Temple Milestones During 2025 for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The year 2025 marked significant milestones in the construction and dedication of temples for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Highlights included the dedication of nine new houses of the Lord, groundbreaking ceremonies for 20 temples, and the announcement of 16 new temple locations.
A Notable Transition in Church Leadership
On September 27, 2025, Church President Russell M. Nelson passed away. During his nearly eight-year administration, President Nelson announced 200 temples. In the April 2025 general conference, he announced 15 new temple locations and dedicated the Syracuse Utah Temple on June 8, the Church’s 206th dedicated house of the Lord.
Following President Nelson’s passing, President Dallin H. Oaks was set apart as the new President of the Church on October 14, 2025. At the October 2025 general conference, President Oaks announced that no new temples would be announced during that session — the first time since October 2017 that no new temple locations were declared at a general conference. However, by the end of the year, a new temple location was announced unexpectedly and through a different venue.
Temple Totals at Year-End 2025
As of December 18, 2025, temple statistics were as follows:
– **Total temples:** 383
– **Dedicated temples:** 211
– **Temples scheduled for dedication:** 7
– **Temples under renovation or reconstruction:** 8
– **Temples under construction:** 55
– **Temples scheduled for groundbreaking:** 2
– **Temples with published site locations:** 48
– **Temples announced with specific sites not yet determined:** 60
By comparison, at the end of 2024, the totals were:
– **Total temples:** 367
– **Dedicated temples:** 202
– **Temples scheduled for dedication:** 2
– **Temples under renovation or reconstruction:** 9
– **Temples under construction:** 49
– **Temples scheduled for groundbreaking:** 2
– **Temples with published site locations:** 54
– **Temples announced but without sites:** 58
Dedications, Rededications, and Open Houses
In 2025, nine new temples were dedicated. The dedications, with dates and presiding leaders, were:
– Auckland New Zealand – April 13, Elder Patrick Kearon
– Nairobi Kenya – May 18, Elder Ulisses Soares
– Abidjan Ivory Coast – May 25, Elder Ronald A. Rasband
– Syracuse Utah – June 8, President Nelson
– Antofagasta Chile – June 15, Elder Gary E. Stevenson
– Farmington New Mexico – August 17, Elder Neil L. Andersen
– Elko Nevada – October 12, Elder Gary E. Stevenson
– Grand Junction Colorado – October 19, President Jeffrey R. Holland
– Bahía Blanca Argentina – November 23, Elder Ulisses Soares
Additionally, seven new temples are already scheduled for dedication within the first six months of 2026:
– Burley Idaho – January 11, TBA
– Alabang Philippines – January 18, Elder David A. Bednar
– Harare Zimbabwe – March 1, Elder Gerrit W. Gong
– Davao Philippines – May 3, Elder Dale G. Renlund
– Lindon Utah – May 3, TBA
– Bacolod Philippines – May 31, Elder Neil L. Andersen
– Willamette Valley Oregon – June 7, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
In 2025, the Toronto Ontario Temple was rededicated on March 23 by President Jeffrey R. Holland, who was then acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Regarding open houses, one additional open house was announced in 2025. On February 14, President Nelson announced via social media that the Salt Lake Temple—currently under renovation—would tentatively hold an open house from April to October 2027. He noted that the ongoing renovations strengthen this sacred house for future generations, with more details forthcoming as the dates approach.
Groundbreakings in 2025
The Church held 20 groundbreaking ceremonies in 2025, more than double the number of temple dedications that year. These groundbreaking events launched new construction projects across the world, including five in the United States (each in a different state), two in Nigeria, six in Africa, and three in Europe—the first new European temples since 2019 (following dedications in Rome, Italy, and Lisbon, Portugal).
