There is no single, universally recognized "only" atheist country. Instead, several nations are considered to officially or effectively practice state atheism, with the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and Vietnam being the primary examples. These governments promote irreligion and discourage religious practice, with China possessing the largest religiously unaffiliated population.
Relative to its own populations, Zuckerman ranks the top five countries with the highest possible ranges of atheists and agnostics: Sweden (46–85%), Vietnam (81%), Denmark (43–80%), Norway (31–72%), and Japan (64–65%).
Over the course of the regime, Albania became a complete isolationist state with virtually no ties to the outside world. In 1967, Hoxha tightened his grip on the country even further by banning all religion, declaring Albania the world's first atheist state.
New Zealand counts itself among the countries who do not have a state religion. Over 25 countries in the world do not have state religions including USA, Canada, China, South Africa, New Zealand, Singapore, Romania, Colombia, and East Timor. A secular state is one in which the government is neutral on religion matters.
A large majority of Britons do not believe in a God or gods, an afterlife, or attend religious services. A 2020 YouGov poll found that 27% of Britions believed in a "a god" and 16% believed in another form of higher power.
Christopher Hitchens. Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British and American author and journalist. Known as one of the "Four Horsemen" of New Atheism (along with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Daniel Dennett), he gained prominence as a columnist and speaker.
For many people in Sweden, religion is not a central part of everyday life. But Swedish society is generally open and free, so everyone is free to practise their faith, attend services and celebrate religious holidays. However, most Swedes tend to take a secular approach to culture and social norms.
Christians are free to worship and wear religious clothing, if applicable. The country has Catholic, Eastern, Oriental Orthodox and Protestant churches. Although Christian women can marry Muslim men freely, marriage between Muslim women and non-Muslim men is forbidden.
Countries like North Korea and Saudi Arabia enforce strict bans on the importation and possession of religious texts that diverge from state-endorsed ideologies. In North Korea, the distribution or possession of a Bible is a crime that can result in imprisonment or worse.
The proportion of people identifying as religious declined from 68 % in 2005 to 56 % in 2024, reflecting a steady global trend toward secularization. Meanwhile, the share of those identifying as not religious increased from 21 % to 28 %, and convinced atheists rose from 6 % to 10 %.
Nones who describe themselves are atheist or agnostic are far more likely to be white. "People who describe their religion as 'nothing in particular' are more likely," says Smith, "to be Black or Hispanic or Asian."
Sweden, the Czech Republic and the UK are the next least religious countries. In Sweden, 18% of people define themselves as atheist and 55% as non-religious, while the Czech Republic is 25% atheist and 47% non- religious. In the UK, 11% of people claim to be atheist and 58% non-religious.
A 2023 Gallup International survey found that Sweden was the country with the highest percentage of citizens that stated they do not believe in a god. In 2020, the majority (78%) of the global nonreligious or unaffiliated demographic resided in Asia-Pacific.
Currently, China, North Korea, and Vietnam, are officially atheist. Cuba was an atheist state until 2019, when a change in its constitution declared it a secular state. In contrast, a secular state officially purports to be neutral in matters of religion; it does not support religion, nor does it support irreligion.
According to data from the World Population Review, Macau tops the list in 2025 with 59.3% of its population identifying as atheist. Close behind are South Korea (54.9%) and Hong Kong (52.3%), reflecting broader secular trends in parts of East Asia.
From Vatican City (100%) to Timor-Leste, San Marino, Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, and Armenia, these nations are deeply rooted in Christian history, culture, and traditions.
Judaism came first, with its origins tracing back to Abraham (c. 2nd millennium BCE) and Moses (c. 1200 BCE), establishing the first monotheistic faith, while Islam emerged much later, in the 7th century CE, with the Prophet Muhammad in Arabia, building on the same Abrahamic tradition but as a distinct religion. Muslims view Adam as the first Muslim, but historically, Judaism was practiced in pre-Islamic Arabia for centuries before Islam's founding.
While no president so far has ever openly identified as an atheist, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and William Howard Taft were speculated to be atheists by their opponents during political campaigns; in addition, a survey during the first presidency of Donald Trump showed that 63% of Americans did not believe he ...
