China vs Japan: Share of primary energy from solar
China
2.6%
in 2025
Japan
2.4%
in 2025
China rank
22nd
Japan rank
25th
Share of primary energy from solar over time
- China
- Japan
How they compare
China currently reports 2.6% against 2.4% in Japan, a difference of 0.2%.
That makes China's figure about 1.1 times Japan's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1965 it was Japan ahead.
China ranks 22nd and Japan ranks 25th of 79 countries.
Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | Japan | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1980s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1990s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Japan |
| 2000s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Japan |
| 2010s | 0.2% | 0.6% | 0.4% | Japan |
| 2020s | 1.4% | 2.0% | 0.6% | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of primary energy from solar, China or Japan?
- China, at 2.6% against 2.4% in Japan as of 2025.
- What is the difference in share of primary energy from solar between China and Japan?
- 0.2%, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and Japan?
- 61 years are reported by both, from 1965 to 2025.
- How do China and Japan rank globally for share of primary energy from solar?
- China ranks 22nd and Japan ranks 25th of 79 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 Share of primary energy from solar. 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.