South Africa vs Spain: Per capita fossil energy consumption vs. GDP per capita
South Africa
20.57 kilowatt-hours per person
in 2025
Spain
22.43 kilowatt-hours per person
in 2025
South Africa rank
39th
Spain rank
36th
Per capita fossil energy consumption vs. GDP per capita over time
- South Africa
- Spain
How they compare
Spain currently reports 22.43 kilowatt-hours per person against 20.57 kilowatt-hours per person in South Africa, a difference of 1.86 kilowatt-hours per person.
That makes Spain's figure about 1.1 times South Africa's.
The two have swapped places 9 times across 57 shared years of data; in 1969 it was South Africa ahead.
South Africa ranks 39th and Spain ranks 36th of 76 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 3 and Spain in 4.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Spain | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 18.66 kilowatt-hours per person | 11.86 kilowatt-hours per person | 6.79 kilowatt-hours per person | South Africa |
| 1970s | 20.63 kilowatt-hours per person | 16.96 kilowatt-hours per person | 3.67 kilowatt-hours per person | South Africa |
| 1980s | 24.82 kilowatt-hours per person | 20.42 kilowatt-hours per person | 4.4 kilowatt-hours per person | South Africa |
| 1990s | 24.04 kilowatt-hours per person | 24.47 kilowatt-hours per person | 0.4387 kilowatt-hours per person | Spain |
| 2000s | 25.59 kilowatt-hours per person | 31.62 kilowatt-hours per person | 6.03 kilowatt-hours per person | Spain |
| 2010s | 24.62 kilowatt-hours per person | 24.94 kilowatt-hours per person | 0.3183 kilowatt-hours per person | Spain |
| 2020s | 20.65 kilowatt-hours per person | 21.71 kilowatt-hours per person | 1.05 kilowatt-hours per person | Spain |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher per capita fossil energy consumption vs. gdp per capita, South Africa or Spain?
- Spain, at 22.43 kilowatt-hours per person against 20.57 kilowatt-hours per person in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in per capita fossil energy consumption vs. gdp per capita between South Africa and Spain?
- 1.86 kilowatt-hours per person, with Spain ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Spain?
- 57 years are reported by both, from 1969 to 2025.
- How do South Africa and Spain rank globally for per capita fossil energy consumption vs. gdp per capita?
- South Africa ranks 39th and Spain ranks 36th of 76 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Per capita fossil energy consumption vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in kilowatt-hours of total energy supply per person.