Religious service attendance differs substantially across age groups. In the 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study, 49% of adults born in 1940 or earlier—approximately ages 74 and older—reported attending in person at least monthly, compared with 24% of adults born in the 1990s, approximately ages 24 to 34. The same study measured attendance from July 17, 2023, through March 4, 2024, while PRRI provides a separate comparison of weekly attendance in 2013 and 2023.
Contents
- Monthly attendance by birth cohort
- Weekly and monthly attendance patterns
- Infrequent or no attendance
- The 2020-to-2024 monthly trend
- Weekly attendance in 2013 and 2023
- How to read these age statistics
Monthly attendance by birth cohort
The most recent Pew Research Center figures show a clear age gradient in reported in-person attendance at least once a month. The highest figure was among adults born in 1940 or earlier: 49%, or approximately ages 74 and older. The share was 38% among adults born in the 1950s, approximately ages 64 to 74.
Monthly attendance was 34% among adults born in the 1960s, approximately ages 54 to 64, and also 34% among those born in the 1970s, approximately ages 44 to 54. Among adults born in the 1980s, approximately ages 34 to 44, 28% reported attending in person at least monthly.
The two youngest cohorts in the report were close to one another. Twenty-four percent of adults born in the 1990s, approximately ages 24 to 34, reported monthly in-person attendance, while 25% of adults born from 2000 through 2006, approximately ages 18 to 24, did so.
| Birth cohort | Approximate ages | In-person attendance at least monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 1940 or earlier | 74+ | 49% |
| 1950s | 64–74 | 38% |
| 1960s | 54–64 | 34% |
| 1970s | 44–54 | 34% |
| 1980s | 34–44 | 28% |
| 1990s | 24–34 | 24% |
| 2000–06 | 18–24 | 25% |
Source: 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study report, field period July 17, 2023–March 4, 2024. The age ranges are approximate because the report groups respondents by birth decade or birth years.
Weekly and monthly attendance patterns
The same Pew Research Center report separates people who attend weekly or more often from those who attend once or twice a month. Among adults born in 1940 or earlier, 40% reported weekly-or-more attendance and another 9% reported attending once or twice a month.
Among adults born in the 1950s, 30% reported weekly-or-more attendance and 8% reported once-or-twice-monthly attendance. The figures for adults born in the 1960s were 25% and 8%, respectively. Adults born in the 1970s reported the same weekly-or-more figure, 25%, while 9% reported attending once or twice a month.
For adults born in the 1980s, 20% reported attending weekly or more often and 8% reported once-or-twice-monthly attendance. The corresponding figures for adults born in the 1990s were 18% and 6%. Among adults born from 2000 through 2006, 18% reported weekly-or-more attendance and 7% reported attending once or twice a month.
These measures distinguish frequent attendance from the broader monthly measure. A person attending weekly is included in the at-least-monthly group, while once-or-twice-monthly attendance is a separate, less frequent category.
| Birth cohort | Weekly or more | Once or twice monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 1940 or earlier | 40% | 9% |
| 1950s | 30% | 8% |
| 1960s | 25% | 8% |
| 1970s | 25% | 9% |
| 1980s | 20% | 8% |
| 1990s | 18% | 6% |
| 2000–06 | 18% | 7% |
Source: 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study report, July 17, 2023–March 4, 2024.
Infrequent or no attendance
The report also records attendance of a few times a year or less often. This category was reported by 50% of adults born in 1940 or earlier and by 61% of adults born in the 1950s. It reached 66% among adults born in the 1960s and 66% among those born in the 1970s.
Among adults born in the 1980s, 72% reported attending a few times a year or less often. The figure was 75% for adults born in the 1990s and 75% for those born from 2000 through 2006.
The narrower “seldom or never” measure was 36% for the oldest cohort. It was 45% for adults born in the 1950s, 47% for those born in the 1960s, and 48% for those born in the 1970s. The measure rose to 54% among adults born in the 1980s, 59% among those born in the 1990s, and 50% among adults born from 2000 through 2006.
