China is the largest consumer of primary energy in the world, having used some 170.7 exajoules in 2023. This is a lot more than what the United States consumed, which comes in second place. The majority of primary energy fuels worldwide are still derived from fossil fuels, such as oil and coal. China's energy mix China’s primary energy mix has shifted from a dominant use of coal to an increase in natural gas and renewable sources. Since 2013, the renewables share in total energy consumption has grown by around eight percentage points. Overall, global primary energy consumption has increased over the last decade, and it is expected to experience the largest growth in emerging economies like the BRIC countries - Brazil, Russia, India, and China. What is primary energy? Primary energy is the energy inherent in natural resources such as crude oil, coal, and wind before further transformation. For example, crude oil can be refined into secondary fuels, such as gasoline or diesel, while wind is harnessed for electricity - itself a secondary energy source. A country’s total primary energy supply is a measure of the country’s primary energy sources. Meanwhile, end use energy is the energy directly consumed by the user and includes primary fuels such as natural gas, as well as secondary sources, like electricity and gasoline.

The average for 2015 based on 34 countries was 4181.46 kilograms of oil equivalent. The highest value was in Iceland: 17478.89 kilograms of oil equivalent and the lowest value was in Mexico: 1559.12 kilograms of oil equivalent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2015. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Iceland is by far the largest per capita consumer of electricity worldwide, averaging 51.9 megawatt-hours per person in 2024. This results from a combination of factors, such as low-cost electricity production, increased heating demand, and the presence of energy-intensive industries in the country. Norway, Qatar, and Canada were also some of the world's largest electricity consumers per capita that year. China is the leading overall power consumer Power-intensive industries, the purchasing power of the average citizen, household size, and general power efficiency standards all contribute to the amount of electricity that is consumed per person every year. However, in terms of total electricity consumption, a country's size and population can also play an important role. In 2024, the three most populous countries in the world, namely China, the United States, and India, were also the three largest electricity consumers. Global electricity consumption on the rise In 2023, net electricity consumption worldwide amounted to over 27,000 terawatt-hours, an increase of 30 percent in comparison to a decade earlier. When compared to 1980, global electricity consumption more than tripled. On the generation side, the world is still strongly dependent on fossil fuels. Despite the world's renewable energy capacity quintupling in the last decade, coal and gas combined still accounted for almost 60 percent of global electricity generation in 2023.

The average for 2022 based on 190 countries was 139.5 billion kilowatthours. The highest value was in China: 8349.31 billion kilowatthours and the lowest value was in Montserrat: 0.02 billion kilowatthours. The indicator is available from 1980 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Per capita energy consumption averaged ****** kilowatt-hours worldwide in 2023. This was up from a pandemic induced slump in 2020. Qatar has the highest per capita energy consumption of any country worldwide.

Global Energy Consumption in Services by Country, 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

Asia is the world's region with the greatest electricity consumption. In 2023, countries within that region consumed a combined 12,868 terawatt-hours of electricity. The region is home to China, the world's largest electricity consuming country. North America and Europe trailed in second and third, with 4,623 and 3,223 terawatt-hours consumed, respectively.

This horizontal bar chart displays fossil fuel energy consumption (% of total) by country using the aggregation average. The data is about countries.

United States US: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data was reported at 82.776 % in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 82.935 % for 2014. United States US: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data is updated yearly, averaging 87.236 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2015, with 56 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 95.982 % in 1967 and a record low of 82.776 % in 2015. United States US: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Energy Production and Consumption. Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.; ; IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2014 (http://www.iea.org/stats/index.asp), subject to https://www.iea.org/t&c/termsandconditions/; Weighted average; Restricted use: Please contact the International Energy Agency for third-party use of these data.

This horizontal bar chart displays renewable energy consumption (% of total final energy consumption) by country full name using the aggregation average in Europe. The data is about countries.

Energy Consumption: Industrial: Electricity Retail Sales data was reported at 257.067 BTU tn in Apr 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 261.989 BTU tn for Mar 2018. Energy Consumption: Industrial: Electricity Retail Sales data is updated monthly, averaging 271.116 BTU tn from Jan 1973 (Median) to Apr 2018, with 544 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 321.844 BTU tn in Aug 2000 and a record low of 182.314 BTU tn in Dec 1974. Energy Consumption: Industrial: Electricity Retail Sales data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Energy Information Administration. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.RB002: Energy Consumption.

Energy Consumption: Trans: Primary: FF: Coal data was reported at 0.000 BTU tn in Apr 2018. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.000 BTU tn for Mar 2018. Energy Consumption: Trans: Primary: FF: Coal data is updated monthly, averaging 0.000 BTU tn from Jan 1973 (Median) to Apr 2018, with 544 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.384 BTU tn in May 1973 and a record low of 0.000 BTU tn in Apr 2018. Energy Consumption: Trans: Primary: FF: Coal data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Energy Information Administration. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.RB002: Energy Consumption.

