Astounding Percentage of GenZ Women Are Atheist, Agnostic, or Faithless

The demons are going after the young. In particular, they’re going after young women. This is by design.

Females in the Generation Z age group face a crisis of belief unlike anything seen in prior generations. A Barna Research survey reveals that 38% of Gen Z women between the ages of 18 and 24 now identify as atheist, agnostic, or without any faith. This figure edges out the 32% of their male counterparts who report the same disconnection from spiritual roots.

Data from the survey, drawn from 2,000 respondents including teens and young adults, shows these women pulling away from core practices that build lasting convictions. Only 58% reported praying in the past week, compared to over 70% of teenage boys. Bible reading fares even worse, with just 31% engaging in the last seven days, and church attendance hits a low of 30%.

This drift ties directly to fractured bonds at home and beyond. Only 23% of these young women feel supported by their fathers, and a mere 36% by their mothers. Broader distrust runs deep: just 32% believe their parents understand them, and 33% sense value from older adults. As the report notes, 40% agree that “older people don’t seem to understand the pressure my generation is under.”

None of this is new in theory; what American didn’t grow up thinking at some point that their parents didn’t understand them? But this perceived disconnect has never created such a huge hole in people who have lost or never found faith. It’s easy for kids to think they know it all and for parents to wonder why their kids seem to know nothing, but in the past it seems to have worked itself out. This time, the theory of generational division seems to be taking hold in worldviews askew.

Daniel Copeland, Barna’s vice president of research, points to a clear path forward: “If we want to see change in Gen Z women’s spiritual trajectories, relationships are the place to start. Faith is a skill that must be modeled first, and strong, supportive relationships can bridge the gap between doubt and belief.”

Other surveys echo this alarming trend. The American Enterprise Institute’s 2023 data pegs 39% of Gen Z women as religiously unaffiliated, a number that has held steady into recent years. PRRI’s 2025 findings show weekly religious service attendance among women aged 18-29 dropping from 29% in 2016 to 19% in 2024, signaling a broader erosion. Gallup polls from early 2025 indicate only 45% of Gen Z overall identify as Christian, down from higher rates in millennials.

Behind these numbers lurks a deliberate push from institutions intent on reshaping society. Public schools, long captured by agendas that prioritize secularism and question traditional morals, feed young minds a steady diet of doubt. Social media platforms, run by unelected tech elites with their own global visions, algorithmically boost content that mocks faith while burying messages of truth and heritage.

It’s no coincidence that as family structures weaken under cultural pressures, vulnerability to these influences grows. Whispers of coordinated efforts to detach the next generation from eternal principles gain traction when patterns like this emerge so starkly.

In other words, the adversaries know the easiest path for them to take full control of this world is to detach as many Americans, particularly young ones, from the faith as possible.

Amid the decline, pockets of resistance persist. Some young people turn to online spaces for guidance, though these too often lead astray without grounded mentorship. Rebuilding starts with reclaiming the home as a fortress of values, where parents and elders model unyielding commitment. Without that, the void will only widen, leaving society adrift from the anchors that once ensured stability and purpose.