Brazil vs China: Global primary energy use by source
Brazil
186.65 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China
415.16 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Brazil rank
4th
China rank
1st
Global primary energy use by source over time
- Brazil
- China
How they compare
China currently reports 415.16 terawatt-hours against 186.65 terawatt-hours in Brazil, a difference of 228.51 terawatt-hours.
That makes China's figure about 2.2 times Brazil's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was China ahead.
Brazil ranks 4th and China ranks 1st of 77 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Brazil averaged higher in 5 and China in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Brazil | China | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1970s | 2.84 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 2.84 terawatt-hours | Brazil |
| 1980s | 8.56 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 8.56 terawatt-hours | Brazil |
| 1990s | 17.81 terawatt-hours | 4.65 terawatt-hours | 13.16 terawatt-hours | Brazil |
| 2000s | 42.67 terawatt-hours | 22.27 terawatt-hours | 20.4 terawatt-hours | Brazil |
| 2010s | 136.91 terawatt-hours | 124.68 terawatt-hours | 12.23 terawatt-hours | Brazil |
| 2020s | 177.05 terawatt-hours | 345.57 terawatt-hours | 168.52 terawatt-hours | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher global primary energy use by source, Brazil or China?
- China, at 415.16 terawatt-hours against 186.65 terawatt-hours in Brazil as of 2025.
- What is the difference in global primary energy use by source between Brazil and China?
- 228.51 terawatt-hours, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Brazil and China?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do Brazil and China rank globally for global primary energy use by source?
- Brazil ranks 4th and China ranks 1st of 77 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Global primary energy use by source. 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.