List of megachurches in the United States

This is a list of the largest megachurches in the United States with an attendance of more than 10,000 weekly, sometimes also termed a gigachurch.[1][2] According to that The Hartford Institute's database, approximately 50 churches had attendance ranging from 10,000 to 47,000 in 2010.[3] The same source also lists more than 1,300 such Protestant and Evangelical churches in the United States with a weekly attendance of more than 2,000, meeting the definition of a megachurch.[4]

As the term megachurch in common parlance refers to Protestant congregations; although there are some Roman Catholic parishes which would meet the criteria, they are not listed.[5] St Ann's in Coppell, Texas, would be near the top, with almost 30,000 registered parishioners in 2013.[6] St Matthew's Catholic Church in the Ballantyne neighborhood of Charlotte, North Carolina likewise has been described as a Catholic megachurch.[7] with nearly 36,000 registered members in 2017 and 11 weekly masses.[8] Weekly attendance figures may be lower than the number of registered parishioners, and the differences in way the churches operate and the way attendance is counted are given as reasons for not including Catholic churches in lists of megachurches.[3]

Membership numbers of the following churches give only a very rough indication of size. They vary from year to year. Also, some churches report typical Sunday attendance while others report the number who are listed in church records or make financial contributions, which may be higher. Some of the larger churches are multi-site churches. Many churches deliver their message through television or other media, sometimes reaching much higher numbers than those who physically attend the church.

List

Note that the attendance numbers are often provided by the church itself.

