Latter Day Saints (Mormon) Statistics

People are curious about the LDS (Mormon) religion .  It seems that everywhere you look, or hear, people are discussing TV shows and court cases that involve offshoots of Mormonism, and about the effects of the LDS faith in the political arena.  According to the website LDS Statistics  in February 2010 the term “LDS” was the second most searched religious denomination term on the internet, after “Catholic”.

Population

• In 2007, there were over 13 million Mormons worldwide, nearly the same as the number of Jews. Some experts dispute whether this figure represents active LDS members.

• 
  

      United States . . . . . . . . . . . .       6     Million.

      Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  .      0.5  Million

      Latin America . . . . . . . . . . . .  .    3     Million

      Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  .    1     Million

      Africa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .      0.25 Million

      South Pacific & Africa . . . . .       0.5 Million

      As of 2004, Tonga is 46% LDS, Samoa is 36% LDS and American Samoa is 24% LDS.  A visual representation of global membership statistics is available here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints_membership_statistics

• In the U.S. the LDS Church is the 4th largest religious denomination with over 5.5 million members, a population about equal to the number of Muslims.
• Wikipedia also has a breakdown of 2010 Canadian membership statistics per province at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints_membership_statistics_(Canada)

Other Church Info

• As of Nov 2011 There are 136 operating temples, 13 under construction, and 17 announced (not yet under construction)
• The church distributes over 5 million copies of the Book of Mormon per year.
• There are approximately 800 converts to the Mormon church per day, 300,000 per year.   This number is decreasing, but experts disagree on the amount and rate of decline.
• As of December 31, 2010, there were 52,225 LDS missionaries serving in 340 church missions throughout the world.  Most are young males in their late teens to early twenties.  Each usually spends 2 years in the field.
• There are 16 missionary training centers globally.
•  LDS Bishops spend an average of 10 to 20 hours a week in their calling

LDS Member “Life” Statistics

• Atheist.com states that Mormons represent one of the largest religious groups within both the CIA and FBI.  I could not find this corroborated anywhere.
• 97% of LDS’s over age 30 have married, which is higher than the marriage rate in the same category for Catholics, Protestants, or those with no religious affiliation. According to NORC (National Opinion Research Centre) data, a higher percentage of LDS’s have been married than any other religious group. 89% of LDS’s have been married, compared to 87% of Protestants, 81% of Catholics, and 83% of Jews.
• 45% of LDS women and 23% of LDS men have married by age 19. By age 21, 74% of LDS women and 49% of LDS men have married. This is considerably higher than for any other religious group.
• 66% of married LDS’s say they’re "very happy" in their marriages, compared with 65% of Protestants and Catholics, and 57% of the non-religious. LDS women tend to report more marital happiness than other women, particularly Protestants and Catholics.  However, LDS men report lower levels of marital satisfaction than all other men except the non-religious.
• 18% of LDS’s report they’ve been separated or divorced, compared with 11% of Catholics and 10% of Jews. In a 1985 survey of LDS’s, Mormons reported that 17% had been divorced.   LDS’s are more likely to remarry after divorce than persons from other religious groups.
• More than 50% of Mormons have 3 or more children, compared with 36% of Catholics and 37% of Protestants. About 20% of Mormons have 5 or more children, compared with only 10% of Protestants and Catholics. Only about 2% of Jews have 5 or more children.
• Among all religious groups except LDS, the ideal number of children is 2. 43% of Catholics said that 2 is the ideal number of children, compared with only 23% of LDS. More than 50% of Mormons said that the ideal number of children is 4 or more, compared with 26% of Catholics and 22% of Protestants.
• 58% of Mormons said that premarital sex is always wrong, compared with 34% of Protestants and 25% of Catholics. About 75% of Protestants and over 66% of Catholics said that extramarital sex and homosexuality are always wrong, compared to 90% of Mormons.
• 18% of LDS women and 22% of LDS men in the NORC survey graduated from college. These figures are significantly higher than among Protestants and Catholics, but lower than among Jews and the non-religious. 14% of LDS men and 8% of LDS women have a graduate education. Jews and those with no religion have higher percentages, while Catholics and Protestants have lower percentages.
• Among both men and women, Mormons have more professionals and managers than Catholics or Protestants but fewer than Jews or "others." They have fewer operative workers than any other religious group except Jews. LDS women are overrepresented among service occupations, with 25% in service occupations, compared with only 19% of Catholic women, the religion with the next highest percentage.·      LDS women are more likely to graduate from college than Catholic or Protestant women, but less likely than Jewish or non-religious women. For graduate education the pattern was similar; a higher percentage of LDS than Catholic or Protestant women have a graduate education.
• LDS women are more likely to be employed in professional occupations than Catholic or Protestant women. 23% of LDS women are employed in professional occupations, which is similar to Jewish women and women with no religious affiliation.
• LDS doctrine prohibits the use of alcohol, tobacco, and other addictive drugs.  Among adults and adolescents, usage rates are considerably lower among Mormons than among other religious groups. Only 28% of adult LDS’s say they drink alcohol, compared with 65% of Protestants, 85% of Catholics, and 86% of Jews.  14% say they smoke tobacco, compared with 36% of Protestants, 38% of Catholics, and 28% of Jews.
• The National Institute on Drug Abuse survey of substance use among high school seniors reveals substantial differences between Mormons and other religious groups. About 33% of LDS high school seniors said they had used alcohol within the previous 30 days, compared to 62% of Protestants and 75% of Catholics.
• The percentage of LDS seniors who smoke is half as large as among the other religious groups: 14% among LDS, 28% among Protestants and 32% among Catholics. According to CDC statistics, Utah has been the state with the lowest smoking rate for many years.
• Differences for illegal drugs aren’t as large, but are still lower for LDS students. 14% of LDS seniors had used marijuana during the month before the study, compared to 22% of Protestants and 25% of Catholics.  5% of LDS students had used cocaine during the past month, similar to Protestants and compared to 7% of Catholics, and 8% of Jews.
• LDS have longer life expectancies than non-LDS due to lower than average rates of cancer, heart disease, and infant deaths.  85% of LDS report that their health is good or excellent, which is higher than any other religious group. Only 3% of LDS rate their health as poor.

