The majority of Southeast Sulawesi's population was Muslim in June 2021.

The Directorate General of Population and Civil Registration (Dukcapil) of the Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri) recorded 2.56 million residents in Southeast Sulawesi as Muslim in June 2021. This number accounts for 95.75% of the total population of Southeast Sulawesi, which reached 2.67 million people.

50,780 (1.9%) of Southeast Sulawesi's population adheres to Hinduism. 44,870 (1.68%) residents in the province are Christian.

There are also 16,180 (0.61%) residents in Southeast Sulawesi who are Catholic. 1,610 (0.06%) residents in Southeast Sulawesi follow Buddhism.

The number of residents in Southeast Sulawesi who practice Confucianism is 113. Meanwhile, there are 63 residents of Southeast Sulawesi who adhere to indigenous beliefs.

Based on gender, 1.35 million (50.69%) of Southeast Sulawesi's population are male. Meanwhile, 1.32 million (49.31%) of the population in the province, whose capital city is Kendari, are female.

According to marital status, 1.37 million (51.23%) of Southeast Sulawesi's population are unmarried. There are also 1.19 million (44.43%) residents in the province who are married.

There are 31,320 (1.17%) residents of Southeast Sulawesi who are divorced. Meanwhile, 84,430 (3.16%) residents in the province are widowed.

Southeast Sulawesi is a province with an area of 38,067 square kilometers (km) and a population density of 70 people/km². Administratively, Southeast Sulawesi is divided into 15 regencies and 2 cities, which have 219 districts, 1,910 villages, and 376 urban villages.