Germany vs United States: Year-on-year change in CO₂ emissions
Germany
-21.45 million tonnes
in 2024
United States
-14.29 million tonnes
in 2024
Germany rank
214th
United States rank
212th
Year-on-year change in CO₂ emissions over time
- Germany
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports -14.29 million tonnes against -21.45 million tonnes in Germany, a difference of 7.16 million tonnes.
The two have swapped places 98 times across 224 shared years of data; in 1801 it was United States ahead.
Germany ranks 214th and United States ranks 212th of 215 countries.
Across the 23 decades both report, Germany averaged higher in 5 and United States in 18.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1800s | 15,062 tonnes | 16,692 tonnes | 1,629 tonnes | United States |
| 1810s | 234,496 tonnes | 35,907 tonnes | 198,589 tonnes | Germany |
| 1820s | 35,541 tonnes | 103,325 tonnes | 67,784 tonnes | United States |
| 1830s | 338,920 tonnes | 372,262 tonnes | 33,342 tonnes | United States |
| 1840s | 660,254 tonnes | 1.27 million tonnes | 610,055 tonnes | United States |
| 1850s | 2.02 million tonnes | 2.71 million tonnes | 691,397 tonnes | United States |
| 1860s | 4.38 million tonnes | 4.84 million tonnes | 459,091 tonnes | United States |
| 1870s | 3.33 million tonnes | 8.18 million tonnes | 4.85 million tonnes | United States |
| 1880s | 8.80 million tonnes | 16.07 million tonnes | 7.27 million tonnes | United States |
| 1890s | 10.44 million tonnes | 29.07 million tonnes | 18.63 million tonnes | United States |
| 1900s | 14.23 million tonnes | 54.48 million tonnes | 40.25 million tonnes | United States |
| 1910s | -5.81 million tonnes | 31.48 million tonnes | 37.29 million tonnes | United States |
| 1920s | 15.18 million tonnes | 47.71 million tonnes | 32.53 million tonnes | United States |
| 1930s | 10.94 million tonnes | -29.26 million tonnes | 40.20 million tonnes | Germany |
| 1940s | -21.65 million tonnes | 49.39 million tonnes | 71.04 million tonnes | United States |
| 1950s | 32.33 million tonnes | 66.70 million tonnes | 34.37 million tonnes | United States |
| 1960s | 29.63 million tonnes | 120.32 million tonnes | 90.69 million tonnes | United States |
| 1970s | 6.59 million tonnes | 87.36 million tonnes | 80.77 million tonnes | United States |
| 1980s | -10.92 million tonnes | 5.15 million tonnes | 16.07 million tonnes | United States |
| 1990s | -11.31 million tonnes | 84.00 million tonnes | 95.32 million tonnes | United States |
| 2000s | -10.55 million tonnes | -31.42 million tonnes | 20.87 million tonnes | Germany |
| 2010s | -8.13 million tonnes | -25.02 million tonnes | 16.89 million tonnes | Germany |
| 2020s | -27.27 million tonnes | -66.36 million tonnes | 39.09 million tonnes | Germany |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher year-on-year change in co₂ emissions, Germany or United States?
- United States, at -14.29 million tonnes against -21.45 million tonnes in Germany as of 2024.
- What is the difference in year-on-year change in co₂ emissions between Germany and United States?
- 7.16 million tonnes, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and United States?
- 224 years are reported by both, from 1801 to 2024.
- How do Germany and United States rank globally for year-on-year change in co₂ emissions?
- Germany ranks 214th and United States ranks 212th 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.