The Episcopal Church continued to experience declining membership in 2025, with its total number of members falling by nearly half a million over the past decade, according to newly released denominational statistics.
An analysis of the denomination’s 2025 Parochial Report showed that membership stood at approximately 1.425 million in 2025, compared with 1.917 million in 2015. The figures represent a loss of roughly 492,000 members over 10 years for the progressive mainline Protestant denomination.
“Membership continues its slow decline, a trend that has persisted for decades,” the report states.
The downward trend was also evident in Sunday worship attendance. Average in-person attendance declined from approximately 600,000 in 2015 to about 407,000 in 2025. The latest figure was slightly below the more than 413,000 worshippers recorded in 2024.
The denomination also reported a modest reduction in the number of active congregations. The total number of operating parishes and missions fell from 6,707 in 2024 to 6,673 in 2025. Baptisms similarly decreased from 19,624 to 19,316 during the same period.
In 2010, the church reported that its active baptized membership within domestic dioceses had fallen below 2 million. When overseas dioceses were included, the denomination’s total membership at that time stood at approximately 2.125 million.
A range of factors has been associated with the denomination’s declining membership and worship attendance, including theological disagreements that have prompted some congregations to separate from the church.
One major controversy emerged in 2003, when The Episcopal Church consecrated the Rev. Gene Robinson as its first openly gay bishop. The decision generated significant opposition within the denomination, leading numerous congregations and several dioceses to leave in protest.
The denomination’s membership reporting procedures have also changed in recent years. When The Episcopal Church released its 2024 Parochial Report in October 2025, it omitted a churchwide membership total, departing from previous reporting practices.
The denomination’s Office of Public Affairs acknowledged that changes to the reporting process had made it difficult to accurately determine membership figures.
