Brazil vs China: Greenhouse gas emissions
Brazil
2.80 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2024
China
14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2024
Brazil rank
4th
China rank
1st
Greenhouse gas emissions over time
- Brazil
- China
How they compare
China currently reports 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents against 2.80 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in Brazil, a difference of 11.30 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
That makes China's figure about 5.0 times Brazil's.
Across all 175 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.
Brazil ranks 4th and China ranks 1st of 199 countries.
China has averaged higher in every one of the 18 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Brazil | China | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 49.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 392.20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 342.36 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1860s | 55.61 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 295.53 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 239.92 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1870s | 69.90 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 254.35 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 184.45 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1880s | 111.70 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 312.30 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 200.61 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1890s | 134.64 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 394.20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 259.56 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1900s | 202.42 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 497.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 294.81 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1910s | 327.11 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 632.58 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 305.46 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1920s | 439.56 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 685.34 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 245.78 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1930s | 325.51 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 841.67 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 516.16 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1940s | 512.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.04 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 531.81 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1950s | 916.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.51 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 593.72 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1960s | 1.32 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.88 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 558.95 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1970s | 1.56 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.92 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.36 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1980s | 1.97 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 3.56 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.59 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 1990s | 2.53 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.88 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.35 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 2000s | 2.94 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 7.27 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.33 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 2010s | 2.50 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 11.55 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.06 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
| 2020s | 2.77 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 13.39 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10.63 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher greenhouse gas emissions, Brazil or China?
- China, at 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents against 2.80 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in Brazil as of 2024.
- What is the difference in greenhouse gas emissions between Brazil and China?
- 11.30 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, with China 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 greenhouse gas emissions?
- Brazil ranks 4th and China ranks 1st of 199 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Greenhouse gas emissions. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Greenhouse gas emissions are measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.