religion
Published 6 days ago
on August 31, 2025
By Pallavi Rao
Graphics/Design:
See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.
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Ranked: Countries With the Largest Muslim Populations
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Key Takeaways
- Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in any single country at 242 million—roughly 87% of its citizens.
- South and Southeast Asia dominate the ranking, with Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh each home to more than 150 million Muslims.
- This region is often overlooked for their Muslim populations as countries in the Middle East and North Africa tend to dominate conversations.
Islam is the world’s second-largest relgion and 1.8 billion Muslims are spread across every continent.
The visualization above ranks each country by the number of adherents, along with their share in the population revealing where Muslim communities are largest.
The data for this visualization comes from two complementary sources: Pew Research, which tracks global religious affiliation, and the CIA World Factbook, which publishes the latest national demographic splits.
Due to data restrains, the most recent figures between 2020–2023 have been used, depending on availability per country.
Ranked: Countries With the Most Muslims
Indonesia (242 million), Pakistan (235 million), India (213 million), and Bangladesh (150 million) alone account for nearly 40% of the world’s Muslims.
Each of these densely populated nations has seen steady population growth over the past two decades, and fertility rates in Pakistan and Bangladesh remain above the global average.
Together, they underscore the demographic weight of South and Southeast Asia, regions sometimes overlooked when the focus is on the Middle East.Search:
| Rank | Country | # of Muslims | Share of Population |
|---|
| 1 | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 242M | 87.0% |
| 2 | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 235M | 96.3% |
| 3 | 🇮🇳 India | 213M | 15.3% |
| 4 | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | 150M | 91.0% |
| 5 | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | 124M | 53.5% |
| 6 | 🇪🇬 Egypt | 104M | 95.0% |
| 7 | 🇮🇷 Iran | 88M | 99.8% |
| 8 | 🇹🇷 Turkey | 84M | 97.0% |
Showing 1 to 8 of 24 entries‹123›
The presence of Malaysia and Uzbekistan in the top 20 further highlights Asia’s central role in shaping global Muslim demographics.
Muslim-Majority and Muslim-Plurality States in Africa
Meanwhile, Africa is home to some of the fastest-growing Muslim populations.
Nigeria, already the continent’s most populous country, now counts more than 124 million Muslims, over half its citizens.
In North Africa, Egypt and Algeria each report that roughly 95-98% of their inhabitants identify as Muslim, reflecting centuries-old cultural and religious continuity.
Across the Sahel, countries like Niger and Mali post near-complete Muslim majorities, even as they grapple with rapid urbanization and climate pressures that influence migration patterns.
Minorities in Demographic Giants: India and China
While India’s 213 million Muslims comprise only 15% of its population, that minority is larger than the total populations of most countries.
China’s Muslim share is just 1.4%, yet the absolute number—25 million—is comparable to the entire population of Australia.
These examples illustrate how sheer population size can translate even small percentages into tens of millions of adherents.
Demographers expect India’s Muslim community to surpass Indonesia’s by mid-century if current fertility differentials persist, potentially redrawing the global ranking.
source https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-countries-with-the-largest-muslim-populations/
Categories: Islam, Muslims, Power of Islam