Finances

• LDS bishops and leaders receive no compensation for the time and effort they put into their calling.  The Roman Catholic church has a similar set-up for priests in religious orders, who take a vow of poverty and only receive a small allowance.  Parish priests receive a salary, health and retirement benefits.
• Missionaries and their families are expected to pay their own expenses while on their mission. As of 1990, all young missionaries pay a flat monthly rate to cover living and mission related expenses, which is distributed according to area costs of living. The flat-rate monthly mission cost as of April 2010 is $400 U.S.  Missionaries are provided with limited medical care and are required to pay for non-essential medical treatment  or to treat preexisting conditions. LDS youth and their families are encouraged to save money throughout childhood to pay for as much of their mission as possible.  Married couple missionaries are expected to pay their own costs, but in 2011 the church began paying for missionary couples' housing expenses exceeding $1400 U.S. per month.
• It is estimated that about 10% of LDS church funds come from income on its investments.  These investments are in for-profit businesses managed through Deseret Management Corp.   and are subject to federal, state, and local income and other taxes.  The investments include: 
• AgReserve Inc. - large U.S. producer of nuts
• Hawaii Reserves Inc.  - includes Polynesian Cultural Centre and BYU-Hawaii
• Farmland Reserve Inc.- over 590,000 acres of farms and farmland in FL, NE, and OK
• Bonneville International Corp. – large U.S. radio chaino   Deseret News Publishing, which publishes: the Deseret Morning News (2nd largest morning newspaper in Utah), Mormon Times, LDS Church News, and El Observador
• Beneficial Financial Group – insurance and financial services company (assets exceed $3.1 B U.S.)
• Temple Square Hospitality – operates properties in downtown Salt Lake City, including Lion House and Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg
• Deseret Book
• Deseret Mutual
• Zions Securities – real estate company that manages apartments and commercial property, largely in downtown Salt Lake City
• Time magazine estimated in 1996 that the church's assets exceeded $30 billion.  This figure excludes current liabilities for maintenance, although the LDS Church incurs virtually no long-term liabilities. After the Time article was published, the LDS Church responded that the financial figures in the article were "grossly exaggerated." Three years later, annual revenues were estimated to be $5 B, with total assets at $25 - $30 B.
• 68% to 72% of Utah residents say they belong to the LDS Church.  Utah’s per-capita income is 45th in the US.  Since 2002, Utah has had the highest per-capita bankruptcy rate in the U.S.  Experts speculate that while religious affiliation may play a part (e.g. tithing requirements and LDS encouraging large families), the relatively young average age of Utah residents (27, compared to 35 nationally), low salaries, weak job markets, high cost of living, high percent of entrepreneurs, and other economic factors may play a part in the bankruptcy statistic.
• About 20% of LDS families have an income less than $10,000 per year, while 15% earn more than $50,000 per year. The only religious group dramatically different from LDS in income distribution is the Jewish: Almost 50% of Jewish families earn $50,000 or more, while less than 10% have incomes below $10,000. Although the differences are small, LDS have a few more middle-income families than other religious groups. 39% of LDS families have incomes between $25,000 and $50,000, which is higher than for any other religious group surveyed.
• It is thought that because of the high proportion of Mormons and the LDS Church's own comprehensive welfare system, Utah spends much less of its budget on public welfare than other states. "On average, other states spend 22.4% of their budgets on public welfare; Utah spends 14%."
• According to U.S. Bureau of Census data released April 2000, Utah "spends a larger percentage of state dollars on education" than any other state.

Sources:

http://carm.org/mormon-church-statistics
http://religionus.blogspot.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finances_of_The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deseret_Management_Corporation
http://en.fairmormon.org/Utah/Statistical_claims/Bankruptcy_rate_in_Utah
http://www.allaboutmormons.com/number_of_mormons.php
http://www.atheistconnect.org/2011/09/22/are-there-really-more-mormons-than-jews-in-the-world/
http://www.lightplanet.com/mormons/daily/social_eom.htm
http://www.adherents.com/largecom/lds_dem.html



Written by Terrasola