Pres. Nelson has announced 45% of all temples + 15 other temple stats

Editor's note: This article originally ran on LDS Living in April 2021. It has been updated as of October 2023 to reflect recent temple announcements and the status of temple construction around the world.

During the Sunday afternoon session of October 2023 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson announced 20 temples to be built in locations around the world. President Nelson said these new temples will help members to "think celestial."

Here are 15 facts and stats about temple announcements, locations, and construction you might not know.

Around the world today, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has 177 operating temples, 54 new temples under construction, 5 temples undergoing renovation projects, 6 temples awaiting dedication or rededication, and 99 more temples announced where construction has yet to start.

The highest number of temples announced at once was 30 (see #3 below). President Nelson also announced 20 new temples in April 2021.

In the April 1998 general conference, President Gordon B. Hinckley announced plans to construct 30 smaller temples immediately. He did not give specific cities at the time but announced temples would be constructed in Europe, Asia, Australia, Fiji, Mexico, Central and South America, Africa, the United States, and Canada.

“This will make a total of 47 new temples in addition to the 51 now in operation,” President Hinckley said. “I think we had better add 2 more to make it an even 100 by the end of this century, being 2,000 years ‘since the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the flesh’ (Doctrine & Covenants 20:1).”

President Nelson has announced temples at every general conference since he became the 17th President of the Church in January 2018:

• 7 temples announced in April 2018 general conference
• 12 temples announced in October 2018 general conference
• 8 temples announced in April 2019 general conference
• 8 temples announced in October 2019 general conference
• 8 temples announced in April 2020 general conference
• 6 temples announced in October 2020 general conference
• 20 temples announced in April 2021 general conference
• 13 temples announced in October 2021 general conference
• 1 temple announced in May 2021
• 17 temples announced in April 2022 general conference
• 18 temples announced in October 2022 general conference
• 15 temples announced in April 2023 general conference
• 20 temples announced in October 2023 general conference

More than half of the temples announced by President Nelson have been announced in locations outside of the United States. Overall, he has announced temples in 49 countries.

Just over a quarter of the temples President Nelson has announced in the United States have been in Utah. Temples announced in Utah have been spread across eight counties:

• Cache County: Smithfield
• Davis County: Syracuse and Layton
• Tooele County: Deseret Peak (located in Tooele) 
• Salt Lake County: Taylorsville
• Sanpete County: Ephraim
• Utah County: Orem, Lindon, and renovation of the Provo temple
• Washington County: Red Cliffs (located in St. George)
• Wasatch County: Heber Valley

Africa currently has six operating temples:

• Aba Nigeria Temple
• Accra Ghana Temple
• Durban South Africa Temple
• Johannesburg South Africa Temple
• Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple
• Praia Cape Verde Temple

Five new temples are under construction:

• Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple
• Harare Zimbabwe Temple
• Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple
• Freetown Sierra Leone Temple
• Nairobi Kenya Temple

14 new temple locations have been announced:

• Antananarivo, Madagascar
• Beira, Mozambique
• Benin City, Nigeria
• Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo
• Calabar, Nigeria
• Cape Coast, Ghana
• Cape Town, South Africa
• Eket, Nigeria
• Kananga, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Kumasi, Ghana
• Lagos, Nigeria
• Luanda, Angola
• Mbuji-Mayi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Monrovia, Liberia

This will bring the total number of temples in Africa to 25, more than quadrupling the current number of six operating temples.

Since his first temple announcement at the April 2018 general conference, President Nelson has announced the first temple for the following countries:

• Norway
• Belgium
• Austria
• Mozambique
• Republic of Singapore
• Madagascar
• Liberia
• Republic of the Congo
• Indonesia
• Angola
• Mongolia

Of the 20 new temples announced by President Nelson in October 2023, 18 locations are in countries that already have temples, and two locations will be the first Latter-day Saint temple in the country:

• Savai’i, Samoa—Samoa will have 2 temples
• Cancún, Mexico—Mexico will have 24 temples
• Piura, Peru; Huancayo, Peru—Peru will have 9 temples
• Viña del Mar, Chile—Chile will have 5 temples
• Goiânia, Brazil; João Pessoa, Brazil—Brazil will have 22 temples
• Cape Coast, Ghana—Ghana will have 3 temples
• Calabar, Nigeria—Nigeria will have 5 temples
• Luanda, Angola—This will be Angola's first temple
• Mbuji-Mayi, Democratic Republic of the Congo—The Democratic Republic of the Congo will have 4 temples
• Laoag, Philippines—The Philippines will have 13 temples
• Osaka, Japan—Japan will have 5 temples
• Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia—This will be Mongolia's first temple
• Kahului, Hawaii; Fairbanks, Alaska; Vancouver, Washington; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Roanoke, Virginia—The United States will have 136 temples

