North Carolina

Religious Traditions, 2010

2,585,530	248,257	1,130,241	15,489	392,912	157,936	5,005,118
Evangelical Protestant	Black Protestant	Mainline Protestant	Orthodox	Catholic	Other	Unclaimed

Congregational adherents include all full members, their children, and others who regularly attend services. The 2010 reports contain incomplete counts of congregations and adherents belonging to the eight largest historically African-American denominations. These denominations are not included in the 2000 reports and are largely missing from the 1990 and 1980 reports.
[More information on the data sources]

Reports

Religious Bodies	Tradition	Family	Congregations	Adherents	Adherence Rate^†
Southern Baptist Convention	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	4,241	1,513,059	158.7
Non-denominational	Evangelical Protestant	----	1,948	565,051	59.3
United Methodist Church, The	Mainline Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	1,923	659,064	69.1
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)	Mainline Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	710	185,669	19.5
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church	Black Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	613	109,087	11.4
Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	517	89,359	9.4
International Pentecostal Holiness Church	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	380	57,414	6.0
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)	Mainline Protestant	Baptist	305	26,932	2.8
Assemblies of God	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	277	56,086	5.9
Episcopal Church	Mainline Protestant	Episcopalianism/Anglicanism	257	83,234	8.7
Convention of Original Free Will Baptists	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	238	35,921	3.8
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America	Mainline Protestant	Lutheran	215	69,163	7.3
Churches of Christ	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	197	24,248	2.5
National Association of Free Will Baptists	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	195	26,165	2.7
African Methodist Episcopal Church	Black Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	189	36,281	3.8
Catholic Church	Catholic	Catholicism	189	428,860	45.0
Jehovah's Witnesses	Other	Adventist	174	---	---
Wesleyan Church, The	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	170	23,708	2.5
Seventh-day Adventist Church	Evangelical Protestant	Adventist	166	29,414	3.1
United Church of Christ	Mainline Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	161	31,795	3.3
United Holy Church of America, Inc.	Black Protestant	Pentecostal	158	---	---
Christian Churches and Churches of Christ	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	155	31,344	3.3
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, The	Other	Latter-day Saints	153	76,782	8.1
Church of God of Prophecy	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	146	8,701	0.9
Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church, Inc.	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	131	---	---
Presbyterian Church in America	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	109	20,084	2.1
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.	Black Protestant	Baptist	105	48,281	5.1
National Missionary Baptist Convention, Inc.	Black Protestant	Baptist	85	15,549	1.6
Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	79	8,460	0.9
Church of God in Christ	Black Protestant	Pentecostal	75	22,849	2.4
Church of the Nazarene	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	69	8,816	0.9
Friends United Meeting *	Mainline Protestant	European Free-Church	68	8,471	0.9
United Pentecostal Church International	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	68	---	---
Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod	Evangelical Protestant	Lutheran	62	22,160	2.3
Christian and Missionary Alliance, The	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	52	9,337	1.0
Muslim Estimate	Other	Other Groups	50	26,045	2.7
Church of God (Anderson, Indiana)	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	49	3,285	0.3
Foursquare Gospel, International Church of the	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	47	9,536	1.0
Moravian Church in America--Southern Province	Mainline Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	47	14,422	1.5
Anglican Church in North America	Evangelical Protestant	Episcopalianism/Anglicanism	45	---	---
American Baptist Churches in the USA	Mainline Protestant	Baptist	44	48,513	5.1
Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship	Black Protestant	Baptist	42	---	---
Pentecostal Fire-Baptized Holiness Church	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	42	---	---
Salvation Army	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	42	7,560	0.8
Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith, Inc.	Black Protestant	Pentecostal	37	---	---
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church	Black Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	33	8,324	0.9
North American Lutheran Church	Evangelical Protestant	Lutheran	32	---	---
Buddhism, Mahayana	Other	Other Groups	29	9,883	1.0
Evangelical Presbyterian Church	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	28	7,114	0.7
Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations	Other	Liberal	27	6,514	0.7
Bahá'í	Other	Other Groups	25	5,843	0.6
Alliance of Baptists	Mainline Protestant	Baptist	21	---	---
Church of Christ, Scientist	Other	Christian Science	21	---	---
Calvary Chapel Fellowship Churches	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	20	---	---
Evangelical Methodist Church	Evangelical Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	20	---	---
Church of the Brethren	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	19	2,154	0.2
Congregational Holiness Church	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	18	688	0.1
Friends General Conference *	Mainline Protestant	European Free-Church	18	626	0.1
Hindu, Post Renaissance	Other	Other Groups	18	1,616	0.2
Reform Judaism	Other	Judaism	18	11,530	1.2
Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc.	Black Protestant	Baptist	16	4,801	0.5
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	15	11,996	1.3
Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ	Evangelical Protestant	Lutheran	15	6,830	0.7
Reformed Baptist Churches	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	15	---	---
Vineyard USA	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	13	1,594	0.2
Orthodox Presbyterian Church, The	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	12	981	0.1
Unity Churches, Association of	Other	Other Groups	12	---	---
Buddhism, Vajrayana	Other	Other Groups	11	1,111	0.1
Evangelical Association of Reformed, and Congregational Christian Churches	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	11	---	---
