Almost 40 per cent of Aussies say they have 'no religion'

More Australians than ever have reported they don't identify with any religion, data from the 2021 census shows.

Almost 40 per cent of the Australian population reported having "no religion", the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) says.

This marks an increase from 30 per cent in 2016 and 22 per cent in 2011.

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Dr David Gruen AO, Australian Statistician, said more Australians were happy to answer the voluntary question on religion compared to past years.

"The religion question holds a special place in the census – it is one of the few topics that has been in every one of Australia's 18 censuses and is the only question that is voluntary," he said.

"Despite being voluntary, we saw an increase in the proportion of people answering the question, from 91 per cent in 2016 to 93 per cent in 2021."

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Christianity remains the most common religion, with 43.9 per cent of the population identifying themselves as one.

This marks a decline from more than 50 per cent in 2016, and more than 60 per cent in 2011.

It's the first time less than half of the country identified as Christian.

The largest Christian denominations are Catholic, at 20 per cent of the population, and Anglican 9.8 per cent.

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The census showed other religions are growing but make up a small proportion of the population.

Hinduism has grown by 55.3 per cent to 684,002 people, or 2.7 per cent of the population.

Islam has grown to 813,392 people, which is 3.2 per cent of the Australian population.

The ABS conducts a census, counting every person and household, every five years.