Japan vs USSR: Primary energy use
Japan
4,578 terawatt-hours
in 2025
USSR
17,692 terawatt-hours
in 1991
Japan rank
5th
USSR rank
2nd
Primary energy use over time
- Japan
- USSR
How they compare
USSR currently reports 17,692 terawatt-hours against 4,578 terawatt-hours in Japan, a difference of 13,114 terawatt-hours.
That makes USSR's figure about 3.9 times Japan's.
Across all 27 years both countries report, USSR has been ahead every year.
Japan ranks 5th and USSR ranks 2nd of 218 countries.
USSR has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | USSR | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2,216 terawatt-hours | 7,495 terawatt-hours | 5,280 terawatt-hours | USSR |
| 1970s | 3,932 terawatt-hours | 10,740 terawatt-hours | 6,808 terawatt-hours | USSR |
| 1980s | 4,358 terawatt-hours | 15,673 terawatt-hours | 11,315 terawatt-hours | USSR |
| 1990s | 5,187 terawatt-hours | 17,833 terawatt-hours | 12,646 terawatt-hours | USSR |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use, Japan or USSR?
- USSR, at 17,692 terawatt-hours against 4,578 terawatt-hours in Japan as of 1991.
- What is the difference in primary energy use between Japan and USSR?
- 13,114 terawatt-hours, with USSR ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and USSR?
- 27 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 1991.
- How do Japan and USSR rank globally for primary energy use?
- Japan ranks 5th and USSR ranks 2nd of 218 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Primary energy use. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours of total energy supply.