Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia
Australia: Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita was 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
Change on year
down 0.0%
World rank
4th
of 196 countries
All-time high
5.8 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 1976
All-time low
2.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 2020
Years of data
65
1960–2024
Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia, 1960–2024
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person.
Analysis
Australia recorded 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person for greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 22.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia peaked at 5.8 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 1976 and was at its lowest, 2.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, in 2020.
That places Australia 4th out of 196 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia, year by year
| Year | tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 4.59 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | — |
| 1961 | 4.54 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -1.0% |
| 1962 | 4.62 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +1.7% |
| 1963 | 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +0.8% |
| 1964 | 4.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +1.7% |
| 1965 | 4.74 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +0.2% |
| 1966 | 4.57 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -3.8% |
| 1967 | 4.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +1.8% |
| 1968 | 4.76 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +2.5% |
| 1969 | 4.84 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +1.6% |
| 1970 | 4.83 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -0.2% |
| 1971 | 4.35 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -9.9% |
| 1972 | 5.39 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +23.9% |
| 1973 | 4.16 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -22.8% |
| 1974 | 4.46 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +7.1% |
| 1975 | 4.94 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +10.9% |
| 1976 | 5.8 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +17.4% |
| 1977 | 5.53 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -4.7% |
| 1978 | 4.4 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -20.4% |
| 1979 | 5.28 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +20.0% |
| 1980 | 5.54 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +5.0% |
| 1981 | 3.86 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -30.3% |
| 1982 | 4.92 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +27.5% |
| 1983 | 4.01 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -18.6% |
| 1984 | 4.02 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +0.2% |
| 1985 | 5.29 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +31.6% |
| 1986 | 4.47 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -15.5% |
| 1987 | 3.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -18.5% |
| 1988 | 3.63 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 3.78 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +4.2% |
| 1990 | 4.33 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +14.4% |
| 1991 | 4.24 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -2.1% |
| 1992 | 4.14 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -2.4% |
| 1993 | 4.08 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 4.1 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 3.98 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -3.0% |
| 1996 | 3.74 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -5.9% |
| 1997 | 3.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -2.0% |
| 1998 | 3.88 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +5.8% |
| 1999 | 4.69 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +21.0% |
| 2000 | 4.93 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +5.0% |
| 2001 | 5.39 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +9.4% |
| 2002 | 5 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -7.3% |
| 2003 | 3.09 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -38.1% |
| 2004 | 4.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +33.7% |
| 2005 | 3.05 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -26.3% |
| 2006 | 3.88 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +27.4% |
| 2007 | 3.6 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -7.1% |
| 2008 | 2.84 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -21.2% |
| 2009 | 2.97 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +4.6% |
| 2010 | 2.42 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -18.6% |
| 2011 | 4.57 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +89.0% |
| 2012 | 4.53 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 2.76 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -39.0% |
| 2014 | 3.23 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +17.1% |
| 2015 | 3.03 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -6.2% |
| 2016 | 2.44 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -19.5% |
| 2017 | 3.23 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +32.3% |
| 2018 | 3.12 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -3.2% |
| 2019 | 2.53 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -18.9% |
| 2020 | 2.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -15.8% |
| 2021 | 2.5 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +17.1% |
| 2022 | 2.53 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -1.4% |
| 2024 | 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | -0.0% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.3851 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, 6.5× the median. (67 countries reporting)
- Australia's 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.2284 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, 10.9× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | +89.0% | 2.42 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 4.57 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 4.54 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 4.84 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 10 |
| 1970s | 4.92 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 4.16 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 5.8 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.32 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 3.63 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 5.54 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.08 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 3.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 4.69 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.89 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 2.84 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 5.39 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.19 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 2.42 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 4.57 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.43 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 2.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 2.53 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 5 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 1 Mongolia 4.2 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
- 2 Botswana 3.14 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
- 3 New Zealand 2.51 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
- 5 Uruguay 2.23 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
- 6 Central African Republic 1.88 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
- 7 Lithuania 1.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
More climate change data for Australia
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 1.30 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 118,578 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 34,162 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 84,416 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 128.91 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 3,015 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 12,473 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 10,966 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,507 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 41.38 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia?
- Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita in Australia was 2.49 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.8 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 1976.
- What is the lowest greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.13 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2020.
- How does Australia rank for greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita?
- Australia ranks 4th out of 196 countries with data for 2024.
- Is greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 22.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Greenhouse gas emissions by gas, per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Greenhouse gas emissions by gas divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.
Greenhouse gas emissions by gas ÷ Population, total
Computed from
- Greenhouse gas emissions by gas Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
- Population, total World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Greenhouse gas emissions by gas divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.