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The most significant announcement from The Cumorah Foundation this month is the completion of a comprehensive historical database of country-by-country Church statistics spanning more than a century. The database includes annual membership totals dating back to 1920 (when available) as well as annual statistics for congregations (including ward and branch breakdowns), stakes, districts, missions, and temples (announced and dedicated) for every country or territory for which data have been published by the Church. Historical data for wards, branches, stakes, districts, missions, and temples are available from 1987–2025.
Data were compiled from the retired Deseret News Church Almanac series and the Church’s official Newsroom site where annual country-by-country statistics have been published. To our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive publicly available compilation of historical Church statistics ever assembled.
This resource provides valuable data for researchers, historians, journalists, members, and others interested in analyzing long-term trends in Church growth, missionary expansion, organizational development, congregational consolidation, and geographic outreach throughout the world. Users can identify historical milestones, compare regional growth patterns, and examine changes in Church development over time at both global and national levels.
The database is available for viewing in Google Sheets and may also be downloaded here.
15 comments:
Matt, This is a great work you've done on the "Comprehensive Historical Database". I'm curious if it's possible to break it down on a second Sheet by 1st Level Subdivisions by country? (i.e. States, Provinces, Regions) ?
Like I did several years ago in the wikipedia article now deleted called "List of Stakes of the Church". All Stakes at that time both active and historical by States, Provinces, Regions.
Here was the last wayback archive capture of my article on 27 December 2018.
https://web.archive.org/web/20181227073949/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stakes_of_The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints
I served in Santiago, Chile and remember a prophecy by President Hinckley that the church there would reach one million members one day. Nice to see they have crossed 600,000. Hoping they can reach one million in my lifetime!
Next weekend, May 16-17, 2026, at least 2 neighboring Stakes in Mexico City Have Stake Conference scheduled. Both the "México City Alamedas Stake (1989626)", with 7 wards + 1 branch, and the "México City Bosques
(528595)" with 6 wards. The latter Bosques Stake has no other Conferences planned the latter half of 2026 yet. I wonder if they will be combined into 1 larger Stake, after it's last planned stake next weekend?
I couldn't find any Facebook group posts about a "Special Confernence" yet.
https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/1989626 (México City Alamedas Stake (1989626)
https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/528595 (México City Bosques
Stake (528595)
Also, the México City Meyehualco Stake (512427) and the México City Villa Coapa Stake (496553), neighbors have conference next sunday 5/17 also. So it may just be coincidence all 4 on the same weekend?
The Tula Mexico Mission is about to be created in June out of the Mexico City North and Mexico Pachuca missions. I predict the Alamedas Stake is being reassigned to the Mexico City North Mission and combined with the Bosques Stake in order for the North Mission to keep 5 stakes within its boundaries (which is the minimum for a mission in Mexico I believe).
Other Matt here...
It's been announced, Edmonton Alberta is getting its 10th area Stake. The new Spruce Grove Alberta Stake will be created May 24 split from the Edmonton North, Edmonton Riverbend, and Sherwood Park Stakes.
The Spruce Grove Alberta Stake will be created in the suburbs of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on May 24.
Anyone read Jeff Strongs books on why people are leaving and what we can learn from them. Not sure if it is published yet, but what claims are true? Quite a few people no longer active that were in 2000? Many people, that are active don’t have a strong testimony?
Son left the church and he after shock wanted good relationship with him. Wayward children are a challenge for Many parents of wayward children want their children to have joy only the gospel can bring.
Was interviewed by Richard Ostler. Richard Ostler was a ysa Bishop who upon his release became obsessed with lbgtq members and interviewed them. Wrote books on the matter. I think Deseret Book took them off the shelf.
He wrote two other books on LDS culture. Mentioned people leaving the church. Says people with weak testimonies are needed. Respect people’s agency and “personal revelation” if they don’t serve missions or leave the church.
