# Catholics Rise Globally as Priests Slightly Increase

> Worldwide Catholic population grows to 1.422 billion with slight priest increase.
- Title: Catholics Rise Globally as Priests Slightly Increase
- Summary: Worldwide Catholic population grows to 1.422 billion with slight priest increase. Catholics worldwide reached 1.422 billion in 2026, with priests rising…
- Keywords: catholic church, vatican, priests, religious sisters, catholic population, church statistics, religion, world, Catholics, Rise, Globally, Slightly
- Source: Vaticannews — https://vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2026-10/fides-agency-2026-annual-church-statistics.html
- Author: Vatican News
- Published: 2026-10-16T10:54:41.207+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: catholic church, vatican, priests, religious sisters, catholic population, church statistics, religion, world
## Global Catholic Growth
Catholics worldwide rose by 16.69 million to 1.422 billion in 2026.
## Priests Slightly Increase
Total priests reached 407,421, up 425 from 2025.
## Religious Sisters Decline
Women religious fell by 9,292 to 580,131 in 2026.
## Seminarians Drop
Major seminarians fell by 2,891 to 103,604 in 2026.
## Key takeaway

Catholics worldwide reached 1.422 billion in 2026, with priests rising slightly and religious sisters declining.