Christian Brethren	Evangelical Protestant	Ind. Fundamentalist	10	---	---
Evangelical Friends Church International*	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	9	396	0.0
Mennonite Church USA	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	9	700	0.1
Orthodox Judaism	Other	Judaism	9	725	0.1
Conservative Yearly Meetings of Friends*	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	8	505	0.1
Orthodox Church in America	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	8	662	0.1
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod	Evangelical Protestant	Lutheran	8	1,070	0.1
Buddhism, Theravada	Other	Other Groups	7	2,442	0.3
Community of Christ	Other	Latter-day Saints	7	845	0.1
Evangelical Free Church of America, The	Evangelical Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	7	3,360	0.4
Metropolitan Community Churches, Universal Fellowship of	Mainline Protestant	Other Groups	7	694	0.1
Conservative Judaism	Other	Judaism	6	5,317	0.6
Evangelical Covenant Church, The	Evangelical Protestant	Methodist/Pietist	6	1,682	0.2
Hindu, Indian-American Hindu Temple Assoc.	Other	Other Groups	6	4,271	0.4
New Apostolic Church of North America, National Organization of the	Other	Other Groups	6	---	---
U.S. Mennonite Brethren	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	6	285	0.0
Converge Worldwide/Baptist General Conference	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	5	2,760	0.3
International Pentecostal Church of Christ	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	5	265	0.0
Missionary Church, The	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	5	2,452	0.3
National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.	Black Protestant	Baptist	5	3,085	0.3
Pentecostal Church of God	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	5	544	0.1
Church of God (Seventh Day)	Evangelical Protestant	Adventist	4	---	---
Churches of Christ in Christian Union	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	4	---	---
Friends General Conference and Friends United Meeting, dually aligned meetings*	Mainline Protestant	European Free-Church	4	219	0.0
Hindu, Traditional Temples	Other	Other Groups	4	4,383	0.5
International Churches of Christ	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	4	618	0.1
Sikh	Other	Other Groups	4	---	---
American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	3	124	0.0
Conservative Congregational Christian Conference	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	3	833	0.1
Ethiopian Orthodox	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	3	---	---
Free Methodist Church of North America	Evangelical Protestant	Holiness	3	79	0.0
Jain	Other	Other Groups	3	---	---
Korean Presbyterian Church in America	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	3	---	---
National Association of Congregational Christian Churches	Mainline Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	3	573	0.1
Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	3	179	0.0
American Association of Lutheran Churches	Evangelical Protestant	Lutheran	2	---	---
Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, The	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	2	524	0.1
Bible Presbyterian Church (General Synod)	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	2	---	---
Brethren In Christ Church	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	2	---	---
Church of God General Conference	Evangelical Protestant	Adventist	2	110	0.0
Church of God in Christ, Mennonite	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	2	183	0.0
Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	2	---	---
Congregational Christian Churches, Additional (not part of any national CCC body)	Mainline Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	2	669	0.1
Coptic Orthodox Church	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	2	775	0.1
Eritrean Orthodox	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	2	200	0.0
Reconstructionist Judaism	Other	Judaism	2	589	0.1
Serbian Orthodox Church in North America	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	2	600	0.1
Unaffiliated Friends Meetings*	Mainline Protestant	European Free-Church	2	---	---
American Baptist Association, The	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	1	71	0.0
Amish Groups, undifferentiated*	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	1	127	0.0
Apostolic Faith Mission of Portland, OR	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	1	43	0.0
Apostolic Lutheran Church of America	Evangelical Protestant	Lutheran	1	---	---
Armenian Church of North America (Catholicosate of Etchmiadzin)	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	1	300	0.0
Assemblies of God International Fellowship	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	1	---	---
Association of Messianic Congregations	Other	Judaism	1	---	---
Beachy Amish Mennonite Churches *	Evangelical Protestant	European Free-Church	1	45	0.0
Christian Reformed Church in North America	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	145	0.0
Church of God, Mountain Assembly, Inc.	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	1	---	---
Elim Fellowship	Evangelical Protestant	Pentecostal	1	---	---
Free Presbyterian Church of North America	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Grace Brethren Churches, Fellowship of	Mainline Protestant	European Free-Church	1	---	---
Independent Baptist Fellowship International	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	1	---	---
International Council of Community Churches	Mainline Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Korean-American Presbyterian Church	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Malankara Archdiocese of the Syrian Orthodox Church in North America	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	1	54	0.0
Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church	Orthodox	Eastern Liturgical (Orthodox)	1	75	0.0
North American Baptist Conference	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	1	88	0.0
Presbyterian Reformed Church	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Reformed Church in America	Mainline Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	197	0.0
Reformed Presbyterian Church Hanover Presbytery	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Reformed Presbyterian Church in the United States	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	85	0.0
Seventh Day Baptist General Conference, USA and Canada	Evangelical Protestant	Baptist	1	15	0.0
Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations	Other	Judaism	1	---	---
United Reformed Churches in North America	Evangelical Protestant	Presbyterian-Reformed	1	---	---
Zoroastrian	Other	Other Groups	0	40	0.0
		Totals:	15,737	4,566,313

