Christians are the largest immigrant group, but Jews are more likely to have emigrated.
(Mirsad Salajlic/Getty Images)
For this report, we collected data on the existing “stock” of international migrants – all adults and children currently living outside their country of birth, regardless of when they left. (The report does not estimate migrant “flows” – the number of people moving across borders in a year.)
Our goal was to describe the religious composition of international migrants (how many are Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish and Muslim) and how many are unaffiliated (e.g. atheist, agnostic etc.). We did not analyse patterns for other religious groups such as Baha'is or Sikhs, as many national censuses do not provide data on these groups.
Our migration numbers are based on hundreds of censuses, surveys and other data sources. We started with the most recent migration estimates from the United Nations Population Division, covering the years 1990 to 2020. The UN figures tell us where international migrants come from (i.e. their country or territory of origin) and where they end up (i.e. their country or territory of destination). However, the UN does not provide information on their religion.
To estimate immigrants’ religious identity, we primarily use data from 270 censuses and surveys (such as the World Values Survey, European Social Survey, and Pew Research Center surveys) conducted in the areas where immigrants currently live.
When a country did not have sufficient survey or census data on immigrants' religion, we typically turned to information on immigrants living in similar geographic and religious contexts. For example, the Belgian survey had too few Syrian immigrants to estimate their religious composition, so we used surveys of Syrians living in other European countries where Christians are the largest religious group.
Using these methods, we estimated the religious composition of 98% of the world's international migrants. For the remaining 2% of migrants, we assumed that their composition matches the religious composition of their country of origin.
In total, we estimate the religious composition of immigrants across 95,696 combinations of origin and destination countries and regions from 232 countries and regions of origin. Migration via other routes is unknown.
The complete methodology can be found here.
The United Nations considers people of any age living outside their country (or territory, as the case may be) of their birth to be international migrants, regardless of their motivation for migration, duration of residence or legal status.
The UN's number of international migrants includes naturalized citizens and permanent residents, as well as asylum seekers, refugees and people without official residency documents. It also includes people living in a country temporarily, such as some students and foreign workers, but does not include tourists or other short-term residents, and does not usually include military forces deployed abroad.
For the sake of brevity, this report refers to international migrants simply as immigrants. We sometimes use the term immigrant to distinguish between migrants who live in their destination country and those who have left their country of origin. People who live outside their country of birth fall into all three categories: immigrants, migrants and immigrants.
The analysis in this report focuses on the existing stock of international migrants (all people currently living outside their country of birth, regardless of when they left). It does not estimate migration flows (the number of people moving across borders in a year).
Migration has been increasing steadily over recent decades. Currently, more than 280 million people, or 3.6% of the world's population, are international migrants, meaning they live outside their country of birth.
A new Pew Research Center analysis of UN data and 270 censuses and surveys estimates that Christians made up 47% of people living outside their country of birth in 2020, the most recent year for which global statistics are available.
Muslims make up 29% of all immigrants, followed by Hindus (5%), Buddhists (4%) and Jews (1%).
The non-religious – that is, people who say they have no religion or identify as atheists or agnostics – make up 13% of all people who have left their country of birth and are now living in another country.
Over the past three decades, the total number (or total number) of people living as international migrants has increased by 83%, outpacing the growth rate of world population by 47%.
The report focuses on inflows rather than inflows of migration: it counts all adults and children currently living outside their country of birth, regardless of when they left.
We are not trying to estimate how many people move in a year.
The religious composition of immigrant flows can change significantly from year to year due to wars, economic crises, natural disasters, etc., but the total number of immigrants changes more slowly, reflecting patterns that accumulate over time.
The religious composition of international migrants overall has remained relatively stable since 1990.
Our analysis revealed the following:
Christians make up a much larger share of immigrants (47%) than they make up the world population (30%). Mexico is the most common country of origin for Christian immigrants, and the United States is the most common destination. Muslims make up a slightly larger share of immigrants (29%) than they make up the world population (25%). Syria is the most common country of origin for Muslim immigrants, and Muslims often migrate to locations in the Middle East and North Africa region, such as Saudi Arabia. The proportion of non-religious people is lower among immigrants (13%) than they make up the world population (23%). China is the most common country of origin for non-religious immigrants, and the United States is the most common destination. Hindus make up a significantly lower share of international immigrants (5%) than they make up the world population (15%). India is both the most common country of origin and the largest destination for Hindu immigrants. Buddhists make up 4% of the world population and 4% of international immigrants. Myanmar (also known as Burma) is the most common country of origin for Buddhist immigrants, while Thailand is the most common destination. Jews make up a much higher proportion of immigrants (1%) than their share of the world population (0.2%). Israel is the most frequent country of origin for Jewish immigrants and their largest destination. Of the major religious groups, Jews are by far the most likely to have emigrated: one in five Jews lives outside their country of birth, compared with lower proportions for Christians (6%), Muslims (4%), Hindus (1%), Buddhists (4%) and non-religious people (2%). The relationship between religion and migration
People move abroad for many reasons: to find work, to further their education, to reunite with family, etc. However, religion and migration often go hand in hand.
Many immigrants migrate to escape religious persecution or to live among people of similar religious beliefs. Often, people bring their religion with them when they immigrate, contributing to a gradual change in the religious composition of their new country. However, immigrants sometimes abandon the religion they were raised in and adopt the majority religion of their new host country, another religion, or no religion at all.
Although migration patterns by religious groups differ, the groups in this analysis also have much in common. For example, migrants often move to countries where their religious identity is already deeply rooted. Many Muslims move to Saudi Arabia, while Jews are drawn to Israel. The top three destinations for Christian and non-religious migrants are the United States, Germany, and Russia.
And regardless of religion, immigrants often move from relatively poor or dangerous places to countries they hope will find prosperity and safety.
These are some of the key findings from Pew Research Center's analysis of international migration around the world. The study is part of the Pew-Templeton Future of World Religions Project, which aims to understand global religious change and its impact on societies.
The remainder of the report contains the following chapters:
Transitioning from 2020 onwards
The report is based on UN estimates of the number of international migrants around the world for 1990, 2020 and every five-year period in between.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to strict travel restrictions and a sharp decline in migration. However, since then, movement has increased and migration flow patterns have undergone dramatic changes. For example, the war with Russia led to a sharp increase in migration from Ukraine.
Although the report does not include very recent migration, recent events are unlikely to have had a significant impact on the overall religious composition of migrants: even large flows of people leaving a country become part of larger groups of migrants who have already left, and the characteristics of these groups tend to change very slowly.
