Germany vs United States: Primary energy use by source
Germany
133.68 terawatt-hours
in 2025
United States
469.08 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Germany rank
3rd
United States rank
2nd
Primary energy use by source over time
- Germany
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 469.08 terawatt-hours against 133.68 terawatt-hours in Germany, a difference of 335.4 terawatt-hours.
That makes United States's figure about 3.5 times Germany's.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was United States ahead.
Germany ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 79 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Germany averaged higher in 1 and United States in 4.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1970s | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | 0 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1980s | 0.0037 terawatt-hours | 0.2157 terawatt-hours | 0.212 terawatt-hours | United States |
| 1990s | 1.85 terawatt-hours | 3.26 terawatt-hours | 1.41 terawatt-hours | United States |
| 2000s | 26.13 terawatt-hours | 25.87 terawatt-hours | 0.2614 terawatt-hours | Germany |
| 2010s | 75.34 terawatt-hours | 196.54 terawatt-hours | 121.2 terawatt-hours | United States |
| 2020s | 131.35 terawatt-hours | 418.83 terawatt-hours | 287.49 terawatt-hours | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use by source, Germany or United States?
- United States, at 469.08 terawatt-hours against 133.68 terawatt-hours in Germany as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use by source between Germany and United States?
- 335.4 terawatt-hours, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and United States?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do Germany and United States rank globally for primary energy use by source?
- Germany ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd 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.