Iran vs Japan: Emissions of air pollutants
Iran
1.74 million tonnes
in 2022
Japan
2.07 million tonnes
in 2022
Iran rank
12th
Japan rank
9th
Emissions of air pollutants over time
- Iran
- Japan
How they compare
Japan currently reports 2.07 million tonnes against 1.74 million tonnes in Iran, a difference of 334,090 tonnes.
That makes Japan's figure about 1.2 times Iran's.
Across all 273 years both countries report, Japan has been ahead every year.
Iran ranks 12th and Japan ranks 9th of 220 countries.
Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 28 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Iran | Japan | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1750s | 1,799 tonnes | 3,158 tonnes | 1,359 tonnes | Japan |
| 1760s | 1,836 tonnes | 3,189 tonnes | 1,353 tonnes | Japan |
| 1770s | 1,874 tonnes | 3,220 tonnes | 1,346 tonnes | Japan |
| 1780s | 1,913 tonnes | 3,250 tonnes | 1,337 tonnes | Japan |
| 1790s | 1,952 tonnes | 3,281 tonnes | 1,328 tonnes | Japan |
| 1800s | 2,012 tonnes | 3,323 tonnes | 1,311 tonnes | Japan |
| 1810s | 2,096 tonnes | 3,379 tonnes | 1,283 tonnes | Japan |
| 1820s | 2,217 tonnes | 3,432 tonnes | 1,215 tonnes | Japan |
| 1830s | 2,384 tonnes | 3,485 tonnes | 1,101 tonnes | Japan |
| 1840s | 2,556 tonnes | 3,541 tonnes | 985.1 tonnes | Japan |
| 1850s | 2,723 tonnes | 3,567 tonnes | 843.14 tonnes | Japan |
| 1860s | 2,901 tonnes | 3,338 tonnes | 437.18 tonnes | Japan |
| 1870s | 3,254 tonnes | 5,571 tonnes | 2,318 tonnes | Japan |
| 1880s | 3,788 tonnes | 13,061 tonnes | 9,273 tonnes | Japan |
| 1890s | 4,313 tonnes | 35,063 tonnes | 30,750 tonnes | Japan |
| 1900s | 4,826 tonnes | 86,485 tonnes | 81,659 tonnes | Japan |
| 1910s | 8,733 tonnes | 165,912 tonnes | 157,178 tonnes | Japan |
| 1920s | 16,688 tonnes | 228,682 tonnes | 211,994 tonnes | Japan |
| 1930s | 23,499 tonnes | 291,363 tonnes | 267,864 tonnes | Japan |
| 1940s | 32,268 tonnes | 310,572 tonnes | 278,305 tonnes | Japan |
| 1950s | 63,236 tonnes | 602,827 tonnes | 539,591 tonnes | Japan |
| 1960s | 173,896 tonnes | 3.04 million tonnes | 2.87 million tonnes | Japan |
| 1970s | 394,899 tonnes | 6.92 million tonnes | 6.52 million tonnes | Japan |
| 1980s | 658,872 tonnes | 5.63 million tonnes | 4.97 million tonnes | Japan |
| 1990s | 1.10 million tonnes | 4.64 million tonnes | 3.54 million tonnes | Japan |
| 2000s | 1.44 million tonnes | 3.95 million tonnes | 2.50 million tonnes | Japan |
| 2010s | 1.78 million tonnes | 2.53 million tonnes | 746,852 tonnes | Japan |
| 2020s | 1.68 million tonnes | 2.04 million tonnes | 366,067 tonnes | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher emissions of air pollutants, Iran or Japan?
- Japan, at 2.07 million tonnes against 1.74 million tonnes in Iran as of 2022.
- What is the difference in emissions of air pollutants between Iran and Japan?
- 334,090 tonnes, with Japan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Iran and Japan?
- 273 years are reported by both, from 1750 to 2022.
- How do Iran and Japan rank globally for emissions of air pollutants?
- Iran ranks 12th and Japan ranks 9th 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.