Church City[a 1] State Senior pastor(s) Av. weekly attendance[a 2] Denomination Multi-site? (No.) Ref
Abundant Living Faith Center El PasoTX Charles Nieman 12,400[3] Non-denominational
Ada Bible Church AdaMI Jeff Manion 10,000 Non-denominational Yes (4+1 online)
Bayside Community Church BradentonFL Randy and Amy Bezet 12,000 Non-denominational Yes (8)
Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale Fort LauderdaleFL Doug Sauder 16,000[3] Calvary Chapel Yes (9+1 online)
Calvary Chapel Golden Springs Diamond BarCA Raul Ries 12,000[3] Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel Melbourne West MelbourneFL Dave Folkerts 10,000[3] Calvary Chapel Yes (3+1 online)
Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia PhiladelphiaPA Joe Focht 12,000[3] Calvary Chapel
Calvary of Albuquerque AlbuquerqueNM Skip Heitzig 16,200[3] Calvary Chapel
Calvary Community Church PhoenixAZ J. Mark Martin 11,400 Calvary Chapel Yes (2+1 online)
Celebration Church JacksonvilleFL Tim Timberlake 11,100 Non-denominational Yes (9+1 online)
Central Christian Church HendersonNV Jud Wilhite 21,100[3] Christian churches and churches of Christ Yes (9+1 online)
Christ Fellowship Palm Beach GardensFL Todd & Julie Mullins 25,000[3] Evangelical Yes (17+1 online)
Christ's Church of the Valley PeoriaAZ Ashley Wooldridge 35,000[9] Non-denominational Yes (14+1 online)
Christian Cultural Center New YorkNY A. R. Bernard 32,000[10] Non-denominational Yes (1 + 1 online)
Church of Eleven22 JacksonvilleFL Joby P. Martin 12,000 Non-denominational Yes (6)
Church of the Highlands BirminghamAL Chris Hodges 60,000[3] Non-denominational Yes (20 + 1 including online)
Church on the Move TulsaOK Whit & Heather George 11,000
Church Unlimited Corpus ChristiTX Bil Cornelius 12,000 Non-Denominational Yes (9)[11]
City of Refuge GardenaCA Noel Jones 10,000 Pentecostal Assemblies of the World
Community Bible Church[12] San AntonioTX Ed Newton[13] 12,000[3] Non-denominational Yes (at least 2+1 online)[14]
Cross Church SpringdaleAR Nick Floyd 16,000 Southern Baptist Convention Yes (5)
Crossings Community Church Oklahoma CityOK Marty Grubbs 10,000 Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) Yes (2 + Online)
Crossroads Church – Cincinnati[15] CincinnatiOH Brian Tome 35,000[3] Interdenominational Yes (13 + online)
Deliverance Evangelistic Church PhiladelphiaPA Glen Spaulding 11,000 Non-denominational
Dream City Church[16] PhoenixAZ Tommy Barnett, Luke Barnett 20,000[3] Assemblies of God Yes (5)
Eagle Brook Church CentervilleMN Jason Strand 43,871[17] Converge (Baptist denomination) Yes (11 + online)
Eastern Star Baptist Church IndianapolisIN Jeffrey Johnson 10,000
Ebenezer AME Church Fort WashingtonMD Grainger Browning, Jr. 10,000 African Methodist Episcopal Church
El Rey Jesús (King Jesus International Ministry) MiamiFL Guillermo Maldonado 12,500 Non-denominational/Pentecostal
Elevation Church CharlotteNC Steven Furtick 26,000[18] Baptist Yes (21)[18]
Empowerment Temple BaltimoreMD Pastor GJ Barnes 10,000 African Methodist Episcopal Church
Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church PhiladelphiaPA Alyn E. Waller 15,000 Yes west
EPIC Church International SayrevilleNJ John J. Wagner 10,100[3] Non-denominational
Faith Landmarks Ministries RichmondVA Randy Gilbert 10,000
Family Christian Center MunsterIN Steve Munsey 14,000[3] Non-denominational
Fellowship Church GrapevineTX Ed Young, Jr. 24,200[3] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (9 + online)
First African Methodist Episcopal Church Los AngelesCA J. Edgar Boyd 10,000 African Methodist Episcopal Church
First Baptist Church of Glenarden Upper MarlboroMD John Jenkins 12,000[3] Converge (Baptist denomination)