The population of North Carolina was 9,535,483 in 2010; in 2000 it was 8,049,313. The total population changed 18.5%. The adherent totals of the religious groups listed above (4,530,365) included 47.5% of the total population in 2010.

^* In an effort to better match the ASARB standards for adherents, a few religious bodies changed the way their adherents were reported in 2010, including the Catholic Church, Amish groups, Friends groups, Jewish groups, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Non-denominational Christian Churches, and the United Methodist Church. This change does not affect any of the data in the newly released 2010 U.S. Religion Census: Religious Congregations & Membership Study. In fact, the data for these groups are now more comparable to that of other bodies than it was in previous decadal reports.

However, the change in methodology can distort assessments on growth or decline between 2000 and 2010 for each of these groups. County-level 2000 data using the new methodology are not readily available. ASARB staff has adjusted some 2000 county-level adherent statistics to allow for a more accurate picture on growth or decline. The revised maps and charts are now available on-line at www.usreligioncensus.org for those who are interested in these trends.

Source

2010 data were collected by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB) and include statistics for 236 religious groups, providing information on the number of their congregations and adherents within each state and county in the United States. Clifford Grammich, Kirk Hadaway, Richard Houseal, Dale E. Jones, Alexei Krindatch, Richie Stanley and Richard H. Taylor supervised the collection. These data originally appeared in 2010 U.S. Religion Census: Religious Congregations & Membership Study, published by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB). [More information on the data collection]

^†The adherence rate provides the number of adherents of a particular group per 1,000 population. For example, in 2010 the Episcopal Church had an adherence rate of 7.6 in Autauga County, Alabama. This means that about 8 out of every 1,000 people in Autauga County were Episcopalian.