Brazil vs China: Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change
Brazil
121.45 billion tonnes
in 2024
China
81.69 billion tonnes
in 2024
Brazil rank
2nd
China rank
4th
Cumulative CO₂ emissions from land-use change over time
- Brazil
- China
How they compare
Brazil currently reports 121.45 billion tonnes against 81.69 billion tonnes in China, a difference of 39.76 billion tonnes.
That makes Brazil's figure about 1.5 times China's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 175 shared years of data; in 1850 it was China ahead.
Brazil ranks 2nd and China ranks 4th of 197 countries.
Across the 18 decades both report, Brazil averaged higher in 3 and China in 15.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Brazil | China | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 188.51 million tonnes | 979.21 million tonnes | 790.70 million tonnes | China |
| 1860s | 547.85 million tonnes | 2.21 billion tonnes | 1.66 billion tonnes | China |
| 1870s | 992.32 million tonnes | 2.67 billion tonnes | 1.67 billion tonnes | China |
| 1880s | 1.77 billion tonnes | 3.28 billion tonnes | 1.51 billion tonnes | China |
| 1890s | 2.90 billion tonnes | 4.61 billion tonnes | 1.71 billion tonnes | China |
| 1900s | 4.36 billion tonnes | 6.76 billion tonnes | 2.40 billion tonnes | China |
| 1910s | 6.75 billion tonnes | 9.88 billion tonnes | 3.13 billion tonnes | China |
| 1920s | 10.31 billion tonnes | 13.60 billion tonnes | 3.29 billion tonnes | China |
| 1930s | 13.44 billion tonnes | 18.16 billion tonnes | 4.72 billion tonnes | China |
| 1940s | 16.40 billion tonnes | 24.76 billion tonnes | 8.36 billion tonnes | China |
| 1950s | 22.47 billion tonnes | 34.62 billion tonnes | 12.15 billion tonnes | China |
| 1960s | 32.08 billion tonnes | 44.08 billion tonnes | 12.00 billion tonnes | China |
| 1970s | 43.53 billion tonnes | 56.32 billion tonnes | 12.79 billion tonnes | China |
| 1980s | 57.16 billion tonnes | 67.71 billion tonnes | 10.55 billion tonnes | China |
| 1990s | 73.58 billion tonnes | 76.00 billion tonnes | 2.42 billion tonnes | China |
| 2000s | 93.68 billion tonnes | 82.40 billion tonnes | 11.28 billion tonnes | Brazil |
| 2010s | 108.16 billion tonnes | 83.80 billion tonnes | 24.37 billion tonnes | Brazil |
| 2020s | 118.24 billion tonnes | 82.31 billion tonnes | 35.93 billion tonnes | Brazil |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change, Brazil or China?
- Brazil, at 121.45 billion tonnes against 81.69 billion tonnes in China as of 2024.
- What is the difference in cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change between Brazil and China?
- 39.76 billion tonnes, with Brazil ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Brazil and China?
- 175 years are reported by both, from 1850 to 2024.
- How do Brazil and China rank globally for cumulative co₂ emissions from land-use change?
- Brazil ranks 2nd and China ranks 4th of 197 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 land-use change. 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 land-use change since the first year of available data, measured in tonnes.