Worldwide fossil fuel consumption amounted to 140,231 terawatt-hours in 2023. This was an increase compared to the previous year and also the highest figure in the period of consideration.

Fossil fuels account for nearly 81.5 percent of total primary energy consumption worldwide. Although figures have been declining in recent years, owing to greater use of renewable sources, fossil fuels still make up the majority share in energy consumption. Total fossil fuel energy consumption worldwide stood at roughly 140,000 terawatt-hours in 2023.

Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.

Per capita fossil fuel consumption averaged 17,430 kilowatt-hours worldwide in 2023.This was a slight increase compared to the previous year. Qatar has the highest per capita fossil fuel consumption of any country, at 225,427 kilowatt-hours worth of fossil energy.

Qatar has the highest per capita fossil fuel consumption in the world. In 2023, residents in Qatar used up some 225,400 kilowatt-hours worth of fossil energy. This compared to a world average of 17,430 kilowatt-hours. Qatar also has the highest per capita energy consumption worldwide, sourcing exclusively from fossil fuels.

United Kingdom UK: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data was reported at 80.712 % in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 82.634 % for 2014. United Kingdom UK: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data is updated yearly, averaging 91.593 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2015, with 56 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 99.465 % in 1960 and a record low of 80.712 % in 2015. United Kingdom UK: 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 Kingdom – Table UK.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.

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.

There are three countries and territories in the world with a fossil fuel consumption share of over 99 percent of the total primary energy consumption. In Trinidad and Tobago, Algeria, and Hong Kong, fossil fuels account for nearly all primary energy consumed. By comparison, Sweden has the lowest consumption share at some 26 percent.

Global Fossil Fuel Consumption Support by Country, 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

Ireland IE: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data was reported at 85.363 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 84.585 % for 2014. Ireland IE: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data is updated yearly, averaging 85.032 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2015, with 56 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 93.277 % in 2004 and a record low of 67.242 % in 1960. Ireland IE: 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 Ireland – Table IE.World Bank: 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.

Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.

This dataset is about countries. It has 4 columns: country, region, continent, and fossil fuel energy consumption. The data is ordered by population (descending).

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.

Among the European countries, primary energy consumption in 2023 was highest in Germany, at 11.4 exajoules. This was followed by France and Turkey. Primary energy is energy taken directly from natural resources such as crude oil, coal and wind. This means primary energy can be either non-renewable or renewable. Fossil fuel consumption highest In 2023, primary energy consumption in the European Union derived mostly from fossil fuels, with oil consumption amounting to around 22 exajoules. In comparison, the consumption of coal for primary energy has been in a steady decline, signaling a shift away from this energy source. The consumption of renewables has been increasing annually during this time period and amounted to nearly 10 exajoules. Global consumption Primary energy consumption is highest in the Asia Pacific region, with consumption in this region amounting to some 292 exajoules in 2023. Globally, China is the largest consumer of primary energy in the world and consumed 170.7 exajoules in 2023.

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

Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.

Canada CA: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data was reported at 74.089 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 73.193 % for 2014. Canada CA: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data is updated yearly, averaging 75.993 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2015, with 56 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 86.215 % in 1965 and a record low of 71.698 % in 1994. Canada CA: 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 Canada – Table CA.World Bank.WDI: Environmental: Energy Production and Consumption. Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.;IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2014 (https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics), subject to https://www.iea.org/terms/;Weighted average;Restricted use: Please contact the International Energy Agency for third-party use of these data.

Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.

Cameroon CM: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data was reported at 38.318 % in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 35.782 % for 2013. Cameroon CM: Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption: % of Total data is updated yearly, averaging 16.650 % from Dec 1971 (Median) to 2014, with 44 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 38.318 % in 2014 and a record low of 9.007 % in 1971. Cameroon CM: 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 Cameroon – Table CM.World Bank.WDI: Environmental: 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.

Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.