China vs United States: Annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels
China
315.07 terawatt-hours
in 2025
United States
440.81 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
3rd
United States rank
1st
Annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels over time
- China
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 440.81 terawatt-hours against 315.07 terawatt-hours in China, a difference of 125.74 terawatt-hours.
That makes United States's figure about 1.4 times China's.
The two have swapped places 18 times across 60 shared years of data; in 1966 it was United States ahead.
China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 1st of 76 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, China averaged higher in 5 and United States in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 76.39 terawatt-hours | 733.81 terawatt-hours | 657.43 terawatt-hours | United States |
| 1970s | 285.18 terawatt-hours | 316.28 terawatt-hours | 31.1 terawatt-hours | United States |
| 1980s | 285.81 terawatt-hours | 9.98 terawatt-hours | 275.83 terawatt-hours | China |
| 1990s | 326.66 terawatt-hours | 260.81 terawatt-hours | 65.85 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2000s | 1,433 terawatt-hours | -120.5 terawatt-hours | 1,554 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2010s | 846.29 terawatt-hours | 54.86 terawatt-hours | 791.43 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2020s | 982.02 terawatt-hours | -45.04 terawatt-hours | 1,027 terawatt-hours | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels, China or United States?
- United States, at 440.81 terawatt-hours against 315.07 terawatt-hours in China as of 2025.
- What is the difference in annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels between China and United States?
- 125.74 terawatt-hours, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States?
- 60 years are reported by both, from 1966 to 2025.
- How do China and United States rank globally for annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels?
- China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 1st of 76 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Annual change in primary energy from fossil fuels. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Change in total energy supply relative to the previous year, measured in terawatt-hours.