First Baptist Church of Hammond HammondIN John Wilkerson 13,000[3] Baptist
First Baptist Church Orlando OrlandoFL David Uth 16,000 Southern Baptist Convention
Flatirons Community Church LafayetteCO Jim Burgen 19,000 Non-denominational evangelical Yes (Main Campus, 5 satellite, & Online Livestream)
Fountain of Praise HoustonTX Remus Wright 11,800
Free Chapel GainesvilleGA Jentezen Franklin 25,000[19] Non-denominational Yes (7 + TV + online)[20]
Fresh Life Church Kalispell MT Levi Lusko 25,000 Non-denominational Yes (12, online)
Gateway Church SouthlakeTX Robert Morris 100,000[21] Non-denominational Charismatic Yes (10 + online + prison campuses)
Germantown Baptist Church[22] GermantownTN Tommy Vinson, Interim Preacher 12,000 Baptist
Greater Allen A. M. E. Cathedral of New York[23] New YorkNY Floyd Flake 20,000 African Methodist Episcopal Church
Greater St. Stephen Full Gospel Baptist New OrleansLA Paul Morton 10,000[3] Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship
Green Acres Baptist Church TylerTX David Dykes 14,000 Southern Baptist Convention Yes
Harvest Christian Fellowship RiversideCA Greg Laurie 15,000[3] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (6)
Healing Place Church Baton RougeLA Mike Haman 12,000 Non-denominational Yes (13)
Hickory Grove Baptist Church CharlotteNC Clint Pressley 11,900 Southern Baptist Convention Yes (3)
Hope City Church HoustonTX Jeremy and Jennifer Foster 12,000 Non-denominational Yes (4)
Hope Community Church RaleighNC Jason Gore 15,000 Non-denominational Yes (4)
Hopewell Missionary Baptist NorcrossGA William L. Sheals 16,000 Baptist
Inspiring Body of Christ Church (IBOC) DallasTX Rickie Rush 15,000[24][25] Non-denominational Yes (1 + 1 online)
James River Church SpringfieldMO John Lindell 17,000 Assemblies of God Yes (5) (4 physical + 1 online)
Kensington Church TroyMI Steve Andrews 11,000[3] Non-denominational Yes (7)[26]
King's Cathedral and Chapels Kahului HI James Marocco & Colleen Marocco 30,000 Assemblies of God Yes (360)[27]
Lake Pointe Church RockwallTX Josh Howerton 13,300[3] Southern Baptist Convention
Lakewood Church HoustonTX Joel Osteen 45,000[28] Non-denominational
Legacy Church AlbuquerqueNM Steve Smotherman 10,100[3] Non-denominational
LibertyLive.church HamptonVA Dr. Grant Ethridge 10,000 Southern Baptist Convention Yes (7 + 1 Online)
LCBC ManheimPA Jason Mitchell 19,000[3] Non-denominational Yes (19 + Online)
Life.Church EdmondOK Craig Groeschel 72,500[29] Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) Yes (42 + online)
Living Word Christian Center ChicagoIL Bill Winston 18,000 Non-denominational
Lutheran Church of Hope West Des MoinesIA Mike Housholder 10,000[3] Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Mariners Church IrvineCA Eric Geiger 12,200[3] Non-denominational Evangelical Yes (3 + 2 campus plants + 1 online)
Mars Hill Bible Church Grandville MI AJ Sherrill 12,000[3] Non-denominational
McLean Bible Church McLeanVA David Platt 16,500 Non-denominational
Mount Zion Baptist Church NashvilleTN Joseph W. Walker III 21,000[3] Baptist
New Birth Missionary Baptist Church LithoniaGA Jamal H. Bryant 12,000 Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship
New Hope Christian Fellowship HonoluluHI Wayne Cordeiro 14,500 Foursquare Church Yes (>100 + online)
New Life Church ConwayAR Rick & Michelle Bezet 18,000[30] Non-denominational Yes (17)
New Life Covenant Church ChicagoIL John F. Hannah 10,000[3] Non-denominational Yes (3)
New Light Christian Center Church HoustonTX Ira V. Hilliard 13,500[3] Non-denominational
NewSpring Church AndersonSC Brad Cooper, Shane Duffey, Michael Mulliken, Tyler Tatum, David Hall 20,500[31][32] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (20 + 1 online)