Trinidad and Tobago has the largest share of natural gas in primary energy consumption worldwide. In 2023, the Caribbean country sourced close to 90 percent of its energy from natural gas. Natural gas resource-rich countries are also some of the most reliant on this fuel type. For example, in Iran, natural gas accounts for some 70 percent of primary energy used.

The Global Energy Statistical Yearbook is an Enerdata's free online interactive data tool. It allows users to browse energy data through intuitive maps and graphs, for visual analysis of the latest trends in the energy industry and decarbonisation in G20. This open data tool provides users with access to energy-related statistics on production, consumption, and trade of oil, gas, coal, power, and renewables, as well as on CO2 emissions from fuel combustion. Geographically, it covers 60 countries and regions throughout the world, including updated data until 2018.

This horizontal bar chart displays renewable energy consumption (% of total final energy consumption) by country full name using the aggregation average in Western Africa. The data is about countries.

China dominated the renewable energy consumption globally and in the Asia-Pacific region, with the country consuming **** exajoules in 2023. This level far surpasses that of other major economies in the region, including India and Japan, which consumed *** and *** exajoules, respectively. Leading renewable energy markets China, India, Japan, and Vietnam are among the leading renewable energy markets in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, with increasing investments in the development of renewable energy. Moreover, Australia has focused particularly on the development of solar and wind energy, with around ** percent of its electricity coming from solar power and about ** percent of its power generation coming from wind. Australia has the largest share of wind and solar power in the electricity mix among APAC countries. China has continued to see the largest investments globally in energy transition, while India is also attracting significant investments. Southeast Asian markets have emerged as potential renewable energy markets, with Vietnam making the most progress in capacity expansion. However, these emerging markets face persistent energy infrastructure, policy, and financing challenges that must be addressed in order to speed up the transition to clean energy. The dual challenge: rising energy demand and carbon emissions in Asia-Pacific Despite these advances in renewable energy, APAC is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels to meet its rapidly growing energy demand from expanding cities and industries. Coal still accounts for over half of APAC’s power generation, with China consuming the largest share. Unsurprisingly, the region remains the world’s largest energy-related carbon dioxide emitter. China, in particular, is the leading source of CO2 emissions from fuel combustion. In 2023, the country emitted nearly **** billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, exceeding the combined emissions of the United States, India, Russia, and Japan. This situation underscores the complex challenge facing rapidly developing economies: how to sustain economic growth, meet rising energy needs, and improve living standards while curbing carbon emissions and ensuring a just and inclusive energy transition.

In 2023, China consumed 27.4 percent of global primary energy, positioning itself as the largest primary energy consumer across the world. The United States followed, with more than double the consumption share of India and Russia, the third and fourth-largest consumers worldwide. China’s use of energy Most of the primary energy consumed in China comes from coal, while crude oil is the country’s second most-consumed resource. Primary energy consumption in China has increased four-fold since 2000 and continues to rise each year. Rapid energy plants construction is a major reason for China's rising energy consumption. Sources of primary energy Primary energy comes directly from natural resources, both renewable and non-renewable, and has not yet been subject to transformation through human processes. Fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and gas are the most common types of primary energy sources worldwide. Consumption of renewables such as solar and wind currently remains at a much lower level than that of fossil fuels. For instance, the use of coal alone is three times greater than that of renewable sources. However, global renewable energy consumption has been growing steadily over the past decades.

United States US: Renewable Energy Consumption: % of Total Final Energy Consumption data was reported at 8.717 % in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 8.754 % for 2014. United States US: Renewable Energy Consumption: % of Total Final Energy Consumption data is updated yearly, averaging 5.454 % from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2015, with 26 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 8.754 % in 2014 and a record low of 4.089 % in 1994. United States US: Renewable Energy Consumption: % of Total Final Energy Consumption data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.World Bank: Energy Production and Consumption. Renewable energy consumption is the share of renewables energy in total final energy consumption.; ; World Bank, Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) database from the SE4ALL Global Tracking Framework led jointly by the World Bank, International Energy Agency, and the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program.; Weighted Average;

Sweden Energy Consumption: Annual data was reported at 568.993 TWh in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 540.281 TWh for 2015. Sweden Energy Consumption: Annual data is updated yearly, averaging 558.736 TWh from Dec 1970 (Median) to 2016, with 47 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 618.819 TWh in 2004 and a record low of 421.300 TWh in 1971. Sweden Energy Consumption: Annual data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Swedish Energy Agency. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Sweden – Table SE.RB001: Energy Statistics.

Energy Consumption: Renewable Energy (RE) data was reported at 910.588 BTU tn in Jul 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1,016.656 BTU tn for Jun 2018. Energy Consumption: Renewable Energy (RE) data is updated monthly, averaging 517.274 BTU tn from Jan 1973 (Median) to Jul 2018, with 547 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,036.540 BTU tn in May 2018 and a record low of 304.328 BTU tn in Feb 1977. Energy Consumption: Renewable Energy (RE) data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Energy Information Administration. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.RB002: Energy Consumption.