Japan vs South Korea: Primary energy use by source
Japan
1,211 terawatt-hours
in 2025
South Korea
793.18 terawatt-hours
in 2025
Japan rank
5th
South Korea rank
8th
Primary energy use by source over time
- Japan
- South Korea
How they compare
Japan currently reports 1,211 terawatt-hours against 793.18 terawatt-hours in South Korea, a difference of 417.82 terawatt-hours.
That makes Japan's figure about 1.5 times South Korea's.
Across all 61 years both countries report, Japan has been ahead every year.
Japan ranks 5th and South Korea ranks 8th of 78 countries.
Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | South Korea | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 648.99 terawatt-hours | 61.02 terawatt-hours | 587.97 terawatt-hours | Japan |
| 1970s | 634.35 terawatt-hours | 93.78 terawatt-hours | 540.57 terawatt-hours | Japan |
| 1980s | 785.78 terawatt-hours | 231.32 terawatt-hours | 554.46 terawatt-hours | Japan |
| 1990s | 958.06 terawatt-hours | 359.62 terawatt-hours | 598.45 terawatt-hours | Japan |
| 2000s | 1,260 terawatt-hours | 654.14 terawatt-hours | 605.57 terawatt-hours | Japan |
| 2010s | 1,374 terawatt-hours | 987.65 terawatt-hours | 386.67 terawatt-hours | Japan |
| 2020s | 1,289 terawatt-hours | 849.39 terawatt-hours | 439.78 terawatt-hours | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher primary energy use by source, Japan or South Korea?
- Japan, at 1,211 terawatt-hours against 793.18 terawatt-hours in South Korea as of 2025.
- What is the difference in primary energy use by source between Japan and South Korea?
- 417.82 terawatt-hours, with Japan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do Japan and South Korea rank globally for primary energy use by source?
- Japan ranks 5th and South Korea ranks 8th of 78 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.