As the New Hampshire primary approaches, here are some key facts about New Hampshire based on data from the PRRI Census of American Religion and American Values Atlas. PRRI survey data from 2022 finds:
- The median age of adults in New Hampshire is 52, higher than the median age for all Americans (48).
- Just over four in ten New Hampshirites have a college or post-graduate degree (45%). In comparison, nearly three in ten have high school diplomas (26%) or have completed some college (28%).
- Almost all New Hampshirites identify as white (92%), with only 3% identifying as Hispanic or Asian and Pacific Islander and 1% identifying as Black.
- Approximately half of New Hampshirites identify as politically independent (47%), compared to 28% who identify as Republican and 17% who identify as Democrat.
- Four in ten New Hampshirites identify as ideologically conservative (40%), followed by 31% who identify as liberal and 26% who identify as moderate.
Based on the PRRI Census of American Religion 2022 update, the distribution of religious affiliation in New Hampshire is:
New Hampshire’s Religious Diversity and Religious Affiliation and at the County-Level
Religious Diversity in New Hampshire
In addition to 2022 statewide data, the 2020 PRRI Census of American Religion provides reliable county-level religious affiliation data, including our Index of Religious Diversity, which measures variations in the concentration of global religious populations. The index is calculated so that a score of 1 signifies complete diversity — every religious group is of equal size — and a score of 0 indicates a complete lack of diversity and one religious group comprises the entire population of a given county.
Nationally, the average religious diversity score by county is 0.625. The average religious diversity index score for the state of New Hampshire is 0.785.
New Hampshire’s ten counties are listed from highest to lowest Index of Religious Diversity score:
| 1. Hillsborough County (0.816) 2. Rockingham County (0.795) 3. Belknap County (0.795) 4. Coös County (0.79) 5. Sullivan County (.784) |
6. Strafford County (.784) 7. Merrimack County (.782) 8. Carroll County (0.764) 9. Grafton County (0.766) 10. Cheshire County (0.777) |
White Christians in New Hampshire
As the 2022 PRRI Census of American Religion shows, close to half of New Hampshirites (52%) are white Christians, which combines white evangelical Protestants, white mainline or non-evangelical Protestants and white Catholics. This is largely unchanged from 2020, when 56% of New Hampshirites identified as white and Christian.
The top counties in New Hampshire with the highest concentrations of white Christians are:
1. Belknap County (63%)
2. Rockingham County (58%)
3. Coös County (57%)
4. Sullivan County (57%)
5. Strafford County (57%)
White Evangelical Protestants in New Hampshire
White evangelical Protestants make up 14% of the U.S. population as of 2022. See the concentration of white evangelical Protestants in New Hampshire by county:
The top counties in New Hampshire with the highest concentrations of white evangelical Protestants are:
1. Belknap County (15%)
2. Strafford County (14%)
3. Sullivan County (11%)
4. Cheshire County (11%)
White Mainline/Non-evangelical Protestants in New Hampshire
White mainline/non-evangelical Protestants make up 14% of the U.S. population as of 2022. See the concentration of white mainline/non-evangelical Protestants in New Hampshire by county:
The top counties in New Hampshire with the highest concentrations of white mainline/non-evangelical Protestants are:
1. Carroll County (26%)
2. Cheshire County (24%)
3. Sullivan County (22%)
4. Belknap County (19%)
White Catholics in New Hampshire
In New Hampshire , the counties with the highest concentrations of white Catholics are:
1. Coös County (34%)
2. Rockingham County (32%)
3. Belknap County (29%)
4. Hillsborough County (26%)
5. Strafford County (25%)
6. Merrimack County (25%)
Religiously Unaffiliated New Hampshire Residents
Religiously unaffiliated Americans make up 27% of the U.S. population as of 2022. See the concentration of religiously unaffiliated New Hampshirites by county:
In New Hampshire, the top counties with the highest concentrations of religiously unaffiliated Americans are:
1. Grafton County (42%)
2. Merrimack County (39%)
3. Carroll County (39%)
4. Cheshire County (37%)
5. Sullivan County (36%)
6. Johnson County (39%)