functions.
What Could Be Gained?
Potential social changes can include:
- Greater acceptance of freedom from religion.
- More diverse family and identity choices.
- Reduced social pressure to claim beliefs a person does not hold.
- More explicit church-state neutrality.
- New secular forms of community and ethical organization.
Again, none of these outcomes occurs automatically.
How to Discuss Religious Change Without Stereotypes
- Do not treat every unaffiliated person as an atheist.
- Do not assume religious believers are irrational or intolerant.
- Do not assume atheists lack moral values.
- Separate personal belief from institutional participation.
- Use current survey data.
- Distinguish correlation from causation.
- Recognize differences within both religious and nonreligious groups.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage of Americans are atheist?
Pew’s 2023–24 Religious Landscape Study found that about 5% of U.S. adults identified as atheist.
What percentage are religiously unaffiliated?
About 29% were religiously unaffiliated, including atheists, agnostics and people who described their religion as nothing in particular.
Are most religiously unaffiliated Americans atheists?
No. The largest subgroup is “nothing in particular,” and many unaffiliated adults retain spiritual or theistic beliefs.
Do Americans think morality requires belief in God?
Most do not. Pew found that roughly 68% said it is possible to be moral and have good values without believing in God.
Does declining religion automatically weaken society?
No automatic conclusion is supported. Religious institutions provide important social functions, but secular people and organizations also contribute to civic, charitable and community life. Outcomes depend on which institutions replace or preserve those functions.
Sources and Further Reading
- Pew Research Center 2023–24 Religious Landscape Study on religious identity
- Pew Research Center on religious nones in America
- Pew Research Center on religion and views of right and wrong
Conclusion
Religious change in the United States is real, but describing it as a simple rise of atheism misses most of the story.
Nearly three in ten adults are now religiously unaffiliated, yet only a minority of that group identifies as atheist. Many nones retain spiritual beliefs, while some religiously affiliated people participate only loosely in institutional religion.
The social consequences are similarly mixed. Congregations remain important sources of community, service and identity. Secular people can be moral, civically active and socially connected without religious belief. The central challenge for a more pluralistic society is not deciding which worldview should win. It is maintaining strong institutions, social trust and freedom of conscience while people increasingly disagree about religion itself.