North Coast Church[33] VistaCA Larry Osborne, Chris Brown 10,000 Evangelical Free Church of America Yes (5)
North Point Community Church AlpharettaGA Andy Stanley 30,000[34] Non-denominational Yes (8 in Atlanta, and 90 partner churches)[34]
One Community Church PlanoTX Conway Edwards 10,000 Non-denominational Yes (4+1 online)
Pinelake Church[35] FlowoodMS Chip Henderson 11,472[36] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (5)
Potential Church[37] Fort LauderdaleFL Troy Gramling 12,000[3] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (7)
The Potter's House DallasTX T. D. Jakes 16,100 Non-denominational Yes (3)
Prestonwood Baptist Church PlanoTX Jack Graham 17,000[3] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (2 + online)[a 3]
Quest Community Church Lexington KY Pete Hise 10,000 Christian and Missionary Alliance Yes (3 + 1 online)
Redemption Church[38] San JoseCA Ron Carpenter 11,000[3]
Relentless Church[39] GreenvilleSC John Gray 14,000 International Pentecostal Holiness Church
River Church[40] AnaheimCA Dante Gebel 10,000 Assemblies of God
The Rock Church & World Outreach Center[41] San BernardinoCA Dan Roth 18,000[42] Non-denominational
Rock Church San DiegoCA Miles McPherson 12,900 Non-denominational Yes (4+1 online)
Saddleback Church[43] Lake ForestCA Andy Wood 28,000[3] Baptist Yes (14 + 4 international +1 online)
Sagebrush Church[44] AlbuquerqueNM Todd Cook 20,000 Non-denominational Yes (9+1 online)
Sagemont Church HoustonTX John D. Morgan 17,700 Southern Baptist Convention
St. Matthews Baptist Church WilliamstownNJ Raymond Gordon Sr. 13,000 Baptist
St. Stephen Church LouisvilleKY Kevin Cosby 10,700 Baptist Yes (3)
Salem Baptist Church ChicagoIL James Meeks 10,100 Baptist
Sandals Church RiversideCA Matt Brown 15,000 Southern Baptist Convention Yes (8)
Sarang Community Church of Southern California AnaheimCA Chang Soo Ro 11,000[45] Presbyterian Church in America
Seacoast Church Mount PleasantSC Josh Surratt 14,000[46] Interdenominational Yes (13+1 online)
Second Baptist Church Houston HoustonTX Ed Young Sr. 23,700[47] Southern Baptist Convention Yes (6 campuses + online)
Southeast Christian Church Middletown[a 4]KY Kyle Idleman 25,940[48] Christian churches and churches of Christ Yes (11 + 1 in development + online)
Southland Christian Church Nicholasville[a 5]KY Jon Weece 12,500[3] Christian churches and churches of Christ Yes (5 campuses and online services)
Substance Church[49] Minneapolis MN Peter and Carolyn Haas 12,000 Non-Denominational (ARC)
Triumph Church[50] DetroitMI Solomon W. Kinloch, Jr 14,000[3] Missionary Baptist Yes (4)
12Stone Church LawrencevilleGA Kevin Myers 17,200 Wesleyan Church Yes (8) and 1 online
Valley Bible Fellowship BakersfieldCA Ron Vietti 10,300
Victory Church[51] NorcrossGA Johnson Bowie 10,200 Non-denominational[52] Yes (3)
The Village Church Highland VillageTX Matt Chandler 10,200 Southern Baptist Convention Yes (3)[a 6]
West Angeles Cathedral Los AngelesCA Charles E. Blake 24,000[53] Church of God in Christ
Willow Creek Community Church South BarringtonIL Dave Dummitt 18,000[54] Non-denominational Yes (7)
Woodlands Church The WoodlandsTX Kerry Shook 18,400[3] Southern Baptist Convention
Woodside Bible Church[55]TroyMIChris Brooks 10,500 Baptist heritage Yes (14+1)
World Changers Church Int. College ParkGA Creflo and Taffi Dollar 15,000[3] Pentecostal, Word of Faith
World Overcomers Christian Church DurhamNC Andy Thompson 15,000[3] Non-denominational Yes (4)
World Harvest Church ColumbusOH Rod Parsley 13,000 Pentecostal
World Outreach Church MurfreesboroTN Allen Jackson 15,000[56] Non-denominational

