Map Options

Metric:
Color Scheme:
map placeholder
Click on a country for details.
% Catholic

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Highest Catholic Population 2024

Catholicism is a religion practiced in nations all around the world. It's a division of Christianity, the largest religion globally. There are several core beliefs of Catholicism. First, Catholics believe that Jesus is the son of God, that he was put to death by crucifixion sometime around 33 CE, and that he rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven. Catholics also believe that the Bible is the word of God. Catholics use the Ten Commandments as a moral and ethical compass. Catholics believe in Adam and Eve, and they believe that all humans are sinners because of Adam and Eve's original sin.

While these basic beliefs are common among all variations of Christianity, Catholicism also holds a number of exclusive views unique among Christian denominations. For example, while most Christians view baptism as a symbolic act, Catholics believe that the practice removes this original sin and is necessary for salvation. In addition, Catholics value praying to deceased saints and the Virgin Mary, whereas Christians pray only to the Holy Trinity of the Father (God), the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit. Additional differences include Catholics' confession of sins to an Earthly priest and the Catholic belief in the existence of Purgatory.

Top 11 Countries with the Greatest Number of Catholics (total headcount):

Country
Catholics
Brazil105.3M
Mexico91.2M
Philippines86M
United States67M
Italy42M
DR Congo37M
Colombia34M
Netherlands33.3M
France31.3M
Poland27.1M

Data from the CIA Factbook and the Pew Research Center has been used to identify nations with the highest population of Catholics. When looking at the total number of Catholics in a nation, Brazil comes out on top. It is estimated that at least 123 million people in Brazil are Catholic, although more recent estimates say this number could now be 140 million or higher.

The ten nations with the most number of Catholics behind Brazil are Mexico, the Philippines, the United States, Italy, France, Colombia, Poland, Spain, Argentina, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, this list changes a bit when you look at the total percentage of a nation that practices Catholicism.

Top 10 Countries with the Greatest Percentage of Catholics:

Vatican City may have only 800 Catholics, but they comprise the micronation's entire population—though granted, considering this is the global headquarters of the Catholic church, it does stand to reason. More than 96% of Timor-Leste's population is Catholic. San Marino comes in third based on the percentage of Catholics at 90.5%. Based on percentages, the top 10 nations with the highest Catholic populations are Vatican City, East Timor, San Marino, Paraguay, Malta, Andorra, Croatia, Poland, Portugal, and Italy.

