Annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region in China
China: Annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region was 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
Change on year
up 1.2%
World rank
1st
of 199 countries
All-time high
14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2024
All-time low
247.46 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 1875
Years of data
175
1850–2024
Annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region in China, 1850–2024
Source: Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
Analysis
In 2024, annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region in China stood at 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents. That is the highest value across all 175 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.2% on the previous year and up 20.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region in China peaked at 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024 and was at its lowest, 247.46 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, in 1875.
That places China 1st out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 392.20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 362.63 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 423.50 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1860s | 295.53 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 249.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 349.53 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1870s | 254.35 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 247.46 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 263.01 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1880s | 312.30 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 275.30 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 342.47 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1890s | 394.20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 363.68 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 424.83 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1900s | 497.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 444.61 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 554.98 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1910s | 632.58 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 570.39 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 684.18 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1920s | 685.34 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 665.64 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 711.78 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1930s | 841.67 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 754.98 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 912.75 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1940s | 1.04 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 977.89 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.08 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.51 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.34 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.71 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.88 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 1.64 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.40 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.92 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.29 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 3.71 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.56 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 3.10 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.14 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.88 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.21 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5.36 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.27 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5.28 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.64 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.55 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10.31 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 12.32 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.39 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 12.52 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More climate change data for China
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 6.2% (2100)
- Population growth -0.2% (2025)
- Population, total 1.41 billion (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.5% (2025)
- Urban population 933.17 million (2025)
- Urban population 66.3% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 285.09 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 8.66 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region in China?
- Annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region in China was 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 14.11 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024.
- What is the lowest annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 247.46 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 1875.
- How does China rank for annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region?
- China ranks 1st out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual greenhouse gas emissions by world region. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 175 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Greenhouse gas emissions are measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.