China vs India: Fossil fuel production
China
26,296 terawatt-hours
in 2025
India
4,992 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
1st
India rank
2nd
Fossil fuel production over time
- China
- India
How they compare
China currently reports 26,296 terawatt-hours against 4,992 terawatt-hours in India, a difference of 21,304 terawatt-hours.
That makes China's figure about 5.3 times India's.
Across all 45 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.
China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 34 countries.
China has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,859 terawatt-hours | 890.01 terawatt-hours | 3,969 terawatt-hours | China |
| 1990s | 7,278 terawatt-hours | 1,515 terawatt-hours | 5,763 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2000s | 13,198 terawatt-hours | 2,197 terawatt-hours | 11,001 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2010s | 21,080 terawatt-hours | 3,188 terawatt-hours | 17,892 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2020s | 24,608 terawatt-hours | 4,342 terawatt-hours | 20,267 terawatt-hours | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher fossil fuel production, China or India?
- China, at 26,296 terawatt-hours against 4,992 terawatt-hours in India as of 2025.
- What is the difference in fossil fuel production between China and India?
- 21,304 terawatt-hours, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 45 years are reported by both, from 1981 to 2025.
- How do China and India rank globally for fossil fuel production?
- China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 34 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 production. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours.