Only about 10 percent of U.S. adults said they exclusively watch virtual services

Yes, the number of U.S. adults who exclusively attend religious services online is about 10 percent. There is a slightly larger contingent (about 17 percent) who say that they tune in virtually but also go to church in person with some frequency. Why do folks tune in virtually? Aside from the safety concerns mentioned in the previous slide, Pew notes that there are a host of reasons that people commune online rather than in person…

There is no single reason why virtual religious services appeal to many Americans. When asked why they tune in, regular viewers tend to give multiple answers. But of six possible reasons offered in the survey, the most commonly chosen is convenience.

So, similar to how technology has made many other areas of life more convenient and easy to navigate, tech would appear to make—in the words of David Bowie—getting to the church on time that much easier.

That said, not all viewers of religious services are tuning in to a local service. Actually, Pew’s research shows that a majority of the people who attend church virtually (about 75 percent) actually use it to stream a service that isn’t located in their own community. The report shows that…

Nearly four-in-ten adults (38%) who regularly watch services online say the services they watch are offered by a house of worship in their local area. About a third (35%) say they watch services offered by a house of worship outside their local area, while a quarter say they watch services offered both by local and non-local congregations…Nearly three-quarters of virtual viewers watch services at a congregation they do not attend in person. This includes those who watch at least one congregation other than the one they attend most often in person (38% of virtual viewers) as well as those who do not have an in-person congregation (36%).