While the Presbyterian Church (USA) faced declines in membership, congregations, and funding in 2024 — according to new statistics the church released this week — the more conservative Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) experienced growth during the same period.
Juicy Ecumenism reported that the PC(USA) lost 48,885 members — roughly a 4.5% decline — last year. Across the past 10 years, the church’s congregation has generally consistently declined at a rate of about 4.5% per year. If its decline continues, the PC(USA) is reportedly on track to dip for the first time below one million members in 2025.
CatholicVote previously reported that several other Protestant denominations have experienced declines in finances and membership, which an AP News report linked to progressive theology.
According to the data, the PC(USA) lost 140 churches and established only four. The outlet reported that the previous average for the establishment of new churches between 1995 and 2005 had been nearly 30 churches per year.
The congregations of the remaining 8,432 churches are becoming smaller and smaller, the data show, as only 367 churches have more than 800 members. Almost 70% of the churches have fewer than 100 members, and nearly a quarter of the churches have 25 or fewer members.
According to Juicy Ecumenism, however, the more conservative PCA reported 7,223 new members and 22 new churches in 2024, including a 16.56% increase in adult baptisms and a 2.4% increase in infant baptisms.
The outlet noted that while most members of the PC(USA) are above 50 years old, and over one-third are 71 or older, deaths in the church do not account for the decline in membership. The data report 20,420 members’ deaths, accounting for not even half of the total membership drop. The PC(USA) also reported that 181 members who identify as “nonbinary” or “genderqueer” joined in 2024.
The PC(USA) also has experienced funding issues due to its decline in members, according to the report. The Presbyterian Mission Agency was forced to drastically cut its annual giving to missionaries, and the agency was finally eliminated in early 2025, becoming part of a new entity. The funding shortage also resulted in layoffs of dozens of mission workers in February.
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