With fewer than 50% of Americans holding formal memberships in churches in 80 years, more Protestant churches are closing than opening nationwide and further decline appears "inevitable," new data show.
US Protestant churches endured a difficult 2020, including starting the year with fewer congregations.
In 2019, approximately 3,000 Protestant churches were started in the US, but 4,500 Protestant churches closed, according to estimates from Nashville-based Lifeway Research.
The evangelical research organization analyzed congregational information from 34 denominations and groups representing 60 percent of US Protestant churches to arrive at the church plant and closure numbers for 2019.
The current closure gap indicates a shift from Lifeway Research’s previous analysis. For 2014, an estimated 4,000 Protestant churches were planted, while 3,700 closed in a year.
“Over the last decade, most denominations have increased the attention they are giving to revive existing congregations that are struggling,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “This has been more than a fad. This has been a response to a real, growing need to revitalize unhealthy congre