China vs Norway: Plastic waste exports
China
63,180 tonnes
in 2024
Norway
68,644 tonnes
in 2024
China rank
14th
Norway rank
12th
Plastic waste exports over time
- China
- Norway
How they compare
Norway currently reports 68,644 tonnes against 63,180 tonnes in China, a difference of 5,464 tonnes.
That makes Norway's figure about 1.1 times China's.
The two have swapped places 9 times across 32 shared years of data; in 1993 it was China ahead.
China ranks 14th and Norway ranks 12th of 167 countries.
Across the 4 decades both report, China averaged higher in 2 and Norway in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | Norway | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10,779 tonnes | 8,567 tonnes | 2,212 tonnes | China |
| 2000s | 36,211 tonnes | 26,983 tonnes | 9,229 tonnes | China |
| 2010s | 44,646 tonnes | 53,594 tonnes | 8,949 tonnes | Norway |
| 2020s | 49,537 tonnes | 70,873 tonnes | 21,336 tonnes | Norway |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher plastic waste exports, China or Norway?
- Norway, at 68,644 tonnes against 63,180 tonnes in China as of 2024.
- What is the difference in plastic waste exports between China and Norway?
- 5,464 tonnes, with Norway ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and Norway?
- 32 years are reported by both, from 1993 to 2024.
- How do China and Norway rank globally for plastic waste exports?
- China ranks 14th and Norway ranks 12th of 167 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Plastic waste exports. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Amount of plastic waste a country exports to other countries, measured in tonnes per year.