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{{Short description|Members of the Catholic Church by country}}{{Cleanup|reason=Lead section could be clearer, less confusing, and generelly updated to better present scope in question|date=April 2018}}{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}{{Catholicism maps|500px}}The Catholic Church is "the Catholic Communion of Churches, both Roman and Eastern, or Oriental, that are in full communion with the Bishop of Rome (the pope)."Richard P. McBrien. The Church: The Evolution of Catholicism. (New York: Harper One, 2008) p.447 The church is also known by members as the People of God, the Body of Christ, the "Temple of the Holy Spirit", among other names.Ibid., 2. According to Vatican II's , the "church has but one sole purpose–that the kingdom of God may come and the salvation of the human race may be accomplished."Ibid., 3.WEB,weblink Gaudium et spes, Vatican.va, This communion of churches comprises the Latin Church (or the Roman or Western Church) as well as 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, canonically called sui juris churches, each led by either a patriarch or a major archbishop in full communion with the Bishop of Rome. Historically, these bodies separated from Eastern Christian communions, either to remain in or to return to full communion with the Catholic Church. Vatican II decree on Eastern Catholic Churches, however, explicitly recognizes Eastern Catholic communities as "true Churches" and not just rites within the Catholic Church.Edward P. Hahnenberg. A CONCISE GUIDE TO THE DOCUMENTS OF VATICAN II (Cincinnati, OH: St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2007). This Communion of Churches "exists among and between the individual Churches and dioceses of the universal Catholic Church. Its structural expression is the College of Bishops, each of whom represents and embodies his own local church."McBrien, 447. In addition to Eastern Catholic Churches, the Catholic Church oversees the Catholic Charismatic renewal, the largest Charismatic movement of a single institution in 2020, with over 100 million members, primarily in the Global South.Dr. Todd M. Johnson, "Pentecostal/Charismatic Christianity" World Christian Encyclopedia 3rd edition, Edinburgh University Press, 2019. The Catholic Church is also described as an "amalgam of parts" (i.e., thousands of individual dioceses, religious orders, etc.) globally dispersed, but in communion with Rome.Michael W. Higgins, "Promises to keep," The Tablet, 2 July 2022, 10. As Canadian bishops noted in the article, there is no "Catholic church of Canada" (i.e., no national church as the Anglican "Church of Canada" or "Church of England"), only a "Catholic Church in Canada." "Its dioceses report to Rome, not to Ottawa; the Church is not a national or univocal entity but an amalgam of separate parts." Each diocese operates self-reliantly or independently of the others.The Catholic Church is the "world's oldest continuously functioning international institution."Mark A. Noll. THE NEW SHAPE OF WORLD CHRISTIANITY (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2009), 191. It is also the largest non-government provider of education and health care in the world,JOURNAL, Agnew, John, Deus Vult: The Geopolitics of Catholic Church, Geopolitics, 12 February 2010, 15, 1, 39–61, 10.1080/14650040903420388, 144793259, while the diplomatic status of the Holy See facilitates the access of its vast international network of charities. Some of these entities include 5,000 hospitals, 10,000 orphanages, 95,000 elementary schools and 47,000 secondary schools.Johnson, "Catholicism Worldwide," World Christian Encyclopedia, Edinburgh University Press, 2019.