214 Rows

Country
% Catholic
Catholics
Vatican City100%842
Timor Leste97.57%1M
Wallis and Futuna95.8%13.6K
Saint Pierre and Miquelon93%5.6K
San Marino90.5%29.4K
Paraguay88.3%6M
Andorra88.2%61.7K
Guadeloupe85.2%345.5K
Guam85%131.4K
Malta82.6%361.4K
Monaco82.3%29.9K
Equatorial Guinea80.7%1.4M
Portugal80.2%7M
Martinique80%312K
Reunion79.7%669.2K
Croatia79%3.1M
Philippines78.8%86M
Cape Verde77.3%395.9K
Lithuania77.2%2.1M
Seychelles76.2%70.9K
Aruba75.3%76.5K
French Guiana75%166.5K
Mexico74%91.2M
Italy74%42M
Peru74%24.6M
Sao Tome and Principe73.5%119.8K
Curacao72.8%103.5K
Slovenia72.1%1.5M
Poland71.1%27.1M
Colombia70.9%34M
Bolivia70%8M
Ecuador69.5%11.3M
Ireland69%3.5M
Northern Mariana Islands64.1%33.1K
Luxembourg63.8%369.6K
Burundi62.1%7.4M
Saint Lucia61.3%101.5K
New Caledonia60.2%150K
Cuba60%6M
Dominica58.1%41.6K
Puerto Rico56%2M
Slovakia55.8%3M
Kiribati55.8%54.7K
Panama55%1.9M
Haiti54.7%5.5M
Spain52.9%26M
Micronesia52.6%60K
Austria52%4.7M
Brazil50%105.3M
Gabon50%694.6K
Argentina48.9%22.5M
Dominican Republic48%5M
France47%31.3M
Costa Rica47%2.4M
Palau46%8.1K
Lesotho45.7%946K
Grenada44.6%39.9K
Belgium44%5M
Rwanda43.7%4.8M
Guatemala43%7M
Chile42%8.1M
Angola41.1%12.5M
Nicaragua40%2.4M
Belize40%133.6K
South Sudan39.7%4M
Uganda39.3%18.8M
El Salvador39%2.7M
Cameroon38.4%9.8M
Uruguay38%1.3M
DR Congo37%37M
Honduras37%3.3M
United States Virgin Islands34%37.3K
Switzerland33.8%2.9M
Republic of the Congo33.1%1.7M
Nauru32.96%3.3K
Canada29.9%11.1M
Madagascar29.5%5.3M
Hungary29.2%2.8M
Central African Republic29%950K
Lebanon28.8%1.4M
Mozambique27.2%5.3M
Benin26.6%2M
Togo26.4%1.5M
Papua New Guinea26%1.9M
Mauritius26%324.8K
Tanzania25.6%16.6M
Germany24.8%20.9M
Namibia22.8%344.2K
Trinidad and Tobago21.6%286K
Suriname21.6%119K
Ivory Coast21.4%5.1M
United States21%67M
Zambia21%3M
Kenya20.6%9.8M
Burkina Faso20.1%4.1M
Australia20%5.1M
Chad20%2.5M
Samoa19.6%35.1K
Latvia19.1%437.4K
Solomon Islands19%100K
Netherlands18.2%33.3M
Malawi17.2%3M
Tonga15.6%15.9K
Bosnia and Herzegovina15.19%536.3K
Cayman Islands14.1%6.7K
Vanuatu13.1%36.5K
Nigeria12.6%23.9M
Bahamas12%39.6K
Turks and Caicos Islands11.4%2.5K
South Korea11.1%5.9M
Ghana10%3.1M
New Zealand10%470K
Albania10%302K
Falkland Islands10%300
British Virgin Islands9.5%2.3K
Czech Republic9.3%985.3K
Fiji9.1%80.4K
United Kingdom9%5.7M
Guinea Bissau8.9%126K
Bahrain8.9%71.2K
Marshall Islands8.4%5.2K
Zimbabwe7.71%982.8K
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines7.5%8K
South Africa7.1%2.9M
Belarus7.1%674.5K
Guyana7.1%53K
Singapore7%398K
Saint Kitts and Nevis6.7%3.4K
Vietnam6.1%5.9M
Sri Lanka6.1%1.2M
Serbia6.1%433.2K
Kuwait6.1%142.5K
Qatar5.8%50K
Anguilla5.7%804
Ukraine5.6%2.4M
Antigua and Barbuda5.5%4.8K
Liberia5.4%188K
Hong Kong5.3%394K
United Arab Emirates5%128.2K
Brunei5%38.7K
Botswana4.9%80.4K
Eswatini4.9%62.8K
Romania4.7%1.8M
Macau4.6%30K
Barbados4.2%10K
Oman4.1%110K
Iceland3.9%13.8K
Senegal3.5%389.4K
Montenegro3.4%21.3K
Malaysia3.3%1.3M
Eritrea3.3%150.5K
Indonesia3.12%8.4M
Sierra Leone2.9%174.5K
Cyprus2.9%11K
Guinea2.6%246.2K
Saudi Arabia2.5%660.4K
Greece2.4%250K
Norway2.4%120.9K
Jamaica2.2%59.4K
Syria2.1%369K
Gambia2.1%33.5K
Palestine2%80K
Sweden1.8%180K
Mali1.5%189.3K
Taiwan1.3%297.6K
Israel1.2%93K
Myanmar1.1%450.5K
Sudan1%300K
Tuvalu1%100
India0.9%13M
Pakistan0.8%1.7M
Estonia0.8%8.7K
Ethiopia0.7%584.4K
Libya0.7%40.4K
Denmark0.7%46K
Kazakhstan0.6%91.1K
Laos0.6%37.3K
Bulgaria0.6%37.3K
Russia0.5%717.1K
Georgia0.5%18.6K
Moldova0.5%20.5K
China0.43%6M
Jordan0.4%23K
North Macedonia0.4%6.7K
Iraq0.35%133K
Japan0.3%382.3K
Thailand0.3%388.5K
Armenia0.3%8.7K
Tunisia0.2%22K
Finland0.2%12.4K
Djibouti0.2%953
Comoros0.2%1.6K
Greenland0.2%111
Algeria0.14%45K
Niger0.1%11.7K
Cambodia0.1%10K
Kyrgyzstan0.1%5.1K
Mauritania0.1%3.1K
Bangladesh0.07%110K
Morocco0.07%22.9K
Bhutan0.06%1.3K
Western Sahara0.06%163
Turkey0.05%35K
Mongolia0.04%1.1K
Nepal0.03%8.3K
Azerbaijan0.03%2.6K
Iran0.02%13.6K
Yemen0.02%4.1K
Maldives0.02%80
Uzbekistan0.01%2.7K
North Korea0.01%2.3K
Tajikistan0.01%1K
Turkmenistan0.01%500
Somalia0%100

Which countries are the most Catholic?

By percentage of the population, the most Catholic country is Vatican City, with 100% Catholic citizens. Brazil has the greatest number of Catholic people with 123,360,000.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources