China (People’s Republic of) vs Saudi Arabia: Fossil fuel supply by source
China (People’s Republic of)
4,419 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Saudi Arabia
1,338 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China (People’s Republic of) rank
4th
Saudi Arabia rank
6th
Fossil fuel supply by source over time
- China (People’s Republic of)
- Saudi Arabia
How they compare
China (People’s Republic of) currently reports 4,419 terawatt-hours against 1,338 terawatt-hours in Saudi Arabia, a difference of 3,081 terawatt-hours.
That makes China (People’s Republic of)'s figure about 3.3 times Saudi Arabia's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was China (People’s Republic of) ahead.
China (People’s Republic of) ranks 4th and Saudi Arabia ranks 6th of 77 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, China (People’s Republic of) averaged higher in 4 and Saudi Arabia in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China (People’s Republic of) | Saudi Arabia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 14.63 terawatt-hours | 8.99 terawatt-hours | 5.64 terawatt-hours | China (People’s Republic of) |
| 1970s | 84.93 terawatt-hours | 29.42 terawatt-hours | 55.51 terawatt-hours | China (People’s Republic of) |
| 1980s | 134.52 terawatt-hours | 183.08 terawatt-hours | 48.56 terawatt-hours | Saudi Arabia |
| 1990s | 180.03 terawatt-hours | 394.68 terawatt-hours | 214.65 terawatt-hours | Saudi Arabia |
| 2000s | 503.91 terawatt-hours | 630.75 terawatt-hours | 126.85 terawatt-hours | Saudi Arabia |
| 2010s | 1,993 terawatt-hours | 994.62 terawatt-hours | 998.22 terawatt-hours | China (People’s Republic of) |
| 2020s | 3,956 terawatt-hours | 1,198 terawatt-hours | 2,758 terawatt-hours | China (People’s Republic of) |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher fossil fuel supply by source, China (People’s Republic of) or Saudi Arabia?
- China (People’s Republic of), at 4,419 terawatt-hours against 1,338 terawatt-hours in Saudi Arabia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in fossil fuel supply by source between China (People’s Republic of) and Saudi Arabia?
- 3,081 terawatt-hours, with China (People’s Republic of) ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China (People’s Republic of) and Saudi Arabia?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do China (People’s Republic of) and Saudi Arabia rank globally for fossil fuel supply by source?
- China (People’s Republic of) ranks 4th and Saudi Arabia ranks 6th 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 Fossil fuel supply 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.