The two measures should not be treated as interchangeable. “A few times a year or less often” includes people who attend occasionally, whereas “seldom or never” identifies the subset reporting the lowest attendance frequency.
The 2020-to-2024 monthly trend
The 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study report also presents figures from the National Public Opinion Reference Survey. For adults born in 1940 or earlier, at least once-or-twice-monthly attendance was 47% in 2020 and 43% in 2024. Among adults born in the 1950s, the figure was 40% in 2020 and 38% in 2024.
Adults born in the 1960s reported 35% in 2020 and 31% in 2024. For adults born in the 1970s, the reported figure increased from 29% in 2020 to 31% in 2024. Adults born in the 1980s reported 25% in 2020 and 32% in 2024.
For adults born in the 1990s, the corresponding figures were 26% in 2020 and 24% in 2024. The youngest cohort has a different starting point in the supplied comparison: adults born from 2000 through 2006 reported 21% in 2023 and 27% in 2024.
| Birth cohort | 2020 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 or earlier | 47% | — | 43% |
| 1950s | 40% | — | 38% |
| 1960s | 35% | — | 31% |
| 1970s | 29% | — | 31% |
| 1980s | 25% | — | 32% |
| 1990s | 26% | — | 24% |
| 2000–06 | — | 21% | 27% |
Source: 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study report. The report labels these measurements as National Public Opinion Reference Survey results for the stated years.
Weekly attendance in 2013 and 2023
PRRI’s Religious Change in America report offers a separate age-group comparison for weekly church attendance. In 2013, 22% of Americans under age 30 reported attending church weekly. In 2023, 18% of this age group reported attending weekly or more.
Among Americans ages 30 to 49, weekly attendance was 29% in 2013 and weekly-or-more attendance was 22% in 2023. For Americans ages 50 to 64, the figures were 33% in 2013 and 25% in 2023.
Americans ages 65 and older reported the highest weekly attendance in both years: 40% in 2013 and 33% in 2023. The age bands used by PRRI are not identical to the birth-cohort groupings used in the Pew Research Center report, so the two sources are best read as complementary rather than as a single continuous series.
| Age group | 2013 weekly | 2023 weekly or more |
|---|---|---|
| Under 30 | 22% | 18% |
| 30–49 | 29% | 22% |
| 50–64 | 33% | 25% |
| 65 and older | 40% | 33% |
Source: PRRI, “Religious Change in America”. The comparison uses 2013 and 2023 measurements as labeled by PRRI.
How to read these age statistics
The findings use several related but different definitions: in-person attendance at least once a month, weekly-or-more attendance, once-or-twice-monthly attendance, attendance a few times a year or less often, and seldom-or-never attendance. Percentages from one definition should not be substituted for another.
For example, the monthly measure describes whether attendance reached a minimum frequency during a typical month, while the weekly measure identifies a more regular pattern. Someone can therefore be counted as a monthly attendee without being counted among weekly attendees. Likewise, a person who attends a few times a year is not necessarily in the seldom-or-never group. Keeping these distinctions visible makes the age comparisons more precise and avoids treating occasional participation as equivalent to a regular weekly routine.
The Pew Research Center figures are organized by birth cohort, with approximate age ranges supplied in the report. The PRRI figures use age bands such as under 30, 30 to 49, 50 to 64, and 65 or older. Because those groupings differ, a comparison between the two sources should retain the original labels and measurement periods.
Taken together, the available figures show higher reported attendance among older adults in the recent cross-sectional comparisons, while also showing meaningful differences within younger and middle-aged cohorts. In the National Public Opinion Reference Survey figures, monthly attendance increased between 2020 and 2024 for adults born in the 1970s and 1980s, while it decreased for adults born in 1940 or earlier, the 1950s, the 1960s, and the 1990s. The supplied figures do not establish why these differences occurred.