See also

Notes

  1. The "City" column indicates where each listed church has its main location.
  2. Numbers are rounded to the nearest hundred.
  3. Prestonwood also operates two Spanish congregations, one at its main campus in Plano and the other in Lewisville under a facility arrangement with an existing Southern Baptist congregation which has no other ties to them.
  4. Although Southeast Christian has a Louisville mailing address, its main worship complex is within the city limits of Middletown. The governments of Louisville and surrounding Jefferson County merged in 2003, but Middletown and the 82 other cities (apart from Louisville) in Jefferson County retained separate city limits and some governmental powers.
  5. Although Southland Christian is historically associated with Lexington, it moved to an unincorporated area of Jessamine County, about a half-mile (800 m) from the Lexington boundary, in 1981. The church long maintained a Lexington mailing address, but now has a Nicholasville mailing address. Southland opened a new satellite campus in Lexington in 2013.
  6. Village previously operated three additional campuses, in Denton, Dallas, and Plano, but those congregations are now independent; Village plans to spin off its two campuses in Fort Worth and Southlake in the future.

References

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  2. Ed Stetzer, Newspaper christianitytoday.com, Megachurch Research - Terminology, USA, October 9, 2008
  3. "Hartford Institute for Religion Research, database of Megachurches". Hirr.hartsem.edu. Retrieved February 6, 2010.
  4. Bryan S. Turner, The New Blackwell Companion to the Sociology of Religion, John Wiley & Sons, USA, 2010, p. 251
  5. "The Definition of a Megachurch". Hartford Institute for Religion Research. Archived from the original on May 14, 2016. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  6. "Welcome to St. Ann Catholic Parish". Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  7. Boll, Jamie (September 22, 2015). "Inside Charlotte's St. Matthew, the largest Catholic Parish in the U.S." wbtv.com.
  8. Martin, Edward (March 1, 2020). "Churches face waning influence in state". Business North Carolina.
  9. "About CCV | Christ's Church of the Valley | CCV". ccv.church. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  10. "About Us". Christian Cultural Center. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  11. "Bay Area Fellowship - Campuses". Retrieved January 22, 2014.
  12. "WE ARE CBC". www.communitybible.com. October 3, 2020.
  13. "Pastors | Community Bible Church". www.communitybible.com. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  14. "Community Bible Church". www.communitybible.com.
  15. "Outreach 100 Largest Churches 2015 - OutreachMagazine.com OutreachMagazine.com". www.outreachmagazine.com.
  16. "Dream City Church". Retrieved June 3, 2018.
  17. "2022-2023 Annual Report". Eagle Brook Church.
  18. "Quick Facts". Elevation Church. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  19. "Jentezen Franklin: 'We're unplugging everything. We're going back to the raw gospel.'". March 18, 2020.
  20. "Inspiring People to Live for Jesus | Free Chapel". Inspiring People to Live for Jesus | Free Chapel.
  21. "About Us". Gateway Church. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  22. Stout, Cathryn (October 16, 2007). "Germantown Baptist eyes new pastor". Retrieved August 3, 2010.
  23. "Greater Allen A. M. E. Cathedral of New York". Retrieved August 3, 2010.
  24. Blair, Leonardo; Reporter, Senior Features (December 1, 2020). "Dallas megachurch surprises seniors with rent help, commits to giving $100K at Thanksgiving service". The Christian Post. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  25. "IBOC Inspiring Body of Christ Church New Here Our History". www.ibocchurch.org. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  26. "Kensington Church - Times & Locations". Archived from the original on March 12, 2017. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  27. "Embrace Conference". King's Central.
  28. Cochran, Amanda (December 3, 2021). "Lakewood Church: The Houston megachurch by the numbers". KPRC. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  29. "Covenant Yearbook (2019-2020) – ECC | Resources". November 12, 2021. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  30. "Outreach 100: New Life Church". outreach100.com. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  31. "NewSpring Church Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  32. Davis, Angelia L. "NewSpring Church praised by members for its revival of in-person services". The Greenville News. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  33. "2012 Outreach 100 Largest and Fastest-Growing Churches in America" (PDF). Retrieved May 13, 2013.
  34. "North Point Ministries". North Point Ministries. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  35. "Pinelake Church History". Archived from the original on August 15, 2013. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
  36. "Outreach 100: 2020 Largest Churches in America". outreach100.com. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
  37. "Potential Church". Retrieved May 1, 2014.
  38. "Jubilee Christian Center". Archived from the original on October 11, 2015. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  39. "Welcome". Relentless Church.
  40. "River Church". Retrieved October 11, 2012.
  41. "Home". The Rock Church.
  42. "Outreach 100: The Rock Church". outreach100.com. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  43. Abrahamsen, Elizabeth (November 17, 2017). "10 Largest Megachurches in Texas". Wide Open Country.
  44. "Sagebrush Church". www.sagebrush.church.
  45. "largest Korean churches in North America". Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  46. "History, Pastors, and Story". Seacoast Church. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  47. "Top 100 Largest Churches in America - SermonCentral.com". www.sermoncentral.com.
  48. "Year at a Glance: An Analysis of Growth". The Southeast Outlook. Middletown, KY: Southeast Christian Church. February 7, 2019. p. 11. Retrieved April 14, 2019. This number reflects the average weekend attendance at all campuses for 2018.
  49. "Substance Church". Substance Church. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  50. "Triumph Church, Detroit Michigan". Retrieved August 3, 2010.
  51. "Victory World Church in Norcross celebrates anniversary". February 19, 2010. Retrieved August 3, 2010.
  52. "Victory World Church". Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
  53. "About | West Angeles COGIC". West Angeles. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  54. Perry, Abby (February 13, 2020). "Willow Creek and Harvest Struggle to Move On". ChristianityToday.com. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  55. "Woodside Bible Church - Warren Campus". Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  56. "10 largest churches in Nashville area". The Tennessean. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
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