Methane emissions in New Zealand
New Zealand: Methane emissions was 34.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
34.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
Change on year
down 0.9%
World rank
48th
of 199 countries
All-time high
38.28 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2006
All-time low
3.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 1850
Years of data
175
1850–2024
Methane emissions in New Zealand, 1850–2024
Source: Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 34.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents for methane emissions in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.9% on the previous year and down 8.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, methane emissions in New Zealand peaked at 38.28 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2006 and was at its lowest, 3.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, in 1850.
New Zealand ranks 48th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
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 | 3.68 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 3.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 3.94 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1860s | 4.31 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.00 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.62 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1870s | 5.06 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 4.69 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5.48 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1880s | 6.14 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5.58 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.67 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1890s | 7.42 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.79 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 8.08 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1900s | 9.10 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 8.25 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 9.93 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1910s | 11.00 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10.18 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 11.77 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1920s | 12.96 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 11.88 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 14.08 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1930s | 15.42 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 14.30 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 16.74 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1940s | 18.98 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 17.08 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 20.85 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1950s | 24.02 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 21.37 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 26.86 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1960s | 30.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 27.50 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 35.33 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1970s | 35.28 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 34.21 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 35.76 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1980s | 37.06 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 36.03 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 37.98 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.41 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 35.36 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 37.31 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2000s | 37.37 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 36.19 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 38.28 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2010s | 37.22 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 36.33 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 37.92 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2020s | 35.24 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 34.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 35.73 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
- 45 Kuwait 39.53 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 46 United Arab Emirates 37.57 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 47 Uganda 37.06 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 49 Oman 32.88 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 50 Peru 31.68 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 51 South Sudan 31.28 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
More climate change data for New Zealand
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.1% (2100)
- Population growth 0.7% (2025)
- Population, total 5.32 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.7% (2025)
- Urban population 4.47 million (2025)
- Urban population 84.0% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 6.23 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 2.01 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 6.23 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 6.23 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is methane emissions in New Zealand?
- Methane emissions in New Zealand was 34.60 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest methane emissions recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 38.28 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2006.
- What is the lowest methane emissions recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 1850.
- How does New Zealand rank for methane emissions?
- New Zealand ranks 48th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is methane emissions rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Methane emissions. 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
Measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.