China vs OECD (EI): Coal production
China
26,296 terawatt-hours
in 2025
OECD (EI)
7,718 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
1st
OECD (EI) rank
1st
Coal production over time
- China
- OECD (EI)
How they compare
China currently reports 26,296 terawatt-hours against 7,718 terawatt-hours in OECD (EI), a difference of 18,578 terawatt-hours.
That makes China's figure about 3.4 times OECD (EI)'s.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 45 shared years of data; in 1981 it was OECD (EI) ahead.
China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 219 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, China averaged higher in 3 and OECD (EI) in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | OECD (EI) | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,859 terawatt-hours | 12,116 terawatt-hours | 7,258 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1990s | 7,278 terawatt-hours | 12,091 terawatt-hours | 4,813 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2000s | 13,198 terawatt-hours | 12,177 terawatt-hours | 1,021 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2010s | 21,080 terawatt-hours | 11,467 terawatt-hours | 9,613 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2020s | 24,608 terawatt-hours | 8,350 terawatt-hours | 16,258 terawatt-hours | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher coal production, China or OECD (EI)?
- China, at 26,296 terawatt-hours against 7,718 terawatt-hours in OECD (EI) as of 2025.
- What is the difference in coal production between China and OECD (EI)?
- 18,578 terawatt-hours, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and OECD (EI)?
- 45 years are reported by both, from 1981 to 2025.
- How do China and OECD (EI) rank globally for coal production?
- China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 219 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Coal 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.