Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reports record convert baptisms

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reported that over the last year, convert baptisms were the highest in Church history.

From July 2024 to June 2025, the Church had the most convert baptisms of any 12-month period in its history. The calendar year 2024 saw 308,000 people join the Church, the most in the past 25 years and about 50,000 more people than in 2023.

Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared the numbers while addressing new mission leaders at the Provo Missionary Training Center. Cook also stated that new members are attending weekly services at higher rates.

New efforts have reportedly also been made to reengage and teach people who were previously taught by missionaries, and Cook said that those efforts led to nearly 40,000 baptisms over the past year.

This report is in line with larger trends of the religious landscape in the United States.

According to a recent study from Pew Research Center, despite declines in the number of Americans who identify as Christians over years, that decline appears to be leveling off. This study found that 62% of U.S. adults identify as Christians, a drop of 9 percentage points since 2014, but similar in percentage to findings from the past five years.

40% of U.S. adults identify as Protestant, 19% identify as Catholic, and 3% identify with other Christian groups (including Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).

Additionally, the number of people who identify as members of religions other than Christianity has been trending upward, but it’s still less than 10%. As of the 2024 findings, 7.1% of Americans identify with non-Christian religions. 1.7% of Americans identify as Jewish, 1.2% as Muslim, 1.1% as Buddhist, 0.9% as Hindu, and 2.2% with other non-Christian religions.

According to the same study, the rates of people who pray daily and attend religious services are relatively stable. Spiritual beliefs are also widespread among Americans, with over 70% of Americans having some spiritual beliefs.

However, younger Americans continue to be far less religious than older adults. People aged 18-24 are significantly less likely than people aged 74 and older to identify as Christian, pray daily, or attend religious services at least once a month. They are also much more likely to be unaffiliated with any religion.