The countries that have or will have multiple temples are:

• 136 temples: United States
• 24 temples: Mexico
• 22 temples: Brazil
• 13 temples: Philippines
• 10 temples: Canada
• 9 temples: Peru
• 6 temples: Argentina, Guatemala
• 5 temples: Australia, Nigeria, Japan, Chile
• 4 temples: Democratic Republic of the Congo
• 3 temples: Bolivia, Colombia, South Africa, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Ghana, Germany
• 2 temples: Ecuador, Honduras, Tonga, Spain, Taiwan, Korea

The states that have or will have multiple temples are:

• 28 temples: Utah
• 12 temples: California
• 9 temples: Idaho
• 8 temples: Texas
• 6 temples: Arizona, Washington
• 5 temples: Florida
• 4 temples: Nevada, Colorado,
• 3 temples: Oregon, Montana, Tennessee, Wyoming, Missouri, Hawaii, Pennsylvania, Virginia
• 2 temples: Illinois, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina, Alaska

The U.S. states without a temple announced, under construction, or dedicated currently include Delaware, Iowa, Maine, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Increasingly, new temple renderings show temples without the iconic angel Moroni statue. 63 of the Church’s current temple renderings do not feature an angel Moroni statue. When these temples are complete, the total number of temples without an angel Moroni statue will be 77. The angel Moroni statue was removed from the Hong Kong China Temple during its current extensive renovation.

► You may also like: How many Latter-day Saint temples are without an angel Moroni statue?

ChurchofJesusChristTemples.org notes the Monticello Utah Temple was dedicated just 9 months and 22 days after its announcement. The temple was announced on October 4, 1997, and ground was broken shortly thereafter on November 17, 1997. The temple was dedicated on July 26, 1998.

In April 2020, Elder David A. Bednar shared the following in general conference:

“When President Nelson was born on September 9, 1924, the Church had six operating temples. When he was ordained an Apostle on April 7, 1984, 60 years later, 26 temples were operating, an increase of 20 temples in 60 years. When President Nelson was sustained as President of the Church, 159 temples were operating, an increase of 133 temples in the 34 years during which he served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. … Ninety-six percent of the existing temples have been dedicated during President Nelson’s lifetime; 84% have been dedicated since he was ordained an Apostle.”

After his October 2023 temple announcement, President Nelson increased the total number of the church’s temples by 85%. As of October 2023, he has now announced 45% of all temples worldwide. He has almost doubled the number of temples worldwide in a mere five years as President of the Church.

During spring and summer of 2023, eight temples were dedicated: the San Juan Puerto Rico Temple (Jan. 15); the Richmond Virginia Temple (May 7); the Helena Montana Temple (June 18); the Saratoga Springs Utah Temple (Aug. 13); the Bentonville Arkansas Temple (Sept. 17); Brasília Brazil Temple (Sept. 17); the Moses Lake Washington Temple (Sept. 17). Four more temples are scheduled to be dedicated later this year: the Feather River California Temple (Oct. 8); the Bangkok Thailand Temple (Oct. 22); the McAllen Texas Temple (Oct. 8); and the Okinawa Japan Temple (Nov. 12).

Additionally, groundbreaking ceremonies were held for the Querétaro Mexico Temple (Jan. 7), the Port Vila Vanuatu Temple (April 8), the Port Moresby Papua New Guinea Temple (April 22), the Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple (June 17), and the Montpelier Idaho (June 17). Two more temples, the Fort Worth Texas Temple (Oct. 28) and Modesto California Temple (Oct. 7) are scheduled to have their groundbreaking ceremonies later this year.

As stated earlier, since becoming President of the Church, President Nelson has announced 153 temples. His April 2022 announcement put him just past President Gordon B. Hinckley, who announced 78 temples during his time as prophet.

“Temples are a vital part of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fulness,” President Nelson said in his concluding remarks during the April 2021 conference. “Ordinances of the temple fill our lives with power and strength—available in no other way. We thank God for those blessings.”