Share of global methane emissions in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Share of global methane emissions was 0.5% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Share of global methane emissions in United Kingdom, 1850–2024
Source: Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of global methane emissions in United Kingdom is 0.5%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 175 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.3% on the previous year and down 14.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global methane emissions in United Kingdom peaked at 5.7% in 1883 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 2024.
United Kingdom ranks 39th of 201 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 175 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 4.5% | 4.3% | 4.6% | 10 |
| 1860s | 5.0% | 4.8% | 5.2% | 10 |
| 1870s | 5.4% | 5.2% | 5.5% | 10 |
| 1880s | 5.5% | 5.4% | 5.7% | 10 |
| 1890s | 5.5% | 5.1% | 5.6% | 10 |
| 1900s | 5.5% | 5.5% | 5.6% | 10 |
| 1910s | 5.3% | 5.0% | 5.5% | 10 |
| 1920s | 4.6% | 3.4% | 5.1% | 10 |
| 1930s | 4.2% | 4.0% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 1940s | 3.9% | 3.8% | 4.1% | 10 |
| 1950s | 3.6% | 3.1% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 1960s | 2.9% | 2.6% | 3.2% | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.3% | 2.1% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.9% | 1.7% | 2.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.7% | 1.4% | 1.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.0% | 0.7% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More climate change data for United Kingdom
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.7% (2100)
- Population growth 0.3% (2025)
- Population, total 69.49 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 0.4% (2025)
- Urban population 57.90 million (2025)
- Urban population 83.3% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 4.53 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 80.08 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 4.53 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 4.53 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of global methane emissions in United Kingdom?
- Share of global methane emissions in United Kingdom was 0.5% in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global methane emissions recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 5.7% in 1883.
- What is the lowest share of global methane emissions recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 2024.
- How does United Kingdom rank for share of global methane emissions?
- United Kingdom ranks 39th out of 201 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of global methane emissions rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 14.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global 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 as a percentage of the world's methane emissions.