India vs Russia: Emissions of air pollutants

India
9.56 million tonnes
in 2022
Russia
4.85 million tonnes
in 2022
India rank
2nd
Russia rank
5th

Emissions of air pollutants over time

  • India
  • Russia
02.5M5.0M7.5M10.0M175018862022

How they compare

India currently reports 9.56 million tonnes against 4.85 million tonnes in Russia, a difference of 4.71 million tonnes.

That makes India's figure about 2.0 times Russia's.

The two have swapped places 6 times across 273 shared years of data; in 1750 it was India ahead.

India ranks 2nd and Russia ranks 5th of 220 countries.

Across the 28 decades both report, India averaged higher in 17 and Russia in 11.

Head to head by decade

Decade India Russia Difference Ahead
1750s 30,757 tonnes 7,788 tonnes 22,970 tonnes India
1760s 31,359 tonnes 8,192 tonnes 23,168 tonnes India
1770s 31,970 tonnes 8,616 tonnes 23,353 tonnes India
1780s 32,590 tonnes 9,140 tonnes 23,449 tonnes India
1790s 33,219 tonnes 9,622 tonnes 23,596 tonnes India
1800s 34,060 tonnes 10,213 tonnes 23,847 tonnes India
1810s 35,170 tonnes 10,976 tonnes 24,195 tonnes India
1820s 36,430 tonnes 11,909 tonnes 24,521 tonnes India
1830s 38,209 tonnes 13,576 tonnes 24,633 tonnes India
1840s 40,474 tonnes 15,586 tonnes 24,888 tonnes India
1850s 43,201 tonnes 17,826 tonnes 25,375 tonnes India
1860s 46,821 tonnes 23,505 tonnes 23,317 tonnes India
1870s 50,404 tonnes 38,305 tonnes 12,099 tonnes India
1880s 63,780 tonnes 70,419 tonnes 6,640 tonnes Russia
1890s 85,044 tonnes 138,594 tonnes 53,549 tonnes Russia
1900s 141,734 tonnes 238,172 tonnes 96,438 tonnes Russia
1910s 216,820 tonnes 259,768 tonnes 42,948 tonnes Russia
1920s 252,982 tonnes 206,534 tonnes 46,448 tonnes India
1930s 256,624 tonnes 727,077 tonnes 470,453 tonnes Russia
1940s 318,852 tonnes 969,962 tonnes 651,110 tonnes Russia
1950s 535,309 tonnes 1.98 million tonnes 1.45 million tonnes Russia
1960s 916,624 tonnes 3.72 million tonnes 2.80 million tonnes Russia
1970s 1.53 million tonnes 6.27 million tonnes 4.74 million tonnes Russia
1980s 2.56 million tonnes 7.85 million tonnes 5.29 million tonnes Russia
1990s 4.54 million tonnes 6.49 million tonnes 1.94 million tonnes Russia
2000s 6.42 million tonnes 4.81 million tonnes 1.60 million tonnes India
2010s 9.32 million tonnes 5.03 million tonnes 4.29 million tonnes India
2020s 9.18 million tonnes 4.87 million tonnes 4.31 million tonnes India

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher emissions of air pollutants, India or Russia?
India, at 9.56 million tonnes against 4.85 million tonnes in Russia as of 2022.
What is the difference in emissions of air pollutants between India and Russia?
4.71 million tonnes, with India ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for India and Russia?
273 years are reported by both, from 1750 to 2022.
How do India and Russia rank globally for emissions of air pollutants?
India ranks 2nd and Russia ranks 5th 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

Indicator
Emissions of air pollutants
Unit
tonnes
Source
Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
220 places, 60,060 data points, 1750–2022
Last refreshed

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.