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Understanding the demographics of the Jewish population today.
The world population has reached approximately 8 billion people as of 2023, with less than 1% of the world being Jewish. Although Judaism is one of the world’s most practiced religions, it’s hard to truly determine how many Jews are there in the world. However, most recent data has shown that the global Jewish population has reached approximately 15 million.
Keep reading to learn more about the demographics of the Jewish population today.
Jewish people can be found all over the world, but the most prominent communities are the Jewish population in Israel and the United States.
A well-known sanctuary for migrants all over the world, it’s no surprise that the United States is home to the largest Jewish population in the world. The US took in an estimated 180,000-200,000 Jewish refugees in the years 1933-1945 alone, and the population has been growing ever since.
According to the Berman Jewish Databank, approximately 7.3 million Jews are living in the United States as of 2021. However, calculating what percentage of the US population is Jewish, the study only collected data from what they described as “core Jews” – people who identify as Jewish – which left out many who either do not know they are Jewish or refuse to identify as Jews. The result of the study concluded that Jews make up approximately 2.4% of the population in the United States.
The top three states with the highest Jewish population are:
The states with the lowest number of Jews include:
When Israel declared its independence in 1948, the Jewish population in Israel totaled a mere 600,000 – but 73 years later, in 2022, that number rose to 7.1 million. Today, 73.6% of Israel’s population is Jewish, and the number is only rising.
With 576,592 Jews, Jerusalem takes the cake for the city with the highest number of Jews in Israel. Tel Aviv has Israel’s second largest Jewish population with 420,335 Jews. Cities in Israel with the highest Jewish population include:
With the increasing number of people making Aliyah, Israel is expected to be the country with the highest Jewish population in the near future.
Despite Europe’s large population of approximately 828,875,000 people, only 1,305,100 of the population are Jewish. France is the country with the highest Jewish population in Europe, with a total of 450,000 Jews. The United Kingdom comes in second, with 292,000 Jewish people living in the country. This isn’t surprising, considering that King Charles III has been a major supporter and friend of the U.K.’s Jewish community for years.
Other European countries with substantial Jewish populations include:
European countries with the lowest Jewish populations include:
In 1939, the Jews in Europe and all over the world were prospering. The Jewish population grew to new heights, reaching 16,728,000 - more than it ever was before … and 9.5 million of the world’s Jewish people lived in Europe when Hitler rose to power.
The devastation that followed was unimaginable. By 1950, Poland’s 3 million Jews were reduced to a mere 50,000. Germany’s Jewish population was reduced from 525,000 to 37,000. The Nazis sought to eradicate the entire Jewish people - and the genocide in the years of his regime wiped out 2 of every 3 European Jews.
By the end of WW2, 6 million Jews perished … leaving the rest of the world’s Jewish people with the goal of trying to rebuild what was lost. The Jewish population in Europe has decreased substantially since the conclusion of World War II, and Wwith the rise in antisemitism in Europe, more Jews are wanting to leave.
Other countries with the highest Jewish population in the world include:
Remote Jewish communities can be found in unexpected places in the world. In fact, countries with the smallest populations of Jewish people have less than 100 Jewish residents. These include Armenia, Bermuda, Egypt, Syria, Slovenia, South Korea, and Taiwan (See: 6 Surprising Jewish Communities to learn more).
Unfortunately, the statistical data that determines Jewish demographics is often limited, and it is impossible to get a true picture of how many Jewish people are there in the world. Many factors can impact these demographics, including:
A study conducted in 2015 estimated that the Jewish population will reach 16 million by the year 2050 - with Israel being the country with the highest number of Jews, and the U.S. coming in second.
The Jewish population of the world has reached 15 million. The countries with the highest number of Jews are the United States, with a total of 7.3 million, and Israel, with a population of 7.1 million Jewish people.
By 2050, the world’s Jewish population is expected to rise to 16 million - nearly reaching the Jewish people’s total world population in the year 1939, prior to WW2.
With the increasing number of people making Aliyah, Israel is expected to be the country with the highest Jewish population in the near future. Learn more about the Mizrahi Jewish population of Israel here.
There are 15 million Jewish people in the world.
The countries with the highest Jewish population are the United States with 7.3 million and Israel, with 7.1 million Jews.
The countries with the lowest Jewish population have 100 or less Jewish people, and include Armenia, Bermuda, Egypt, Syria, Slovenia, South Korea, and Taiwan.
The percentage of the U.S. population which is Jewish is 2.4%.
The U.S. state with the highest Jewish population is New York, with a total of 1.77 million Jewish people.
There are 7.1 million Jewish people living in Israel.
There are 1,305,100 Jewish people living in Europe.
