Primary energy use in Japan
Japan: Primary energy use was 4,578 terawatt-hours in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
4,578 terawatt-hours
Change on year
down 0.8%
World rank
6th
of 219 countries
All-time high
6,317 terawatt-hours
in 2005
All-time low
1,683 terawatt-hours
in 1965
Years of data
61
1965–2025
Primary energy use in Japan, 1965–2025
Source: Energy Institute – Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in terawatt-hours.
Analysis
Japan recorded 4,578 terawatt-hours for primary energy use in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.8% on the previous year and down 12.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary energy use in Japan peaked at 6,317 terawatt-hours in 2005 and was at its lowest, 1,683 terawatt-hours, in 1965.
That places Japan 6th out of 219 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Primary energy use in Japan, year by year
| Year | terawatt-hours | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 1,683 terawatt-hours | — |
| 1966 | 1,924 terawatt-hours | +14.3% |
| 1967 | 2,198 terawatt-hours | +14.3% |
| 1968 | 2,426 terawatt-hours | +10.4% |
| 1969 | 2,848 terawatt-hours | +17.4% |
| 1970 | 3,274 terawatt-hours | +14.9% |
| 1971 | 3,420 terawatt-hours | +4.5% |
| 1972 | 3,672 terawatt-hours | +7.4% |
| 1973 | 4,082 terawatt-hours | +11.2% |
| 1974 | 4,015 terawatt-hours | -1.6% |
| 1975 | 3,974 terawatt-hours | -1.0% |
| 1976 | 4,150 terawatt-hours | +4.4% |
| 1977 | 4,152 terawatt-hours | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 4,258 terawatt-hours | +2.5% |
| 1979 | 4,322 terawatt-hours | +1.5% |
| 1980 | 4,150 terawatt-hours | -4.0% |
| 1981 | 4,084 terawatt-hours | -1.6% |
| 1982 | 3,968 terawatt-hours | -2.8% |
| 1983 | 4,086 terawatt-hours | +3.0% |
| 1984 | 4,265 terawatt-hours | +4.4% |
| 1985 | 4,359 terawatt-hours | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 4,357 terawatt-hours | -0.0% |
| 1987 | 4,568 terawatt-hours | +4.8% |
| 1988 | 4,792 terawatt-hours | +4.9% |
| 1989 | 4,954 terawatt-hours | +3.4% |
| 1990 | 5,124 terawatt-hours | +3.4% |
| 1991 | 5,249 terawatt-hours | +2.4% |
| 1992 | 5,342 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 1993 | 5,418 terawatt-hours | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 5,691 terawatt-hours | +5.0% |
| 1995 | 5,854 terawatt-hours | +2.9% |
| 1996 | 5,979 terawatt-hours | +2.1% |
| 1997 | 6,091 terawatt-hours | +1.9% |
| 1998 | 5,977 terawatt-hours | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 6,080 terawatt-hours | +1.7% |
| 2000 | 6,186 terawatt-hours | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 6,130 terawatt-hours | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 6,124 terawatt-hours | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 6,082 terawatt-hours | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 6,180 terawatt-hours | +1.6% |
| 2005 | 6,317 terawatt-hours | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 6,302 terawatt-hours | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 6,244 terawatt-hours | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 6,118 terawatt-hours | -2.0% |
| 2009 | 5,620 terawatt-hours | -8.1% |
| 2010 | 5,973 terawatt-hours | +6.3% |
| 2011 | 5,630 terawatt-hours | -5.7% |
| 2012 | 5,531 terawatt-hours | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 5,461 terawatt-hours | -1.3% |
| 2014 | 5,288 terawatt-hours | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 5,210 terawatt-hours | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 5,139 terawatt-hours | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 5,171 terawatt-hours | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 5,140 terawatt-hours | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 5,031 terawatt-hours | -2.1% |
| 2020 | 4,639 terawatt-hours | -7.8% |
| 2021 | 4,848 terawatt-hours | +4.5% |
| 2022 | 4,794 terawatt-hours | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 4,666 terawatt-hours | -2.7% |
| 2024 | 4,613 terawatt-hours | -1.1% |
| 2025 | 4,578 terawatt-hours | -0.8% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 4,578 terawatt-hours is above the median for high income countries, which is 158.21 terawatt-hours, 28.9× the median. (75 countries reporting)
- Japan's 4,578 terawatt-hours is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 56.44 terawatt-hours, 81.1× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2,216 terawatt-hours | 1,683 terawatt-hours | 2,848 terawatt-hours | 5 |
| 1970s | 3,932 terawatt-hours | 3,274 terawatt-hours | 4,322 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 1980s | 4,358 terawatt-hours | 3,968 terawatt-hours | 4,954 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 1990s | 5,680 terawatt-hours | 5,124 terawatt-hours | 6,091 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2000s | 6,130 terawatt-hours | 5,620 terawatt-hours | 6,317 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2010s | 5,357 terawatt-hours | 5,031 terawatt-hours | 5,973 terawatt-hours | 10 |
| 2020s | 4,690 terawatt-hours | 4,578 terawatt-hours | 4,848 terawatt-hours | 6 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More energy & mining data for Japan
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -0.7535 % change on previous year (2025)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fuel imports 19.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary energy use in Japan?
- Primary energy use in Japan was 4,578 terawatt-hours in 2025, according to Energy Institute – Statistical Review of World Energy (2026); Smil (2017); U.S. Energy Information Administration (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest primary energy use recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 6,317 terawatt-hours in 2005.
- What is the lowest primary energy use recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,683 terawatt-hours in 1965.
- How does Japan rank for primary energy use?
- Japan ranks 6th out of 219 countries with data for 2025.
- Is primary energy use rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures 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 part of Primary energy use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 61 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Measured in terawatt-hours of total energy supply.