China vs OECD (EI): Fossil fuel consumption
China
9,401 terawatt-hours
in 2025
OECD (EI)
24,349 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
2nd
OECD (EI) rank
1st
Fossil fuel consumption over time
- China
- OECD (EI)
How they compare
OECD (EI) currently reports 24,349 terawatt-hours against 9,401 terawatt-hours in China, a difference of 14,948 terawatt-hours.
That makes OECD (EI)'s figure about 2.6 times China's.
Across all 61 years both countries report, OECD (EI) has been ahead every year.
China ranks 2nd and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 79 countries.
OECD (EI) has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | OECD (EI) | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 175.53 terawatt-hours | 15,756 terawatt-hours | 15,580 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1970s | 751.66 terawatt-hours | 23,360 terawatt-hours | 22,609 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1980s | 1,045 terawatt-hours | 22,227 terawatt-hours | 21,182 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1990s | 1,830 terawatt-hours | 25,318 terawatt-hours | 23,488 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2000s | 3,648 terawatt-hours | 27,103 terawatt-hours | 23,455 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2010s | 6,422 terawatt-hours | 25,048 terawatt-hours | 18,626 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2020s | 8,662 terawatt-hours | 23,859 terawatt-hours | 15,197 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher fossil fuel consumption, China or OECD (EI)?
- OECD (EI), at 24,349 terawatt-hours against 9,401 terawatt-hours in China as of 2025.
- What is the difference in fossil fuel consumption between China and OECD (EI)?
- 14,948 terawatt-hours, with OECD (EI) ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and OECD (EI)?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do China and OECD (EI) rank globally for fossil fuel consumption?
- China ranks 2nd and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 79 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Fossil fuel consumption. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours.