China vs United States: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from cement
China
17.31 billion tonnes
in 2024
United States
3.09 billion tonnes
in 2024
China rank
1st
United States rank
3rd
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from cement over time
- China
- United States
How they compare
China currently reports 17.31 billion tonnes against 3.09 billion tonnes in United States, a difference of 14.22 billion tonnes.
That makes China's figure about 5.6 times United States's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 97 shared years of data; in 1928 it was United States ahead.
China ranks 1st and United States ranks 3rd of 211 countries.
Across the 11 decades both report, China averaged higher in 3 and United States in 8.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 78,038 tonnes | 242.02 million tonnes | 241.94 million tonnes | United States |
| 1930s | 884,472 tonnes | 300.27 million tonnes | 299.38 million tonnes | United States |
| 1940s | 3.96 million tonnes | 412.50 million tonnes | 408.54 million tonnes | United States |
| 1950s | 13.92 million tonnes | 610.67 million tonnes | 596.74 million tonnes | United States |
| 1960s | 54.34 million tonnes | 904.22 million tonnes | 849.87 million tonnes | United States |
| 1970s | 168.45 million tonnes | 1.25 billion tonnes | 1.08 billion tonnes | United States |
| 1980s | 525.69 million tonnes | 1.58 billion tonnes | 1.05 billion tonnes | United States |
| 1990s | 1.59 billion tonnes | 1.92 billion tonnes | 331.83 million tonnes | United States |
| 2000s | 4.31 billion tonnes | 2.33 billion tonnes | 1.98 billion tonnes | China |
| 2010s | 10.29 billion tonnes | 2.71 billion tonnes | 7.58 billion tonnes | China |
| 2020s | 15.96 billion tonnes | 3.01 billion tonnes | 12.95 billion tonnes | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher cumulative co₂ emissions from cement, China or United States?
- China, at 17.31 billion tonnes against 3.09 billion tonnes in United States as of 2024.
- What is the difference in cumulative co₂ emissions from cement between China and United States?
- 14.22 billion tonnes, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States?
- 97 years are reported by both, from 1928 to 2024.
- How do China and United States rank globally for cumulative co₂ emissions from cement?
- China ranks 1st and United States ranks 3rd of 211 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Cumulative CO₂ emissions from cement. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from cement since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.