Changes in religion in the 2011 and 2021 Canadian census
Questions about religion in the Canadian census are included every ten years, most recently in 2021. In this article, I'll be comparing trends in Canadian religion from the 2011 and 2021 census.
First, what changes happened within the top-level categories? Christianity lost 2.7 million adherents, "no religion" gained 4.7 million, and most of the other groups increased (Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Indigenous, other) or stayed fairly constant (Buddihism, Judaism).
| Tradition | 2011 | 2021 | Change | %-change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian | 22,102,745 | 19,373,330 | -2,729,415 | -12% |
| No religion and secular perspectives | 7,850,605 | 12,577,475 | 4,726,870 | 60% |
| Muslim | 1,053,945 | 1,775,715 | 721,770 | 68% |
| Hindu | 497,960 | 828,195 | 330,235 | 66% |
| Sikh | 454,965 | 771,790 | 316,825 | 70% |
| Buddhist | 366,830 | 356,975 | -9,855 | -3% |
| Jewish | 329,500 | 335,295 | 5,795 | 2% |
| Other religions and spiritual traditions | 130,835 | 229,015 | 98,180 | 75% |
| Traditional (North American Indigenous) spirituality | 64,940 | 80,690 | 15,750 | 24% |
Note that between 2011 and 2021, the Canadian population grew by 10%, so any change less than that is a relative decrease as a fraction of the total population.
Here's the same data as a chart. I find this makes the magnitudes more clear:
What changes happened within each of these top-level groups? Unfortunately, Statistics Canada only breaks down Christianity into sub-groups (and "Other religions" — not shown in table below):
| Group | 2011 | 2021 | Change | %-change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roman Catholic | 12,728,885 | 10,799,070 | -1,929,815 | -15% |
| Other Christian | 2,927,185 | 4,129,760 | 1,202,575 | 41% |
| United Church | 2,007,610 | 1,214,185 | -793,425 | -40% |
| Anglican | 1,631,845 | 1,134,310 | -497,535 | -30% |
| Baptist | 635,840 | 436,940 | -198,900 | -31% |
| Pentecostal | 478,705 | 392,570 | -86,135 | -18% |
| Lutheran | 478,185 | 328,045 | -150,140 | -31% |
| Presbyterian | 472,385 | 301,400 | -170,985 | -36% |
| Greek Orthodox | 220,255 | 204,025 | -16,230 | -7% |
| Jehovah's Witness | 137,775 | 137,255 | -520 | 0% |
| Mennonite | 175,880 | 130,585 | -45,295 | -26% |
| Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) | 105,365 | 85,315 | -20,050 | -19% |
| Reformed | 102,830 | 79,870 | -22,960 | -22% |
Within Christianity, every group above saw declines, except for "Other Christian", which was mostly non-denominational. This suggests that some of the losses in specific groups may be going to this catch-all. However, of the 4.1 million losses in the specific groups, a maximum of 1.2 million could be going to the "Other Christian" group.
Within the most specific sub-categories on the census (excluding "No religion"), which groups had the largest absolute gains and losses?
| Group | 2011 | 2021 | Change | %-change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roman Catholic | 12,728,885 | 10,799,070 | -1,929,815 | -15% |
| United Church | 2,007,610 | 1,214,185 | -793,425 | -40% |
| Anglican | 1,631,845 | 1,134,310 | -497,535 | -30% |
| Baptist | 635,840 | 436,940 | -198,900 | -31% |
| Presbyterian | 472,385 | 301,400 | -170,985 | -36% |
| Jain | 3,320 | 8,275 | 4,955 | 149% |
| Romanian Orthodox | 7,090 | 16,120 | 9,030 | 127% |
| Non-denominational Christian | 43,590 | 54,455 | 10,865 | 25% |
| Iglesia ni Cristo | 4,980 | 20,095 | 15,115 | 304% |
| Coptic Orthodox | 16,255 | 31,625 | 15,370 | 95% |
On the other hand, which groups had the largest relative gains or losses?
| Group | 2011 | 2021 | Change | %-change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Churches of Christ | 15,820 | 5,740 | -10,080 | -64% |
| Antiochian Orthodox | 1,220 | 620 | -600 | -49% |
| Grace Communion International | 605 | 330 | -275 | -45% |
| Vineyard | 1,585 | 940 | -645 | -41% |
| Apostolic Christian Church (Nazarean) | 1,600 | 955 | -645 | -40% |
| Jain | 3,320 | 8,275 | 4,955 | 149% |
| Ethiopian Orthodox | 3,025 | 7,810 | 4,785 | 158% |
| Chaldean Catholic | 1,510 | 5,070 | 3,560 | 236% |
| Iglesia ni Cristo | 4,980 | 20,095 | 15,115 | 304% |
| Satanist | 1,050 | 5,890 | 4,840 | 461% |
If you'd like to take a look at the data yourself, here's the spreadsheet I used to compare the census. There may be some inaccuracies because of difficulties matching up groups that were either more or less specific between the two census years.