A new report released by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research shows that church attendance is on the rise, with an increase since the pandemic. The study, titled “Signs of Rebound Amid Uneven Recovery: The Changing Congregational Landscape,” was conducted as part of the Faith Communities Today research collaborative that has been analyzing congregational trends since 2000. This study analyzed surveys from 7,453 churches, received between September and December 2025, and shows an average congregation of 70 attendees, up from 45 in 2021. “This growth not only represents a post-pandemic rebound, but also is the first positive gain in median attendance in 25 years,” according to the report’s analysis. Volunteering is also up 40% from 15% in 2021. A majority of congregational leaders (58%) report that their congregations are stronger today than they were prior to the pandemic, up from 51% in 2021.

Measurements of clergy well-being also show improvement in the areas of physical health, mental health, spiritual life, relationships, and financial stability. The highest average attendance was reported by Catholic and Orthodox congregations at 200, followed by evangelical Protestant congregations at 75, mainline Protestant congregations at 50, and other religious congregations at 22. The report also noted that smaller congregations in more rural areas tend to be shrinking, while urban areas are seeing congregations growing.

Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, noted in a recent podcast that this decline “is largely tied to the decline of rural populations.” Mohler’s analysis of the whole report explained that the data does not necessarily reflect a revival but rather a renewed interest in spiritual things, and this interest brings “a gospel opportunity … a continued opportunity for Christian influence and for the authority of Christianity in the larger society.”