China vs India: Emissions of air pollutants
China
20.99 million tonnes
in 2022
India
9.56 million tonnes
in 2022
China rank
1st
India rank
2nd
Emissions of air pollutants over time
- China
- India
How they compare
China currently reports 20.99 million tonnes against 9.56 million tonnes in India, a difference of 11.43 million tonnes.
That makes China's figure about 2.2 times India's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 273 shared years of data; in 1750 it was India ahead.
China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 220 countries.
Across the 28 decades both report, China averaged higher in 17 and India in 11.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1750s | 26,529 tonnes | 30,757 tonnes | 4,229 tonnes | India |
| 1760s | 27,120 tonnes | 31,359 tonnes | 4,239 tonnes | India |
| 1770s | 30,466 tonnes | 31,970 tonnes | 1,504 tonnes | India |
| 1780s | 35,049 tonnes | 32,590 tonnes | 2,459 tonnes | China |
| 1790s | 35,074 tonnes | 33,219 tonnes | 1,855 tonnes | China |
| 1800s | 36,235 tonnes | 34,060 tonnes | 2,175 tonnes | China |
| 1810s | 39,027 tonnes | 35,170 tonnes | 3,857 tonnes | China |
| 1820s | 40,585 tonnes | 36,430 tonnes | 4,155 tonnes | China |
| 1830s | 42,749 tonnes | 38,209 tonnes | 4,540 tonnes | China |
| 1840s | 43,407 tonnes | 40,474 tonnes | 2,933 tonnes | China |
| 1850s | 42,343 tonnes | 43,201 tonnes | 858.3 tonnes | India |
| 1860s | 40,283 tonnes | 46,821 tonnes | 6,538 tonnes | India |
| 1870s | 40,955 tonnes | 50,404 tonnes | 9,449 tonnes | India |
| 1880s | 43,537 tonnes | 63,780 tonnes | 20,243 tonnes | India |
| 1890s | 47,050 tonnes | 85,044 tonnes | 37,995 tonnes | India |
| 1900s | 84,954 tonnes | 141,734 tonnes | 56,781 tonnes | India |
| 1910s | 145,598 tonnes | 216,820 tonnes | 71,222 tonnes | India |
| 1920s | 231,262 tonnes | 252,982 tonnes | 21,720 tonnes | India |
| 1930s | 335,358 tonnes | 256,624 tonnes | 78,735 tonnes | China |
| 1940s | 458,486 tonnes | 318,852 tonnes | 139,635 tonnes | China |
| 1950s | 1.08 million tonnes | 535,309 tonnes | 548,760 tonnes | China |
| 1960s | 1.97 million tonnes | 916,624 tonnes | 1.06 million tonnes | China |
| 1970s | 4.29 million tonnes | 1.53 million tonnes | 2.76 million tonnes | China |
| 1980s | 7.18 million tonnes | 2.56 million tonnes | 4.62 million tonnes | China |
| 1990s | 12.87 million tonnes | 4.54 million tonnes | 8.33 million tonnes | China |
| 2000s | 23.24 million tonnes | 6.42 million tonnes | 16.82 million tonnes | China |
| 2010s | 27.18 million tonnes | 9.32 million tonnes | 17.86 million tonnes | China |
| 2020s | 21.41 million tonnes | 9.18 million tonnes | 12.23 million tonnes | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher emissions of air pollutants, China or India?
- China, at 20.99 million tonnes against 9.56 million tonnes in India as of 2022.
- What is the difference in emissions of air pollutants between China and India?
- 11.43 million tonnes, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 273 years are reported by both, from 1750 to 2022.
- How do China and India rank globally for emissions of air pollutants?
- China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 220 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Hoesly et al. (2024) – Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) are gases that are mainly formed during the burning of fossil fuels. Exposure to NOₓ gases can have negative impacts on respiratory health. NOₓ gases can also lead to the formation of ozone – another air pollutant.