Per capita methane emissions by sector in United States
United States: Per capita methane emissions by sector was 1,477 kilograms per person in 2023. ▲ Rising
Per capita methane emissions by sector in United States, 1990–2023
Source: Climate Watch (2026); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in kilograms per person.
Analysis
United States recorded 1,477 kilograms per person for per capita methane emissions by sector in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% on the previous year and up 17.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, per capita methane emissions by sector in United States peaked at 1,632 kilograms per person in 2019 and was at its lowest, 997.61 kilograms per person, in 2005.
That places United States 20th out of 193 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1,113 kilograms per person | 1,050 kilograms per person | 1,180 kilograms per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 1,028 kilograms per person | 997.61 kilograms per person | 1,063 kilograms per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,326 kilograms per person | 1,099 kilograms per person | 1,632 kilograms per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,450 kilograms per person | 1,396 kilograms per person | 1,477 kilograms per person | 4 |
Countries ranked near United States
More climate change data for United States
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 4.1% (2100)
- Population growth 0.5% (2025)
- Population, total 341.79 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.6% (2025)
- Urban population 274.08 million (2025)
- Urban population 80.2% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 14.2 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 434.87 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 14.2 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 14.2 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is per capita methane emissions by sector in United States?
- Per capita methane emissions by sector in United States was 1,477 kilograms per person in 2023, according to Climate Watch (2026); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest per capita methane emissions by sector recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 1,632 kilograms per person in 2019.
- What is the lowest per capita methane emissions by sector recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 997.61 kilograms per person in 2005.
- How does United States rank for per capita methane emissions by sector?
- United States ranks 20th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is per capita methane emissions by sector rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Climate Watch (2026); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Per capita methane emissions by sector. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Emissions are measured in kilograms of carbon dioxide-equivalents per person.