What is emissions of air pollutants in United States?

Emissions of air pollutants in United States was 9.00 million tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.

What is the highest emissions of air pollutants recorded in United States?

The highest recorded value was 29.32 million tonnes in 1979.

What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in United States?

The lowest recorded value was 2,731 tonnes in 1750.

How does United States rank for emissions of air pollutants?

United States ranks 3rd out of 220 countries with data for 2022.

Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in United States?

Over the last ten years it is down 31.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this United States data come from?

The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Emissions of air pollutants in United States

Name: Emissions of air pollutants in United States
Creator: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

United States: Emissions of air pollutants was 9.00 million tonnes in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)

9.00 million tonnes

Change on year

up 0.2%

World rank

3rd

of 220 countries

All-time high

29.32 million tonnes

in 1979

All-time low

2,731 tonnes

in 1750

Years of data

273

1750–2022

Emissions of air pollutants in United States, 1750–2022

Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

In 2022, emissions of air pollutants in United States stood at 9.00 million tonnes.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and down 31.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, emissions of air pollutants in United States peaked at 29.32 million tonnes in 1979 and was at its lowest, 2,731 tonnes, in 1750.

United States ranks 3rd of 220 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1750s	2,945 tonnes	2,731 tonnes	3,159 tonnes	10
1760s	3,469 tonnes	3,206 tonnes	3,731 tonnes	10
1770s	4,113 tonnes	3,789 tonnes	4,438 tonnes	10
1780s	4,915 tonnes	4,509 tonnes	5,319 tonnes	10
1790s	6,223 tonnes	5,409 tonnes	7,034 tonnes	10
1800s	8,742 tonnes	7,527 tonnes	9,954 tonnes	10
1810s	11,940 tonnes	10,259 tonnes	13,613 tonnes	10
1820s	16,407 tonnes	13,976 tonnes	19,150 tonnes	10
1830s	24,789 tonnes	19,961 tonnes	29,310 tonnes	10
1840s	40,067 tonnes	30,313 tonnes	52,500 tonnes	10
1850s	74,373 tonnes	55,402 tonnes	86,020 tonnes	10
1860s	111,366 tonnes	89,392 tonnes	149,583 tonnes	10
1870s	222,754 tonnes	159,309 tonnes	318,034 tonnes	10
1880s	494,759 tonnes	372,487 tonnes	674,462 tonnes	10
1890s	893,667 tonnes	770,181 tonnes	1.12 million tonnes	10
1900s	1.98 million tonnes	1.21 million tonnes	2.71 million tonnes	10
1910s	3.84 million tonnes	3.02 million tonnes	4.84 million tonnes	10
1920s	7.17 million tonnes	5.43 million tonnes	9.18 million tonnes	10
1930s	8.30 million tonnes	6.73 million tonnes	9.95 million tonnes	10
1940s	12.74 million tonnes	10.66 million tonnes	15.08 million tonnes	10
1950s	15.95 million tonnes	14.09 million tonnes	17.04 million tonnes	10
1960s	21.69 million tonnes	18.42 million tonnes	26.15 million tonnes	10
1970s	27.89 million tonnes	26.30 million tonnes	29.32 million tonnes	10
1980s	26.24 million tonnes	25.13 million tonnes	28.25 million tonnes	10
1990s	25.31 million tonnes	23.05 million tonnes	26.52 million tonnes	10
2000s	19.27 million tonnes	14.69 million tonnes	23.18 million tonnes	10
2010s	12.16 million tonnes	10.20 million tonnes	14.59 million tonnes	10
2020s	8.83 million tonnes	8.50 million tonnes	9.00 million tonnes	3

Countries ranked near United States

1 China 20.99 million tonnes compare
2 India 9.56 million tonnes compare
4 Indonesia 5.51 million tonnes compare
5 Russia 4.85 million tonnes compare
6 Singapore 4.03 million tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More environment data for United States

Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 5,913 Mt CO2e (2024)
Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 17.39 t CO2e/capita (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 257.35 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 9.47 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 418.87 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 1.54 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 843.36 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 2 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 3.59 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 149.52 Mt CO2e (2024)

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is emissions of air pollutants in United States?: Emissions of air pollutants in United States was 9.00 million tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest emissions of air pollutants recorded in United States?: The highest recorded value was 29.32 million tonnes in 1979.
What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in United States?: The lowest recorded value was 2,731 tonnes in 1750.
How does United States rank for emissions of air pollutants?: United States ranks 3rd out of 220 countries with data for 2022.
Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in United States?: Over the last ten years it is down 31.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this United States data come from?: The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 273 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

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: 07 August 2026

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.