North Korea vs United States: Per capita CO₂ emissions from coal
North Korea
2.16 tonnes per person
in 2024
United States
2.12 tonnes per person
in 2024
North Korea rank
21st
United States rank
23rd
Per capita CO₂ emissions from coal over time
- North Korea
- United States
How they compare
North Korea currently reports 2.16 tonnes per person against 2.12 tonnes per person in United States, a difference of 0.04 tonnes per person.
The two have swapped places 7 times across 113 shared years of data; in 1905 it was United States ahead.
North Korea ranks 21st and United States ranks 23rd of 179 countries.
Across the 13 decades both report, North Korea averaged higher in 2 and United States in 11.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | North Korea | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.0144 tonnes per person | 11.57 tonnes per person | 11.55 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1910s | 0.0634 tonnes per person | 13.17 tonnes per person | 13.11 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1920s | 0.1847 tonnes per person | 12.15 tonnes per person | 11.96 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1930s | 0.5758 tonnes per person | 8.19 tonnes per person | 7.62 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1940s | 1.23 tonnes per person | 9.92 tonnes per person | 8.69 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1950s | 0.5912 tonnes per person | 6.36 tonnes per person | 5.77 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1960s | 2.93 tonnes per person | 5.38 tonnes per person | 2.46 tonnes per person | United States |
| 1970s | 5.7 tonnes per person | 5.6 tonnes per person | 0.0992 tonnes per person | North Korea |
| 1980s | 6.88 tonnes per person | 6.5 tonnes per person | 0.3779 tonnes per person | North Korea |
| 1990s | 3.45 tonnes per person | 7.08 tonnes per person | 3.63 tonnes per person | United States |
| 2000s | 2.68 tonnes per person | 7.06 tonnes per person | 4.38 tonnes per person | United States |
| 2010s | 1.76 tonnes per person | 4.67 tonnes per person | 2.91 tonnes per person | United States |
| 2020s | 2.09 tonnes per person | 2.48 tonnes per person | 0.3948 tonnes per person | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher per capita co₂ emissions from coal, North Korea or United States?
- North Korea, at 2.16 tonnes per person against 2.12 tonnes per person in United States as of 2024.
- What is the difference in per capita co₂ emissions from coal between North Korea and United States?
- 0.04 tonnes per person, with North Korea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for North Korea and United States?
- 113 years are reported by both, from 1905 to 2024.
- How do North Korea and United States rank globally for per capita co₂ emissions from coal?
- North Korea ranks 21st and United States ranks 23rd of 179 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Global Carbon Budget (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Per capita CO₂ emissions from coal. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Annual emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from coal, measured in tonnes per person.