We often hear that most United Methodist churches are small membership churches. This sometimes leads people to believe that most United Methodists attend a small membership church. While it is true that about 48% of congregations have 100 members or less, only 10.8% of United Methodists belong to those congregations. Very small churches of between 5 and 50 members, represent about 24% of all churches and about 3% of United Methodists.
We also sometimes hear that our largest churches are growing at the fastest rate. Just as with small (and medium) churches, the reality is much more nuanced. While it is true that the group of congregations with membership over 5,000 increased in membership by 1.67% compared to a .91% decrease by the whole church, these very large churches also showed the highest percentage decrease in worship attendance of a –2.85% compared to –1.32% by the whole church. (One church in this group showed an extremely large drop, but even if it is removed the average decrease for churches over 5,000 is a larger decrease than the church as a whole.)
Below you will find breakdowns in a number of categories. I've pulled several things from these figures that I think are interesting and may call into question (or not) some of our commonly held perceptions about church size.
• The highest participation rate (worship attendance divided by membership) is churches between 5 and 50 members at 63.5%
• The lowest participation rate is churches of greater than 5,000 members at 29.7%
• The greatest percentage decrease in membership was among churches of 5 to 50 members at 3.43%
• The greatest percentage increase in membership was among churches of more than 5,000 members at 1.67%
• While no group showed an increase in worship attendance, the group with the smallest decline was churches with a membership of between 801 and 900, with a .08% decline.
• The three groups with a decline in worship attendance of more than 2% were those with membership greater than 5000 at 2.85%, 101 to 200 members at 2.33%, and 2001 to 3000 members at 2.09%.
• As a combined group, churches with a membership of between 700 and 5000 paid over 90% of their apportionments. Churches with membership below 700 and above 5,000 paid less than 90% of their apportionments.
• In nearly every sized group, the percentage of professions of faith mirrors or nearly mirrors the percentage of United Methodists. (Churches from 5 to 50 have 3% of the United Methodists and 3% of the professions of faith, churches with more than 5,000 members have 4.6% of United Methodists and 4.6% of professions of faith.)
Here is the more detailed breakdown
Churches in size from 5 to 50
• 24% of congregations
• 3% of United Methodists
• 5% of worshippers
• 3.43% decrease in members
• 1.32% decrease in worship attendance
• 80.7% apportionment payment
• 3% of professions of faith
• 63.5% participation ratio
Churches in size from 51 to 100
• 24% of congregations
• 8% of United Methodists
• 9% of worshippers
• 1.99% decrease in members
• 1.83% decrease in worship attendance
• 82.5% apportionment payment
• 8% of professions of faith
• 49.4% participation ratio
Churches in size from 101 to 200
• 23% of congregations
• 14% of United Methodists
• 15% of worshippers
• 1.51% decrease in members
• 2.33% decrease in worship attendance
• 83% apportionment payment
• 15% of professions of faith
• 43.7% participation ratio
Churches in size from 201 to 300
• 10% of churches
• 11% of United Methodists
• 11% of worshippers
• 1.41% decrease in members
• 1.82% decrease in worship attendance
• 80.6% apportionment payment
• 11% of professions of faith
• 40.85% participation ratio
Churches in size from 301 to 400
• 6% of churches
• 9% of United Methodists
• 8.5% of worshippers
• 1.38% decrease in members
• 1% decrease in worship
• 85.1% apportionment payment
• 8% of professions of faith
• 39.56% participation ratio
Churches in size from 401 to 500
• 4% of churches
• 7% of United Methodists
• 7% of worshippers
• 1.03% decrease in members
• .61% decrease in worship attendance
• 86.51% apportionment payment
• 7% of professions of faith
• 39.33% participation ratio
Churches in size from 501 to 600
• 2% of churches
• 5.5% of United Methodists
• 5.5% of worshippers
• .59% decrease in members
• .53% decrease in worship attendance
• 89.46% apportionment payment
• 5.5% of professions of faith
• 40.06% participation ratio
Churches in size from 601 to 700
• 1.6% of churches
• 4.6% of United Methodists
• 4.3% of worshippers
• 1.02% decrease in members
• .99% decrease in worship attendance
• 88.68% apportionment payment
• 4.4% of professions of faith
• 37.33% participation ratio
Churches in size from 701 to 800
• 1% of churches
• 3.5% of United Methodists
• 3.4% of worshippers
• .77% decrease in members
• .82% decrease in worship attendance
• 91.29% apportionment payment
• 3.2% of professions of faith
• 39.42% participation ratio
Churches in size from 801 to 900
• .88% of churches
• 3.3% of United Methodists
• 3.1% of worshippers
• .65% decrease in members
• .08% decrease in worship attendance
• 90.21% apportionment payment
• 3.2% of professions of faith
• 38.31% participation ratio
Churches in size from 901 to 1000
• .64% of churches
• 2.6% of United Methodists
• 2.6% of worshippers
• .92% decrease in members
• .36% decrease in worship attendance
• 94.55% apportionment payment
• 2.6% of professions of faith
• 39.05% participation ratio
Churches in size from 1001 to 1500
• 1.7% of churches
• 8.9% of United Methodists
• 8.2% of worshippers
• .68% decrease in members
• .55% decrease in worship attendance
• 92.44% apportionment payment
• 8.7% of professions of faith
• 36.99% participation ratio
Churches in size from 1501 to 2000
• .68% of churches
• 5.2% of United Methodists
• 4.7% of worshippers
• .26% increase in membership
• .32% decrease in worship attendance
• 93.57% apportionment payment
• 5.3% of professions of faith
• 36.28% participation ratio
Churches in size from 2001 to 3000
•.54% of churches
• 5.7% of United Methodists
• 4.8% of worshippers
• .38% increase in membership
• 2.09% decrease in worship attendance
• 95.58% apportionment payment
• 6.8% of professions of faith
• 34.09% participation ratio
Churches in size from 3001 to 5000
• .25% of churches
• 4.3% of United Methodists
• 3.3% of worshippers
• .46% increase in membership
• .58% decrease in worship attendance
• 93.2% apportionment payment
• 4% of professions of faith
• 31.14% participation ratio
Churches with more than 5000 members
• .14% of churches
• 4.6% of United Methodists
• 3.4% of worshippers
• 1.67% increase in membership
• 2.85% decrease in worship attendance
• 89.98% apportionment payment
• 4.6% of professions of faith
• 29.68% participation ratio
The statistical data included herein were provided at no charge by the General Council on Finance and Administration of The United Methodist Church (GCFA) and may be obtained directly from GCFA, PO Box 340020, Nashville, TN 37203-0029. This data is proprietary and is owned by GCFA and may not be used in any commercial or exploitative way, to make a financial profit, or in a manner that defames the United Methodist denomination or its agencies or organizations. GCFA does not endorse any particular use of the data or accept responsibility for its interpretation or analysis by another.
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