Share of global CO₂ emissions from coal in China
China: Share of global CO₂ emissions from coal was 56.2% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of global CO₂ emissions from coal in China, 1907–2024
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
China recorded 56.2% for share of global co₂ emissions from coal in 2024. That is the highest value across all 118 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 13.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global co₂ emissions from coal in China peaked at 56.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 1912.
That places China 1st out of 179 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.9% | 3 |
| 1910s | 0.9% | 0.6% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 1920s | 1.4% | 1.3% | 1.5% | 10 |
| 1930s | 2.0% | 1.5% | 2.4% | 10 |
| 1940s | 2.1% | 1.0% | 3.2% | 10 |
| 1950s | 5.3% | 2.0% | 14.0% | 10 |
| 1960s | 9.0% | 7.3% | 14.5% | 10 |
| 1970s | 14.4% | 11.7% | 17.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 19.1% | 16.1% | 21.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 27.2% | 22.8% | 29.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 36.9% | 28.4% | 46.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 49.6% | 47.2% | 51.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 54.8% | 53.5% | 56.2% | 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 share of global co₂ emissions from coal in China?
- Share of global co₂ emissions from coal in China was 56.2% in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global co₂ emissions from coal recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 56.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of global co₂ emissions from coal recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 1912.
- How does China rank for share of global co₂ emissions from coal?
- China ranks 1st out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of global co₂ emissions from coal rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global CO₂ emissions from coal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 118 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from coal, measured as a percentage of global emissions of CO₂ from coal in the same year.