Bible Belt States 2026
Part of Bible Belt
State | Part of Bible Belt↓ | Additional Details | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Alabama | Yes | |
 | Arkansas | Yes | |
 | Georgia | Yes | |
 | Kentucky | Yes | |
 | Mississippi | Yes | |
 | North Carolina | Yes | |
 | Oklahoma | Yes | |
 | South Carolina | Yes | |
 | Tennessee | Yes | |
 | West Virginia | Yes | |
 | Florida | Partly | North Florida |
 | Illinois | Partly | |
 | Indiana | Partly | Southern Indiana |
 | Iowa | Partly | |
 | Kansas | Partly | |
 | Louisiana | Partly | Most of Louisiana, excluding heavily Catholic Southern Louisiana |
 | Missouri | Partly | Southern Missouri; excludes Kansas City and St. Louis |
 | New Mexico | Partly | |
 | Ohio | Partly | Southern Ohio |
 | Texas | Partly | Most of Texas; excludes South Texas and Trans-Pecos |
 | Virginia | Partly | Most of Virginia outside Northern Virginia |
 | Alaska | No | |
 | Arizona | No | |
 | California | No | |
 | Colorado | No | |
 | Connecticut | No | |
 | Delaware | No | |
 | Hawaii | No | |
 | Idaho | No | |
 | Maine | No | |
 | Maryland | No | |
 | Massachusetts | No | |
 | Michigan | No | |
 | Minnesota | No | |
 | Montana | No | |
 | Nebraska | No | |
 | Nevada | No | |
 | New Hampshire | No | |
 | New Jersey | No | |
 | New York | No | |
 | North Dakota | No | |
 | Oregon | No | |
 | Pennsylvania | No | |
 | Rhode Island | No | |
 | South Dakota | No | |
 | Utah | No | Although closely identified with the Mormon faith, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in particular, Utah's geographical distance from the other "belt" states means it is rarely considered part of the Bible Belt |
 | Vermont | No | |
 | Washington | No | |
 | Wisconsin | No | |
 | Wyoming | No |
- “Bible Belt” is an unofficial designation. As such, different sources’ versions of the Bible Belt may vary from one another.
The Bible Belt is a region located primarily in the southern United States. This informal term is used to describe an area with conservative Protestant values. This region also has attendance numbers at Christian churches that exceed the national average.
The term “Bible Belt” was first coined in 1924. Journalist H.L. Mencken used the word in an article appearing in the Chicago Daily Tribune. Later, Mencken claimed to be the inventor of the term.
The number of religious citizens living in the Bible Belt region is dramatically higher when compared to other areas of the U.S. The Northeast is home to the least religious U.S. states. The greatest percentage of non-religious citizens reside in Vermont. 37% of people that live in Vermont state they are non-religious. Compare this to Alabama, the Bible Belt state with the highest percentage of residents identifying as non-religious at just 12%.
While there are a few definitions of what states make up the Bible Belt, it’s accepted that the following states are included:
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Georgia
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- Oklahoma
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
Other states that are sometimes included are:
- Florida (this is debated because of the large number of non-religious people in the state)
- Kentucky
- Missouri
- Texas (western part only)
- Utah
- Virginia
- West Virginia
In general, these states are the country’s most religious. Two cities even are known as the Buckle of the Bible Belt. These cities are Abilene, Texas, the location of three Christian universities, and Nashville, Tennessee, which has multiple Christian schools and over 700 churches.
