The survey consisted of 2,365 Gen Z respondents and was conducted through AmeriSpeak and the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago between August 9 and September 26, 2024, with Rick Richardson as lead investigator. With weighting applied, the sample is representative of Gen Z as a whole. One of the first questions asked respondents to indicate their current religious affiliation, if any.
The results are striking. The generic “Christian” label was easily the most popular choice, selected by 27% of Gen Z respondents—about 10 points higher than those who identified as Catholic and 17 points higher than those who chose Protestant. This largely confirms what earlier data suggested: Young people are roughly three times more likely to call themselves generic Christians than Protestants.
Perhaps equally striking is what happens when we look at born-again or evangelical Gen Z respondents—a group that makes up about 24% of the total sample. Even among this theologically engaged cohort, a majority (54%) identify as generic Christians rather than Protestant. Only 22% chose Protestant, with Catholics at 12% and the remainder scattered across other categories.
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