Methodology

{{Catholic Church by country}}Most of the figures are taken from the CIA FactbookWEB,weblinkweblink dead, 10 January 2019, The World Factbook, 2018, CIA World Factbook, 2 May 2019, or PEW Research Center Surveys.WEB,weblink PEW Research Center: Christian Population as Percentages of Total Population by Country 2010, 19 December 2011, 13 October 2015, WEB,weblinkCentral AsiaSouthern EuropeNorth AfricaSouthern EuropeSouthern AfricaNorth AmericaSouth AmericaCaucasusOceaniaCentral EuropeCaucasusCaribbeanMiddle EastSouth AsiaCaribbeanEastern EuropeWestern EuropeCentral AmericaWest AfricaSouth AsiaSouth AmericaSouthern EuropeSouthern AfricaSouth AmericaSoutheast AsiaSouthern EuropeWest AfricaEast AfricaWest AfricaSoutheast Asia

date=13 November 2014, 14 October 2015, WEB ,weblink , PEW Forum on Religion and Public Life: Islam and Christianity in Sub-Sahara Africa , 6 November 2015 , dead ,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20160304093021weblink">weblink , 4 March 2016 , In Latin American countries, Latinobarometro is often cited.Latinobarometro, Opinion Publica Latinoamericana, Enero 2018. In Germany and other German speaking regions of Europe, there are official membership statistics due to the fact that the government collects a church tax based on these membership lists. For this reason, statistics are not grounded on surveys based solely on self-identification. One's baptismal certificate or any other religious document is likewise secondary to church statistics."Church Tax In Germany Explained [2021 English Guide] by Jen-July 3, 2021. Simple Germany This method might explain the discrepancy between Pew's figures on Germany"Five Centuries After Reformation, Catholic-Protestant Divide in Western Europe Has Faded," Pew Research Center, 31 July 2017 and the church figures.See Philip Hammond, "Religion and the Persistence of Identify," Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 27, 1988. According to Pew stats (31 July 2017, "Five Centuries After the Reformation," p. 4), 42% of Germans polled self-identified as Catholic. However, according to the official records of the German Catholic Church (based on the church tax), less than 28% were listed as Catholic.Also see: "German Catholics' Path to Heaven Comes with Taxes," Sylvia Poggioli, All Things Considered, NPR, 9 Oct., 2012 According to the CIA Factbook and the Pew Research Center, the five countries with the largest number of Catholics are, in decreasing order of Catholic population: {{flagicon|Brazil}} Brazil {{flagicon|Mexico}} Mexico {{flagicon|Philippines}} Philippines {{flagicon|United States}} United States {{flagicon|Italy}} Italy The country where the membership of the church is the largest percentage of the population is Vatican City at 100%, followed by East Timor at 97%.According to the Census of the 2023 Annuario Pontificio (Pontifical Yearbook), the number of baptized Catholics in the world was about 1.376 billion at the end of 2021. The research initiative Catholics & Cultures compiles data on Catholic demographics, including from the Annuario Pontificio, by country.WEB,weblink Catholics by Country, Catholicsandcultures.org, 2 July 2022, Conflicting numbers can be found in 2013 research conducted by the Brazilian polling institute Datafolha. This report states that the percentage of the population in Brazil of Catholic religion, over the age of 16 years, is just 57%,WEB,weblink Percentual de Catolicos no Brasil, 22 July 2013, in contrast to the 64.63% published by CIA and to the 68.6% of Pew Research Center. Also, the 2010 Mexican Census showed this percentage to be 83.9%WEB,weblink Censo de Poblacion y Vivienda 2010, 22 July 2013, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20130925230110weblink">weblink 25 September 2013, {{snd}}against a 91.89% number in the CIA World Factbook. By country By clicking on the icons in the column titles, the table can be re-ordered by column.{| class="wikitable sortable"|+ Catholic Church by country! Country! Total population! data-sort-type="number" | % Catholic! data-sort-type="number" | Catholic total
