The surprising trend of converting to Islam around the world: Why people are choosing Islam despite Islamophobia.

The surprising trend of converting to Islam around the world: Why people are choosing Islam despite Islamophobia.

He walked into the mosque wearing jeans, a flannel shirt, and carrying a book in his hand — The Qur’an.

The regulars at the masjid in London had seen all types of people come and go. Some came for curiosity, some for escape, others for answers. But Michael was different. He had a calmness in his eyes, and yet a storm inside.

“I used to think Islam was scary,” he admitted later in a community halaqa. “But what scared me more was how easily I believed that… without ever meeting a Muslim.”

Michael’s story isn’t unique anymore. In a time where Islamophobia is loud and visible in many parts of the world, more and more people are still converting to Islam — and not just in the hundreds, but in tens of thousands.

According to Pew Research and other global studies, Islam is now the fastest-growing religion in the world, and not just because of birth rates. Conversions account for a major part of that growth, especially in Western countries like the United States, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, and Australia.

So why are people choosing Islam — the very faith that’s so often misunderstood?

The answers vary, but the themes are common: peace, clarity, discipline, connection to God, and truth.

Take Emma, a former Catholic from Toronto. She was 28 when she converted to Islam after years of exploring different belief systems. She had tried meditation, Buddhism, yoga retreats, even atheism.

“I was tired of trying to find God in pieces,” she said. “Islam gave me a complete way of life — from how to treat my neighbor to how to cleanse my soul.”

Her first Ramadan changed everything. The stillness of the night prayers. The community iftars. The way people cried during sujood. It wasn’t just a religion — it was transformation.

Like Emma, many converts say they are drawn to the order and purpose in Islam. Five daily prayers. Fasting. Charity. Modesty. Nothing feels random. Even the smallest actions — like saying “Bismillah” before eating — feel sacred.

Others convert because of justice and equality.

Andrew, a former Marine from Texas, studied Islam out of anger after 9/11. “I wanted to prove it was evil,” he admitted. “But the more I read, the more I realized — Islam doesn’t promote terrorism. People do.”

He cried the first time he read Surah Al-Ikhlas.

“Say: He is Allah, One. Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any equivalent.”

“It hit me,” Andrew said. “That’s the God I always believed in. I just didn’t know how to talk to Him.”

Not all journeys are smooth. Converts often face backlash from family, friends, even society. They’re mocked, excluded, doubted. Women who wear hijab are sometimes told they are oppressed. Men are asked if they’re becoming terrorists.

But despite all of this, they stay.

They stay because the connection to Allah they found is stronger than the hate around them. They stay because Islam taught them how to live — and even how to die with dignity.

They stay because they didn’t just read the Qur’an — they felt it.

There’s also something powerful in the simplicity of Islamic belief. No trinity, no middleman. Just La ilaha illallah. There is no god but Allah.

And Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), not a god, not a savior, but the final Messenger — a man who lived with humility, mercy, and truth.

Social media has also played a big role. From TikTok videos of reverts sharing their stories, to YouTube lectures from scholars, the information is no longer filtered by the media. People are learning about Islam directly from Muslims — and what they find surprises them.

Islamophobia may shout loud, but truth speaks quietly. And truth has a strange way of reaching hearts, even across screens.

Today, Michael is a regular at the mosque. He teaches new Muslims how to pray. He helps translate khutbahs. He’s even memorizing parts of the Qur’an.

When asked why he chose Islam, his answer is simple.

“Because even when the world hated it, Islam loved me back.”