Buddhism is a global religion, with practitioners all over the world, but it is predominantly centered in East and Southeast Asia. According to the Pew Research Center, the vast majority of all Buddhists (nearly 99%) still live in the Asia-Pacific region. Only two other regions – North America (3.9 million) and Europe (1.3 million) – have more than 1 million Buddhists. Although the majority of Buddhists live in Asia and the Pacific, only about one-in-eight people (12%) in that region are Buddhists. About 1% of North Americans are Buddhists. In each of the other four regions, Buddhists make up less than 1% of the population.
The following countries have Buddhist majorities: Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Laos, and Mongolia. Buddhism is the official religion in two countries, Bhutan and Cambodia. Large Buddhist populations also live in North Korea, Nepal, India, and South Korea. China is the country with the largest population of Buddhists, approximately 244 million or 18.2% of its total population. They are mostly followers of Chinese schools of Mahayana, making this the largest body of Buddhist traditions.
The top 10 countries with the highest percentage of Buddhists, according to the Pew Research Center, are:
- Cambodia — 96.80%
- Thailand — 92.60%
- Myanmar — 79.80%
- Bhutan — 74.70%
- Sri Lanka — 70%
- Tibet — 65%
- Laos — 60%
- Vietnam — 55%
- Japan — 50%
- Macau — 45%
It is important to note that identifying Buddhist countries can be difficult because of Buddhism’s popularity as both a religion and philosophy. Buddhism as a philosophy has become increasingly popular for people to find inner peace and practice mental discipline. Moreover, some countries may formally adopt Buddhism as their formal religion while others may simply have a large percentage of citizens that practice Buddhism.
