Muslim Population in the World Today

Figures gathered in 2015 put the world’s Muslim population at around 1.8 billion people, or 24.1 per cent of the world’s total population. This makes Islam the second largest religion after Christianity, which itself makes up over a third of the world’s population, and the majority religion in many countries around the globe. Of the total Muslim population, some 85–90 per cent belong to the Sunni sect, whilst 10–15 per cent are Shia, with a number of other smaller sects amongst the total population. Only four countries have a Shia majority population; Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Bahrain. Indonesia is home to the world’s largest Muslim population of around 209 million individuals, whilst India and Pakistan are home to another 344 million combined. This puts the Asia-Pacific region’s share of the world’s Muslim population significantly above that of Islam’s region of origin, the Middle East. Muslims also make up minority populations in many countries around the world.