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Per capita methane emissions in New Zealand

New Zealand: Per capita methane emissions was 6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
Change on year
down 1.7%
World rank
6th
of 199 countries
All-time high
37.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 1850
All-time low
6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 2024
Years of data
175
1850–2024

Per capita methane emissions in New Zealand, 1850–2024

10203040185019372024

Source: Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person.

Analysis

The most recent figure for per capita methane emissions in New Zealand is 6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 175 years on record.

That represents a change of down 1.7% on the previous year and down 20.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, per capita methane emissions in New Zealand peaked at 37.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 1850 and was at its lowest, 6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, in 2024.

That places New Zealand 6th 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

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1850s 34.39 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 30.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 37.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1860s 23.01 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 17.16 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 29.48 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1870s 13.46 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.23 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 16.24 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1880s 10.58 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.29 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.95 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1890s 10.23 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.21 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.25 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1900s 10.04 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.78 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.2 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1910s 9.76 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1920s 9.62 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.59 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1930s 9.93 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.34 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1940s 10.82 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.42 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.11 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1950s 11.33 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.18 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.51 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1960s 11.75 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.26 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 12.69 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1970s 11.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.21 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 12.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1980s 11.42 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.81 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 11.77 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
1990s 10 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.57 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
2000s 9.14 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 8.66 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 9.47 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
2010s 8.09 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.28 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 8.65 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 10
2020s 6.86 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 7.05 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person 5

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 3 Kuwait 8.01 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  2. 4 Qatar 7.38 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  3. 5 Uruguay 7.37 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  4. 7 Oman 6.22 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  5. 8 Gabon 5.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare
  6. 9 Australia 5.08 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More climate change data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is per capita methane emissions in New Zealand?
Per capita methane emissions in New Zealand was 6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest per capita methane emissions recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 37.73 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 1850.
What is the lowest per capita methane emissions recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 6.64 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in 2024.
How does New Zealand rank for per capita methane emissions?
New Zealand ranks 6th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is per capita methane emissions rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is down 20.6%. 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); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Per capita 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

Indicator
Per capita methane emissions
Unit
tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
Source
Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 34,079 data points, 1850–2024
Last refreshed

Measured in tonnes per person of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.