Orthodox

Eastern Orthodoxy is a communion of self-governing (autocephalous) Christian churches that preserve the liturgy, theology, and sacramental life of the undivided first-millennium Church. The communion formally separated from the Roman Catholic Church in the Great Schism of 1054 over disputes about papal authority and the wording of the Nicene Creed. Orthodoxy has no single central authority comparable to the Pope; instead, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople is honored as the "first among equals" of the bishops who lead the various national churches. Worship centers on the Divine Liturgy, a chanted service thick with incense, icons, and ancient prayers, and is organized around seven sacraments — most prominently baptism and the Eucharist. Scripture and Sacred Tradition are held in equal authority, and theology emphasizes theosis: the gradual transformation of the believer into the likeness of God. There are approximately 220 million Orthodox Christians worldwide, concentrated in Eastern Europe, Russia, and the Middle East.

Countries by Orthodox Population (19)

1. 1. 🇲🇩 Moldova 90.1%
2. 2. 🇨🇾 Cyprus 89.1%
3. 3. 🇬🇪 Georgia 83.4%
4. 4. 🇲🇪 Montenegro 72.1%
5. 5. 🇧🇾 Belarus 48.3%
6. 6. 🇲🇰 North Macedonia 46.1%
7. 7. 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina 30.7%
8. 8. 🇱🇻 Latvia 19.1%
9. 9. 🇪🇪 Estonia 16.5%
10. 10. 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan 9%
11. 11. 🇦🇱 Albania 6.8%
12. 12. 🇦🇹 Austria 4.9%
13. 13. 🇸🇮 Slovenia 4%
14. 14. 🇭🇷 Croatia 3.3%
15. 15. 🇦🇺 Australia 2.3%
16. 16. 🇮🇪 Ireland 2%
17. 17. 🇽🇰 Kosovo 1.5%
18. 18. 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein 1.3%
19. 19. 🇫🇷 France 1%

Note: This list reflects only countries where the CIA World Factbook — our data source — explicitly uses the “Orthodox” label. Adherents in many other countries are rolled into broader buckets such as Protestant, Evangelical, or country-specific denominations, so this ranking undercounts global presence.