US gives most to Peter’s Pence in 2024; Ireland gives most per head
The Catholic Herald • June 30, 2025
The United States was the largest contributor to the Vatican’s Peter’s Pence collection in 2024, while Ireland gave the most per Catholic among the top donor countries listed.
The US contributed €13.7 million, accounting for 25.2 per cent of all diocesan and private donations, according to the Vatican’s annual report published on 27 June.
France followed with €8 million (15 per cent), ahead of Italy (€2.8 million), Brazil (€1.7 million), Germany (€1.5 million) and South Korea (€1.4 million). The top ten countries listed, which also included Mexico, Ireland, Spain and Colombia, together contributed 75 per cent of global donations.
Among those ten countries, Ireland gave the most per Catholic. Its €0.9 million contribution, spread across an estimated 3.7 million Catholics, amounted to around €0.24 per person. South Korea followed with €0.24, then France at €0.21, and the United States at €0.20. Brazil and Mexico gave the least per Catholic among the group, at €0.013 and €0.011 respectively.
The Vatican report does not provide data for countries outside the top ten donors, so a full per-capita comparison is not possible.
Peter’s Pence is the Holy See’s annual appeal to Catholics worldwide, traditionally collected around the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. It is the means by which the faithful offer donations directly to the Pope to support the charitable and missionary works he chooses to fund. The money is used both for direct aid to those affected by war, natural disaster or poverty, and to help sustain the activities of the Holy See.
In 2024, Peter’s Pence supported 239 charitable projects in 66 countries. The Vatican report notes that these included a training and missionary centre in Senegal, a new parish church in Peru and a hostel in Thailand.
Peter’s Pence received €54.3 million in total for 2024. The Vatican spent €61.2 million supporting the Holy See’s mission and €13.3 million on charitable aid.