China vs Russia: Primary energy use
China
45,054 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Russia
8,664 terawatt-hours
in 2025
China rank
1st
Russia rank
4th
Primary energy use over time
- China
- Russia
How they compare
China currently reports 45,054 terawatt-hours against 8,664 terawatt-hours in Russia, a difference of 36,390 terawatt-hours.
That makes China's figure about 5.2 times Russia's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 41 shared years of data; in 1985 it was Russia ahead.
China ranks 1st and Russia ranks 4th of 218 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, China averaged higher in 4 and Russia in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | Russia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 6,768 terawatt-hours | 9,666 terawatt-hours | 2,898 terawatt-hours | Russia |
| 1990s | 9,593 terawatt-hours | 7,981 terawatt-hours | 1,612 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2000s | 18,709 terawatt-hours | 7,273 terawatt-hours | 11,437 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2010s | 32,539 terawatt-hours | 7,891 terawatt-hours | 24,648 terawatt-hours | China |
| 2020s | 41,591 terawatt-hours | 8,379 terawatt-hours | 33,211 terawatt-hours | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use, China or Russia?
- China, at 45,054 terawatt-hours against 8,664 terawatt-hours in Russia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use between China and Russia?
- 36,390 terawatt-hours, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and Russia?
- 41 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2025.
- How do China and Russia rank globally for primary energy use?
- China ranks 1st and Russia ranks 4th of 218 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Primary energy use. 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.