Afghanistan}} (details)	29,928,987	0%	0CATHOLIC NEWS AGENCY>TITLE=THE LEADER OF AFGHANISTAN’S CATHOLIC COMMUNITY LONGS TO RETURN TO THE COUNTRY	ACCESS-DATE=24 AUGUST 2023	FIRST=ANDREA	DATE=29 NOVEMBER 2021,
Albania}} (details)	3,020,000	10%HTTP://WWW.INSTAT.GOV.AL/EN/CENSUS/CENSUS-2011/CENSUS-DATA.ASPX>TITLE=CENSUS DATA - INSTAT	ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20151113172816/HTTP://WWW.INSTAT.GOV.AL/EN/CENSUS/CENSUS-2011/CENSUS-DATA.ASPX	ARCHIVE-DATE=13 NOVEMBER 2015,	302,000
Algeria}} (details)	32,531,853	0.14%Deeb, Mary Jane. "Religious minorities" Algeria (Country Study). Federal Research Division, Library of Congress; Helen Chapan Metz, ed. December 1993. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.weblink	45,000
Andorra}} (details)	70,000	88.2%	61,740
Angola}} (details)	31,100,000	41.1%-50%HTTPS://2009-2017.STATE.GOV/J/DRL/RLS/IRF/RELIGIOUSFREEDOM/INDEX.HTM#WRAPPER>TITLE=INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM REPORT FOR 2015		Queen's University Belfast>url=https://pureadmin.qub.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/17157569/SSM_Introduction_Angola_2015.pdf, -56.4%2015>TITLE=ANGOLA	PUBLISHER=ASSOCIATION OF RELIGION DATA ARCHIVES	ARCHIVE-DATE=30 OCTOBER 2020	URL-STATUS=DEAD, -60%HTTPS://BOOKS.GOOGLE.COM/BOOKS?ID=IDW0DQAAQBAJ&Q=60%25+ANGOLA+CATHOLIC&PG=PA69>PAGE=69	FIRST=PAUL	PUBLISHER=SAGE PUBLICATIONS	TITLE=THE SAGE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WAR: SOCIAL SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES,	12,500,000-20,000,000HTTP://G1.GLOBO.COM/MUNDO/NOTICIA/2013/02/IGREJAS-EVANGELICAS-COMPETEM-COM-A-CATOLICA-EM-ANGOLA.HTML>LAST=PRESSE	TITLE=IGREJAS EVANGéLICAS COMPETEM COM A CATóLICA EM ANGOLA	PUBLISHER=G1 (WEBSITE), G1,
Antigua and Barbuda}} (details)	84,816	5.5%HTTPS://REDATAM.ORG/BINATG/RPWEBENGINE.EXE/PORTAL?BASE=ATGPHC2011&LANG=ENG>TITLE= ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA (2011 CENSUS),	4,752
Argentina}} (details)	47,300,000	48.9%CATHOLICISM AND EVANGELISM: THE TWO MOST COMMON RELIGIONS IN LATIN AMERICA>URL=HTTPS://ES.STATISTA.COM/GRAFICO/28553/LAS-RELIGIONES-MAS-COMUNES-EN-LATINOAMERICA/	DATE=26 OCTOBER 2022, -62.9%South America: Argentina - The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency cia.gov 27 April 2023-63%Segunda Encuesta Nacional Sobre Creencias y Actitudes Religiosas en Argentina 2019, Ceil-conicet.gov.ar-63.3%WEB,weblink Latinobarómetro Database, Latinobarometro.org, -66%	23,100,000 - 31,200,000
Armenia}} (details)	3,018,854	0.3%HTTP://ARMSTAT.AM/FILE/ARTICLE/SV_03_13A_520.PDF>TITLE= ARMENIA (2011 CENSUS),	8,695
Australia}} (details)	25,380,000	20.0%HTTPS://WWW.ABS.GOV.AU/CENSUS/FIND-CENSUS-DATA/COMMUNITY-PROFILES/2021/AUS/DOWNLOAD/GCP_AUS.XLSX>FORMAT=XLSX	WEBSITE=ABS.GOV.AU, 2 July 2022,	5,076,000
Austria}} (details)	9,100,000	52.0%	4,733,200HTTPS://WWW.KATHOLISCH.AT/STATISTIK >TITLE=STATISTICS, Catholic Church Austria,
Azerbaijan}} (details)	8,581,400	0.03%	2,574
Bahamas}} (details)	330,000	12%	39,600
Bahrain}} (details)	800,000	8.9%	71,200
