On September 2, 2025, Barna published new data indicating a resurgence in church attendance led by young adults. The report comes amidst contentious debates concerning the religiosity levels of Gen Z and Millennials. Many articles are declaring, decrying, and doubting claims that young adults are returning to religion in droves.

According to Barna’s data, US adults typically attend church 1.6 times per month. However, Millennials attend 1.8 times per month, while Gen Z attend 1.9 times per month. When compared with rates of attendance among Gen X (1.6), Boomers (1.4), and Elders (1.4), young adults certainly attend church most often.

While Gen Z and Millennials may not be ahead of older generations, Barna’s report also includes how rates of church attendance have changed over time. As the next graph shows, the frequency of monthly church attendance for Gen Z and Millennials has almost doubled since 2020.

However, Barna’s data does not stand unchallenged in the debate over young adult religiosity. Much of the debate about whether Gen Z and Millennials are leaving or turning to religion hinges on what measure is being used and what dataset is being examined.

Church attendance has long been used to measure how religious people are. But social scientists use other measurements, too. The Pew Research Center’s National Public Opinion Reference Survey, for example, uses religious affiliation (whether a person identifies with a religion), how frequently one engages in practices like prayer, and how important someone considers religion in their life.

According to the American National Family Life Survey, administered in December 2021, Gen Z is most likely to be religiously unaffiliated (34%) compared to Millennials (29%), Gen X (25%), Baby Boomers (18%), and the Silent Generation (9%).

The Public Religion Research Institute’s 2024 Census of American Religion shows the same generational trend: Gen Z is most likely to be religiously unaffiliated compared to older generations.