Which country has the most Anglicans?

Nigeria—not England—has the most Anglicans in the world. The Church of Nigeria, one of the provinces of the worldwide Anglican Communion, includes about 25 million members, making it the largest Anglican church. By comparison, the Church of England—the historic mother church of Anglicanism and the seat of the archbishop of Canterbury—reports about 21.75 million members in the United Kingdom and parts of continental Europe.

Nigeria’s prominence reflects a broader shift in the Anglican world toward Africa, where membership has grown rapidly since the late 20th century. Indeed, the Church of the Province of Uganda (about 16.3 million members) and the Anglican Church of Kenya (about 5 million members) are the third and fourth largest Anglican bodies, and the majority of the world’s Anglicans now live in Africa rather than Europe. Given that many African churches hold theologically conservative positions on matters such as church authority, doctrine, and social issues including the ordination of women, abortion, and homosexuality, their growing influence plays an increasingly important role in debates and decision-making within the broader Anglican Communion.