[Aim] Phylogenetic clustering, the coexistence of evolutionarily related organisms, appears to be common in soil bacteria. This pattern has traditionally been attributed to the habitat-filtering of bacteria that are able to survive under particular abiotic settings. According to the modern coexistence theory, however, phylogenetic clustering can also arise from biotic interactions such as the competitive exclusion of large clades with low competitive abilities. Here, we used phylogeny-based methods to discern whether the coexistence of evolutionarily related soil bacteria results from abiotic and/or biotic filtering. ; [Location] Worldwide. ; [Methods] We performed a Bayesian meta-analysis based on a literature review (n = 231) to assess whether the net relatedness index (NRI) or the nearest taxon index (NTI), two measures of the phylogenetic relatedness of taxa in local assemblages, deviate from those in randomly configured communities. We then sought the best abiotic (pH, total organic carbon and total nitrogen) and biotic predictors (relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria and Acidobacteria) of NRI and NTI. ; [Results] Phylogenetic clustering is pervasive in soil bacterial communities regardless of the spatial and taxonomic scales (NRI = 2.29; 95% CI [1.43, 3.29]; P