China vs OECD (EI): Primary energy use by source
China
1,128 terawatt-hours
in 2025
OECD (EI)
1,228 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
1st
OECD (EI) rank
1st
Primary energy use by source over time
- China
- OECD (EI)
How they compare
OECD (EI) currently reports 1,228 terawatt-hours against 1,128 terawatt-hours in China, a difference of 100 terawatt-hours.
That makes OECD (EI)'s figure about 1.1 times China's.
Across all 61 years both countries report, OECD (EI) has been ahead every year.
China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 79 countries.
OECD (EI) has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | OECD (EI) | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1970s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0.0009 terawatt-hours | 0.0009 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1980s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0.3497 terawatt-hours | 0.3497 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 1990s | 0.2476 terawatt-hours | 8.38 terawatt-hours | 8.13 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2000s | 5.63 terawatt-hours | 103.34 terawatt-hours | 97.71 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2010s | 202.67 terawatt-hours | 536.61 terawatt-hours | 333.94 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
| 2020s | 815.97 terawatt-hours | 1,099 terawatt-hours | 283.05 terawatt-hours | OECD (EI) |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use by source, China or OECD (EI)?
- OECD (EI), at 1,228 terawatt-hours against 1,128 terawatt-hours in China as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use by source between China and OECD (EI)?
- 100 terawatt-hours, with OECD (EI) ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and OECD (EI)?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do China and OECD (EI) rank globally for primary energy use by source?
- China ranks 1st and OECD (EI) ranks 1st of 79 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 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.