Buddhist Population in India 2024

At the census of 2011,  8.5 million or 85 Lakh (0.70%) are Buddhists in India. Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and North-East states have large Buddhist populations. Sikkim (27.39%), Arunachal Pradesh (11.77%), and Mizoram (8.5 %) have emerged as the top three states in terms of having the maximum percentage of the Buddhist population.

In 2024 close to 10 million or 1 crore are followers of Buddhism in India.

Source: Census 2011

also read about Top Countries by Buddhist population

Buddhist Population by State and UTs

Maharastra is a top state with a Buddhist population. Sikkim (27.39%), Arunachal Pradesh (11.77%), and Mizoram (8.5 %) have emerged as the top three states in terms of having the maximum percentage of Buddhist population. Let’s look at the Buddist population by States & Union Territories.

#StateTotal PopulationBuddhist Population% of Total
1Sikkim610,577167,21627.39%
2Arunachal Pradesh1,383,727162,81511.77%
3Mizoram1,097,20693,4118.51%
4Maharashtra112,374,3336,531,2005.81%
5Tripura3,673,917125,3853.41%
6Himachal Pradesh6,864,60278,6591.15%
7Jammu and Kashmir12,541,302112,5840.90%
8Nagaland1,978,5026,7590.34%
9Meghalaya2,966,8899,8640.33%
10West Bengal91,276,115282,8980.31%
11Madhya Pradesh72,626,809216,0520.30%
12Chhattisgarh25,545,19870,4670.28%
13Manipur2,855,7947,0840.25%
14Dadra and Nagar Haveli343,7096340.18%
15Assam31,205,57654,9930.18%
16Karnataka61,095,29795,7100.16%
17Uttarakhand10,086,29214,9260.15%
18Punjab27,743,33833,2370.12%
19Chandigarh1,055,4501,1600.11%
20Delhi16,787,94118,4490.11%
21Uttar Pradesh199,812,341206,2850.10%
22Daman and Diu243,2472170.09%
23Andaman and Nicobar Islands380,5813380.09%
24Goa1,458,5451,0950.08%
25Gujarat60,439,69230,4830.05%
26Puducherry1,247,9534510.04%
27Andhra Pradesh84,580,77736,6920.04%
28Haryana25,351,4627,5140.03%
29Jharkhand32,988,1348,9560.03%
30Orissa41,974,21813,8520.03%
31Rajasthan68,548,43712,1850.02%
32Tamil Nadu72,147,03011,1860.02%
33Bihar104,099,45225,4530.02%
34Lakshadweep64,473100.02%
35Kerala33,406,0614,7520.01%

Source: Census 2011

Top States with Buddhist Population

The largest concentration of Buddhism is in Maharashtra (6.5 million or 65 lakh), where (73.4%) of the total Buddhists in India reside followed by West Bengal (3 lakh) & Madhya Pradesh (2.16 Lakh).

Top 10 States with Buddhist Population

#StateBuddhist Population
1Maharashtra6,531,200
2West Bengal282,898
3Madhya Pradesh216,052
4Uttar Pradesh206,285
5Sikkim167,216
6Arunachal Pradesh162,815
7Tripura125,385
8Jammu and Kashmir112,584
9Karnataka95,710
10Mizoram93,411
11Himachal Pradesh78,659

Source: Census 2011

Buddhist Population in India 2024 | State wise Buddhist population

Rajeev Rana

Rajeev Rana loves reading about history and demography and has been writing on these topics for five years. While not a certified expert, he has a deep understanding of demography in India. Rajeev contributes to several websites and has extensive knowledge of the Delhi NCR area.