The five countries that emit the most CO₂ in total are China (≈ 12.3 billion t), the USA (≈ 4.9 billion t), India (≈ 3.2 billion t), Russia (≈ 1.8 billion t) and Japan (≈ 1.0 billion t). Per person the order changes: someone in the USA causes about 14.2 t a year, in Russia 12.3 t, in China 8.7 t, in Japan 7.8 t – and in India 2.2 t. The world average is about 4.7 t. (Territorial emissions from fossil fuels and industry in 2024, rounded; international shipping and aviation are not included.)
Data as of: Territorial fossil and industry CO₂: 2024
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Frequently asked questions
What is SeeTheScale?
SeeTheScale is a free website that makes unimaginably large numbers tangible: two values are shown as stacks of bills, a football field, seconds or bubbles side by side, so the difference is visible at a glance.
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Every comparison by the SeeTheScale team names its sources – such as Our World in Data, Forbes, the Federal Reserve, SIPRI or the German federal budget – and the year of the data. Comparisons made by users link their own sources.
How exact are the values?
The values are rounded. What matters is the order of magnitude: whether something is ten, a thousand or a million times as large.
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