South Korea vs Saudi Arabia: Primary energy use
South Korea
3,604 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Saudi Arabia
3,340 terawatt-hours
in 2025
South Korea rank
7th
Saudi Arabia rank
9th
Primary energy use over time
- South Korea
- Saudi Arabia
How they compare
South Korea currently reports 3,604 terawatt-hours against 3,340 terawatt-hours in Saudi Arabia, a difference of 264 terawatt-hours.
That makes South Korea's figure about 1.1 times Saudi Arabia's.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was Saudi Arabia ahead.
South Korea ranks 7th and Saudi Arabia ranks 9th of 218 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, South Korea averaged higher in 4 and Saudi Arabia in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Korea | Saudi Arabia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 104.78 terawatt-hours | 242.08 terawatt-hours | 137.3 terawatt-hours | Saudi Arabia |
| 1970s | 270.83 terawatt-hours | 317.26 terawatt-hours | 46.44 terawatt-hours | Saudi Arabia |
| 1980s | 638.54 terawatt-hours | 685.92 terawatt-hours | 47.38 terawatt-hours | Saudi Arabia |
| 1990s | 1,689 terawatt-hours | 1,106 terawatt-hours | 582.43 terawatt-hours | South Korea |
| 2000s | 2,611 terawatt-hours | 1,750 terawatt-hours | 861.41 terawatt-hours | South Korea |
| 2010s | 3,381 terawatt-hours | 2,887 terawatt-hours | 493.9 terawatt-hours | South Korea |
| 2020s | 3,584 terawatt-hours | 3,131 terawatt-hours | 452.69 terawatt-hours | South Korea |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use, South Korea or Saudi Arabia?
- South Korea, at 3,604 terawatt-hours against 3,340 terawatt-hours in Saudi Arabia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use between South Korea and Saudi Arabia?
- 264 terawatt-hours, with South Korea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Korea and Saudi Arabia?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do South Korea and Saudi Arabia rank globally for primary energy use?
- South Korea ranks 7th and Saudi Arabia ranks 9th 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.