How many muslims are in the U.S. How many of them were not born in the U.S.?

1. What the numbers actually are — and why they differ

Different organizations produce different totals: the 2020 U.S. Religion Census estimates about 4.5 million Muslims in the U.S.; Pew and other survey-based estimates are lower (Pew’s earlier work and some surveys cluster near 3.0–3.5 million); Statista compiled a 3.85 million figure in 2025 ^{[1] [2] [3]}. These gaps reflect method differences: denominators (adult vs. all-ages), sampling frames, whether mosque membership lists are used, and the fact the U.S. Census does not ask about religion, forcing researchers to use indirect estimation ^{[3] [5]}.

2. Who is foreign-born — the central disagreement

Estimates of the foreign-born share vary. Pew summaries in 2025 emphasize that a majority of Muslim adults in the U.S. are foreign-born — citing 59% foreign-born in recent analyses — while other reporting and profiles say 42% of American Muslims were born in the U.S. The two figures are not necessarily contradictory if they use different samples (all ages vs. adult-only) or different years: Pew explicitly notes more than half of Muslim adults were born abroad ^{[4] [1]}.

3. Why foreign-born share matters — demographic and policy context

The share of immigrants affects age structure, fertility and political integration analyses: foreign-born Muslim communities tend to be more Asian and have higher recent immigration and fertility patterns; U.S.-born Muslims are disproportionately Black or Hispanic and include many converts ^{[6] [4]}. Pew and ISPU reporting highlight that immigrant status correlates with different views about life in America and social integration measures ^{[6] [7]}.

4. Geographic concentration and hidden implications

State- and metro-level counts vary widely and compound uncertainty: multiple aggregators put New York, California, Illinois, New Jersey and Texas atop state lists — World Population Review and other compilations list New York with roughly 724,000 Muslims and California with about 504,000, though these are modelled estimates rather than a federal headcount ^{[8] [9]}. High concentrations in urban areas (e.g., Detroit/Dearborn) shape civic life, economic activity and visibility — which in turn affects local policymaking and media coverage ^[10].

5. Sources, method limits and potential agendas to watch

Be alert to organizational motives: mosque-based or community-group reports (Justice For All, ISPU) may rely on mosque counts and community surveys that produce higher totals ^{[1] [7]}. Commercial aggregators and outlets (World Population Review, Statista, Datapandas) use different secondary sources and modeling choices that yield different state and national totals ^{[8] [2] [9]}. Older or advocacy-oriented sources may emphasize growth or threat narratives; conversely, some partisan analyses (noted historically) have framed immigration-driven Muslim population growth as a social problem ^[11]. Readers should treat single-number headlines skeptically.

6. Bottom line and what we still don’t know

There is no single authoritative federal count because the U.S. Census does not record religion; available sources therefore present a range: roughly 3.0–4.5 million Muslims in the U.S. and a foreign-born share somewhere between about 41% (U.S.-born 42%) and 59% foreign-born, depending on which dataset and population definition is used ^{[1] [2] [4]}. Available sources do not mention a single, definitive 2025 federal estimate that reconciles these differences.

If you want a clearer, reproducible figure for a particular purpose (policy planning, academic citation, local outreach), tell me whether you prefer: (a) a high-end estimate (U.S. Religion Census-style), (b) survey-weighted estimates like Pew/Statista, or (c) state-by-state modelled counts — and I will produce a short table of the specific source assumptions and what each implies about the number born outside the U.S. ^{[1] [2] [8]}.