The number of people affiliated with Christianity in Australia decreased from 12.2 million (52.1%) in 2016 to 11.1 million (43.9%) in 2021. This decrease occurred across most ages, with the largest decrease for young adults (18-25 years).
Age | 2021 | 2016 |
---|---|---|
0 | 109,617 | 99,225 |
1 | 113,315 | 114,187 |
2 | 118,729 | 119,776 |
3 | 124,116 | 126,501 |
4 | 127,826 | 132,186 |
5 | 129,604 | 136,793 |
6 | 134,578 | 144,206 |
7 | 135,124 | 147,454 |
8 | 136,914 | 152,163 |
9 | 136,536 | 154,993 |
10 | 132,289 | 152,669 |
11 | 127,336 | 149,225 |
12 | 124,570 | 149,597 |
13 | 117,071 | 148,603 |
14 | 111,451 | 147,359 |
15 | 110,033 | 149,340 |
16 | 107,057 | 149,086 |
17 | 102,861 | 146,404 |
18 | 100,273 | 138,696 |
19 | 98,082 | 132,473 |
20 | 97,175 | 129,863 |
21 | 97,997 | 127,881 |
22 | 98,502 | 123,230 |
23 | 99,611 | 121,257 |
24 | 102,407 | 120,052 |
25 | 106,306 | 121,341 |
26 | 109,579 | 122,007 |
27 | 110,026 | 120,643 |
28 | 112,373 | 121,836 |
29 | 114,961 | 123,610 |
30 | 119,363 | 129,018 |
31 | 123,008 | 131,615 |
32 | 124,980 | 134,346 |
33 | 128,731 | 138,086 |
34 | 128,260 | 138,189 |
35 | 130,170 | 139,652 |
36 | 129,022 | 138,252 |
37 | 130,917 | 139,367 |
38 | 131,163 | 140,957 |
39 | 133,836 | 143,567 |
40 | 136,762 | 148,050 |
41 | 141,919 | 152,602 |
42 | 147,814 | 160,333 |
43 | 153,583 | 166,647 |
44 | 162,853 | 177,071 |
45 | 168,145 | 183,427 |
46 | 161,353 | 174,855 |
47 | 161,903 | 174,814 |
48 | 158,015 | 171,576 |
49 | 157,223 | 169,353 |
50 | 157,097 | 170,425 |
51 | 159,541 | 170,770 |
52 | 164,245 | 178,285 |
53 | 166,689 | 180,328 |
54 | 168,090 | 181,263 |
55 | 168,626 | 181,107 |
56 | 163,960 | 175,733 |
57 | 162,403 | 172,957 |
58 | 158,776 | 169,984 |
59 | 155,024 | 165,013 |
60 | 153,494 | 163,763 |
61 | 150,730 | 159,872 |
62 | 148,716 | 157,942 |
63 | 149,354 | 159,105 |
64 | 146,801 | 156,660 |
65 | 146,938 | 157,128 |
66 | 145,791 | 155,183 |
67 | 142,662 | 152,384 |
68 | 143,535 | 153,930 |
69 | 151,992 | 164,501 |
70 | 125,533 | 137,298 |
71 | 119,720 | 131,826 |
72 | 113,757 | 127,462 |
73 | 100,147 | 113,549 |
74 | 97,991 | 113,277 |
75 | 89,582 | 105,616 |
76 | 85,294 | 101,367 |
77 | 79,554 | 96,297 |
78 | 72,618 | 90,531 |
79 | 59,593 | 85,679 |
80 | 52,417 | 80,294 |
Anglican and Catholicism have been, and are, the largest Christian denominations in Australia. In 2021, the number of people reporting each of these denominations has dropped and make up most (78%) of the decrease in an affiliation with Christianity.
In 2021, Catholicism decreased to 20% (from 22.6% in 2016). While this number has been falling over time, the decrease has been slowed by immigration from regions with high numbers of followers of Catholicism, such as Southeast Asia and South America.
Of all migrants who came to Australia between 2016 and 2021, almost 200 thousand (191,000) reported an affiliation with Catholicism in the 2021 Census, over one-quarter of which were born in the Philippines.
The Anglican Church (named the Church of England until 1981) was the main religious denomination in Australia throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries. At the 1911 Census 38.4% of the population reported an affiliation with the Church of England. This proportion remained steady throughout the first half of the 20th Century, driven by the continued British migration to Australia. The 1954 Census reported 37.9% of Australians were affiliated with the Church of England.
In the past 50 years this proportion has been steadily declining. In 1986, the proportion of Anglican affiliation (23.9%) dropped below Catholic affiliation (26.1%). In 2006, Anglican affiliation (18.7%) was surpassed by those reporting to have No religion (19.4%).
From 2016 to 2021, Anglican affiliation had the largest drop in number of all religious denominations – from 3.1 million to 2.5 million people. This was a decrease of nearly one in five Anglicans (19.5%), from 13.3% to 9.8% of the population.
The average age of people with an Anglican affiliation in 2021 was 56 years, compared with 47 years for Christians overall.
Christian denomination | Person count |
---|---|
Anglican | -604,900 |
Catholic | -215,900 |
Uniting Church | -196,900 |
Presbyterian and Reformed | -111,800 |
Lutheran | -28,200 |
Salvation Army | -13,600 |
Pentecostal | -4,700 |
Latter-day Saints | -3,800 |
Churches of Christ | -3,700 |
Other Christian | -2,900 |
Source: Religious affiliation (RELP).