The temples and groundbreaking dates were:
– Tacloban City Philippines – January 18
– Cali Colombia – March 1
– Antananarivo Madagascar – March 15
– Birmingham England – March 22
– Lethbridge Alberta – April 26
– Lagos Nigeria – May 10
– Natal Brazil – May 17
– Benin City Nigeria – May 24
– Budapest Hungary – June 21
– Singapore – June 28
– Wellington New Zealand – August 2
– Winchester Virginia – August 9
– Brazzaville Republic of the Congo – August 23
– Tampa Florida – August 23
– Vancouver Washington – August 23
– Lone Mountain Nevada – September 25
– Fairbanks Alaska – September 27
– Kumasi Ghana – October 18
– Cape Town South Africa – October 25
– Brussels Belgium – November 22
It is important to note that the “groundbreaking” for the Brussels Belgium Temple was more accurately a site dedication before renovation work, since it is being built within an existing structure.
Most groundbreaking ceremonies were presided over by a General Authority Seventy. Elder Neil L. Andersen offered the prayer at the Tampa, Florida, groundbreaking—a special location where his wife, Sister Kathy Andersen, was raised and where they raised their family.
Looking ahead, groundbreaking ceremonies for 2026 have already been announced for the Jacksonville Florida and João Pessoa Brazil temples.
No renovations or reconstructions were initiated or announced in 2025.
Renderings, Site Releases, and Temple Name Changes in 2025
The timing of release for temple site locations and exterior renderings varies. Sometimes both are released simultaneously, as with the Kumasi Ghana Temple’s rendering and groundbreaking announcement, or the Brazzaville Republic of the Congo Temple, where the site, rendering, and groundbreaking date were released together.
On April 28, 2025, a new rendering was released for the Fairview Texas Temple, coinciding with a name change (previously known as the Prosper Texas Temple).
A second temple was renamed in 2025: the San Jose California Temple was renamed the Sunnyvale California Temple as of December 15, 2025.
Temples with simultaneous release of sites and renderings in 2025:
– Tuguegarao City Philippines – February 18
– Retalhuleu Guatemala – March 31
– Chihuahua Mexico – June 9
– Brazzaville Republic of the Congo – July 28
– Ulaanbaatar Mongolia – September 15
– Houston Texas South – October 20
– Piura Peru – October 27
– Coeur d’Alene Idaho – November 10
– Calabar Nigeria – November 10
– Yuma Arizona – November 24
Temples with renderings released separately in 2025:
– Brussels Belgium – January 13
– Lehi Utah – February 24
– Lagos Nigeria – March 24
– Benin City Nigeria – March 24
– West Jordan Utah – April 14
– Huntsville Alabama – April 21
– Fairview Texas (updated rendering) – April 28
– Colorado Springs Colorado – May 5
– Buenos Aires City Center Argentina – June 9
– Osaka Japan – September 8
– Kumasi Ghana – October 18
– Tulsa Oklahoma – October 20
– Savai’i Samoa – October 20
– Jakarta Indonesia – December 8
Additional new temple sites released in 2025 were:
– Huntsville Alabama – January 21
– Florianópolis Brazil – February 3
– Culiacán Mexico – February 18
– Eket Nigeria – April 21
New Temple Announcements in 2025
In total, 16 new temples were announced in 2025. All but one were announced by President Nelson during the April 2025 general conference.
At the October 2025 general conference, President Oaks communicated that due to the large number of temples in planning and construction phases, no new temples would be announced at that time, stating:
> “With the large number of temples now in the very earliest phases of planning and construction, it is appropriate that we slow down the announcement of new temples. Therefore, with the approval of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, we will not announce any new temples at this conference.”
Two months later, on December 14, 2025, an unexpected new temple announcement was made during a Sunday evening devotional for members of the Portland Maine Stake. Elder Allen D. Haynie, General Authority Seventy and president of the United States Northeast Area, read the First Presidency’s statement:
> “We’re pleased to announce the construction of a temple in Portland, Maine. The specific location and timing of the construction will be announced later.”
Conclusion
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continued its historic pace of temple building in 2025 despite transitions in leadership, rapidly advancing construction projects across the globe, and evolving announcements strategies. With nearly 400 temples established worldwide by the end of the year, the Church remains focused on providing sacred spaces for members to receive ordinances and participate in worship.
*Note: In all lists, the word “Temple” has been omitted from each name for brevity. For more information and visuals, visit the respective temple’s page in the Church News Almanac.*
https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2025/12/26/temples-year-in-review-2025-dedications-groundbreakings-locations-totals/