China vs Russia: Year-on-year change in CO₂ emissions
China
117.03 million tonnes
in 2024
Russia
47.39 million tonnes
in 2024
China rank
2nd
Russia rank
4th
Year-on-year change in CO₂ emissions over time
- China
- Russia
How they compare
China currently reports 117.03 million tonnes against 47.39 million tonnes in Russia, a difference of 69.64 million tonnes.
That makes China's figure about 2.5 times Russia's.
The two have swapped places 28 times across 117 shared years of data; in 1908 it was China ahead.
China ranks 2nd and Russia ranks 4th of 215 countries.
Across the 13 decades both report, China averaged higher in 9 and Russia in 4.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | Russia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 2.18 million tonnes | 1.76 million tonnes | 420,877 tonnes | China |
| 1910s | 1.37 million tonnes | -3.93 million tonnes | 5.31 million tonnes | China |
| 1920s | 1.03 million tonnes | 4.95 million tonnes | 3.92 million tonnes | Russia |
| 1930s | 2.61 million tonnes | 17.77 million tonnes | 15.16 million tonnes | Russia |
| 1940s | -1.23 million tonnes | 12.45 million tonnes | 13.68 million tonnes | Russia |
| 1950s | 65.81 million tonnes | 47.76 million tonnes | 18.05 million tonnes | China |
| 1960s | -11.25 million tonnes | 52.04 million tonnes | 63.28 million tonnes | Russia |
| 1970s | 91.77 million tonnes | 67.92 million tonnes | 23.85 million tonnes | China |
| 1980s | 93.67 million tonnes | 35.60 million tonnes | 58.07 million tonnes | China |
| 1990s | 108.78 million tonnes | -91.16 million tonnes | 199.94 million tonnes | China |
| 2000s | 433.15 million tonnes | 5.11 million tonnes | 428.04 million tonnes | China |
| 2010s | 283.20 million tonnes | 15.92 million tonnes | 267.28 million tonnes | China |
| 2020s | 315.10 million tonnes | 15.21 million tonnes | 299.89 million tonnes | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher year-on-year change in co₂ emissions, China or Russia?
- China, at 117.03 million tonnes against 47.39 million tonnes in Russia as of 2024.
- What is the difference in year-on-year change in co₂ emissions between China and Russia?
- 69.64 million tonnes, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and Russia?
- 117 years are reported by both, from 1908 to 2024.
- How do China and Russia rank globally for year-on-year change in co₂ emissions?
- China ranks 2nd and Russia ranks 4th of 215 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Year-on-year change in CO₂ emissions. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Annual growth in total emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), excluding land-use change, measured in tonnes.