China vs India: Primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables
China
3.3%
in 2025
India
1.5%
in 2025
China rank
24th
India rank
28th
Primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables over time
- China
- India
How they compare
China currently reports 3.3% against 1.5% in India, a difference of 1.8%.
That makes China's figure about 2.2 times India's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was India ahead.
China ranks 24th and India ranks 28th of 216 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, China averaged higher in 2 and India in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.1% | India |
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.6% | 0.6% | India |
| 1980s | 0.0% | 0.8% | 0.8% | India |
| 1990s | 0.3% | 0.9% | 0.6% | India |
| 2000s | 0.7% | 1.3% | 0.5% | India |
| 2010s | 1.6% | 1.4% | 0.2% | China |
| 2020s | 3.1% | 1.5% | 1.6% | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables, China or India?
- China, at 3.3% against 1.5% in India as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables between China and India?
- 1.8%, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do China and India rank globally for primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables?
- China ranks 24th and India ranks 28th of 216 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Energy Institute - Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Primary energy from fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured as a percentage of total energy supply.