His brother was a mission president with some wayward children that wrote a book on understanding them. His book is called bridges. Richard in a blog talked of parents attending sons baptism in another church when everyone else was going on mission his age, supported him in his pathlike “Jesus would do”.
Does Jesus ever tell people to leave their covenants and join churches that can’t bring them to him. There is no compulsion and people have a right to worship how they choose. However the Lord wants everyone to come to him.
Did Lehi celebrate Laman and Lemuel’s choice not to eat of the fruit of the tree of life? Did Moses dance or tolerate the Golden Calf? He destroyed it.
What should we learn from people Like Jeff Strong and the Ostlers or people they interview that we can’t from faithful people? Do we learn anything of value from those that leave or don’t attend church? Or should we focus on those that are called to lead us to happiness?
Sounds like Edmonton is getting a new stake on May 24th, From Facebook:
...Under the direction of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, we announce a special stake conference for the Edmonton Alberta North Stake and the Edmonton Alberta Riverbend Stake along with Coronation Park Ward of the Edmonton Bonnie Doon Stake and the Wood Buffalo Ward from the Sherwood Park Alberta Stake. This special stake conference will be held on Sunday, May 24th at 10:00 am at the Edmonton Alberta North Stake Center...
...This special stake conference will create the Spruce Grove Alberta Stake (which will include the Devon, Drayton Valley, Onoway, Pioneer, Spruce Grove and Stony Plain Wards and the Hinton and Whitecourt Branches) and will add the Coronation Park Ward and the Wood Buffalo Ward to the Edmonton Alberta Riverbend Stake.
https://www.deseret.com/opinion/2026/05/07/latter-day-saint-stats-representative-data/
Check out this article in response to Jeff Strong. Basically, his survey isn't great. He surveyed internet going Mormons and ex-Mormons (not very representative) and drew conclusions from that. I personally wouldn't put much stock in this survey.
The General Santos Philippines Stake will be holding a special stake conference on May 24, presided by Elder Nash. With 10 wards and a branch, it seems likely this will be a stake split.
The 4th stake in Maputo, Mozambique also will likely be created on May 31, as all 3 stakes in the area have a combined conference that day.
I think the interpreter is French-speaking, based on my, um, basically zero knowledge of each language.
Lubumbashi (on the southern end of the country) does have Swahili-speaking units, so I wouldn't be surprised if another step (3, 5, 10 years down the road) in DRC will be making the gospel programs equally available in the non-colonial languages. Unfortunately, I think the number of African languages has made it difficult to add specific units for all of them, or even (as in Kisangani) the most prominent ones.
Membership in Kisangani is quite diverse with language. When the first branches were created there 10 years ago, the reports I received were than about one-third of converts spoke Lingala, one-third spoke French, and one-third spoke Swahili as their lingua franca.
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) or Mormon in Santiago, Chile, who first encountered the Church in July 1990, I can say that in the last 20 years, there has been a decline in baptisms, more than 100 chapels reused, sold, or empty, more than 20 stakes reduced, low attendance at Sunday meetings, little participation in the Santiago Temple, and little or no progress in family history within the stakes. Despite all this, things are a little better than before; at least some stakes that were lost have been reestablished.
I love the country-by-country analyses of the growth and stagnation of our church. In Africa, not only is our church growing, but it's a shame to see that the leadership in Chile lacks faith, discernment, and commitment.
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) or Mormon in Santiago, Chile, who first encountered the Church in July 1990, I can say that in the last 20 years, there has been a decline in baptisms, more than 100 chapels reused, sold, or empty, more than 20 stakes reduced, low attendance at Sunday meetings, little participation in the Santiago Temple, and little or no progress in family history within the stakes. Despite all this, things are a little better than before; at least some stakes that were lost have been reestablished.
I love the country-by-country analyses of the growth and stagnation of our church. In Africa, not only is our church growing, but it's a shame to see that the leadership in Chile lacks faith, discernment, and commitment.
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