Bangladesh}} (details)	158,000,000	0.07%	110,000
Barbados}} (details)	250,012	4.2%	10,000
Belarus}} (details)	9,500,000	7.1%RELIGION AND DENOMINATIONS IN THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS>URL=HTTP://WWW.MFA.GOV.BY/UPLOAD/PDF/RELIGION_ENG.PDF	ACCESS-DATE=17 FEBRUARY 2013	ARCHIVE-DATE=14 OCTOBER 2017, dead,	674,500
Belgium}} (details)	11,200,000	44%HTTPS://DATA.EUROPA.EU/DATA/DATASETS/S2237_95_2_516_ENG?LOCALE=EN>VIA=EUROPEAN DATA PORTAL (SEE VOLUME C: COUNTRY/SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHICS: BE: QUESTION D90.2.)	PUBLISHER=EUROPEAN UNION: EUROPEAN COMMISSION	ACCESS-DATE=20 MAY 2023, -57.1%	5,000,000-6,500,000
Belize}} (details)	334,000	40%HTTPS://BELIZE.COM/BELIZE-DEMOGRAPHICS/>TITLE=BELIZE DEMOGRAPHICS COUNTRY PROFILE | WITH BELIZE CENSUS DATA	ACCESS-DATE=2 JULY 2022,	133,600
Benin}} (details)	7,460,025	26.6%HTTP://WWW.CLERUS.ORG/CLERUS/DATI/2008-12/05-6/PROPORTIONCATHOS08.HTM>TITLE= DATA	CONGREGATION FOR THE CLERGY>ACCESS-DATE=2 JUNE 2013,	1,984,366
Bhutan}} (details)	2,232,291	0.06%	1,339
Bolivia}} (details)	10,500,000	70%HTTPS://WWW.STATISTA.COM/STATISTICS/1066911/RELIGIOUS-AFFILIATION-IN-BOLIVIA/ > TITLE=RELIGION AFFILIATION IN BOLIVIA AS OF 2018, BY TYPE	FIRST=MARINA	PUBLISHER=STATISTA.COM, 8 August 2020, -73%-77%	7,980,000
Bosnia and Herzegovina}} (details)	3,531,159	15.19%HTTP://WWW.POPIS2013.BA/POPIS2013/DOC/POPIS2013PRVOIZDANJE.PDF >TITLE=ARCHIVED COPY	ARCHIVE-URL=HTTPS://WEB.ARCHIVE.ORG/WEB/20171224103940/HTTP://WWW.POPIS2013.BA/POPIS2013/DOC/POPIS2013PRVOIZDANJE.PDF	URL-STATUS=DEAD,	536,333
Botswana}} (details)	1,640,115	4.9%	80,365
Brazil}} (details)	210,600,000	50%- 50% dos brasileiros são católicos, 31%, evangélicos e 10% não têm religião, diz Datafolha. 2020 Retrieved February 7, 2022.-54%-54.7%"Catholicism and evangelism: the two most common religion in Latin America" Statista 26 October 2022-58.1%WEB, Religion affiliation in Brazil as of 2018, by type	Statista>url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/1066928/religious-affiliation-in-brazil/, -61%HTTP://WWW.PEWFORUM.ORG/2014/11/13/RELIGION-IN-LATIN-AMERICA>TITLE=RELIGION IN LATIN AMERICA	PUBLISHER=PEW FORUM	O IBGE e a religião — Cristãos são 86,8% do Brasil; católicos caem para 64,6%; evangélicos já são 22,2% Reinaldo Azevedo in Veja (magazine)>Veja-65.0%HTTPS://WWW.PEWFORUM.ORG/2013/02/13/THE-GLOBAL-CATHOLIC-POPULATION>TITLE=THE GLOBAL CATHOLIC POPULATION, 2013-02-13,	105,300,000 - 134,000,000HTTP://G1.GLOBO.COM/MUNDO/NOTICIA/2013/03/AMERICA-LATINA-ABRIGA-40-DOS-CATOLICOS-DO-MUNDO.HTML>TITLE=AMéRICA LATINA ABRIGA 40% DOS CATóLICOS DO MUNDO	LAST=PRESSE	WEBSITE=MUNDO, - 140,000,000HTTPS://GAUDIUMPRESS.ORG/CONTENT/24332-MEXICO-E-O-SEGUNDO-PAIS-COM-MAIS-CATOLICOS-NO-MUNDO-INFORMAM-DADOS-OFICIAIS-MEXICANOS/>TITLE=MéXICO é O SEGUNDO PAíS COM MAIS CATóLICOS NO MUNDO, INFORMAM DADOS OFICIAIS MEXICANOS	WEBSITE=GAUDIUM PRESS, HTTPS://CATRACALIVRE.COM.BR/VIAGEM-LIVRE/IMPORTANCIA-DO-TURISMO-RELIGIOSO-PELO-MUNDO/>TITLE=A IMPORTâNCIA DO TURISMO RELIGIOSO PELO MUNDO	WEBSITE=CATRACA LIVRE,
Brunei}} (details)	372,361	5%	38,709
Bulgaria}} (details)	6,519,789	0.6%HTTPS://NSI.BG/SITES/DEFAULT/FILES/FILES/PRESSRELEASES/CENSUS2021_ETHNOS.PDF>TITLE= BULGARIA (2021 CENSUS),	37,251
Burkina Faso}} (details)	13,925,313	20.1%HTTPS://WWW.AIB.MEDIA/2022/07/01/BURKINA-481-DE-LA-POPULATION-DU-SUD-OUEST-PRATIQUE-LANIMISME-OFFICIEL/>TITLE=BURKINA FASO (2019 CENSUS)	ARCHIVE-DATE=26 MARCH 2023	URL-STATUS=DEAD,	4,121,536
Burundi}} (details)	12,000,000	62.1%	7,440,000
Cabo Verde}} (details)	512,096	77.3%	395,850
Cambodia}} (details)	13,607,069