Proportion of municipal waste recycled (%) by country
Countries reporting
66
Highest
177.7%
Malaysia
Lowest
0.0%
Ukraine
Median
20.7%
Years covered
23
2000–2022
Data points
1,284
What the numbers show
Proportion of municipal waste recycled (%) is currently reported for 66 countries. The highest value is 177.7% in Malaysia; the lowest is 0.0% in Ukraine.
The median across all reporting countries is 20.7%, and the mean is 24.5%.
Over the past decade 39 countries rose and 20 fell. The largest increase was in Kazakhstan (up 868.5%), and the largest decrease in Ukraine (down 99.9%).
Proportion of municipal waste recycled: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Malaysia | 177.7% | 2020 | up 736.5% | volatile |
| 2 | Italy | 58.9% | 2022 | up 136.1% | rising |
| 3 | Slovenia | 55.3% | 2022 | up 46.0% | volatile |
| 4 | Singapore | 55.1% | 2021 | down 5.0% | rising |
| 5 | Republic of Korea | 53.9% | 2021 | down 7.5% | flat |
| 6 | Latvia | 52.2% | 2022 | up 283.0% | volatile |
| 7 | Lithuania | 48.1% | 2022 | up 136.5% | volatile |
| 8 | Germany | 47.0% | 2022 | down 0.9% | falling |
| 9 | Finland | 43.7% | 2022 | up 103.1% | falling |
| 10 | Austria | 41.3% | 2021 | up 67.1% | rising |
| 11 | Croatia | 38.0% | 2022 | up 181.9% | volatile |
| 12 | Spain | 37.4% | 2022 | up 91.4% | flat |
| 13 | Réunion | 36.8% | 2019 | up 121.1% | volatile |
| 14 | Bahrain | 33.9% | 2021 | — | volatile |
| 15 | Belgium | 33.9% | 2022 | up 1.4% | rising |
| 16 | Slovak Republic | 33.9% | 2022 | up 298.3% | volatile |
| 17 | Estonia | 32.8% | 2022 | up 77.8% | rising |
| 18 | Denmark | 31.2% | 2022 | up 15.6% | rising |
| 19 | Belarus | 31.1% | 2021 | up 245.1% | volatile |
| 20 | Norway | 30.8% | 2022 | up 18.9% | rising |
| 21 | Luxembourg | 30.8% | 2022 | up 10.6% | flat |
| 22 | Czechia | 30.1% | 2021 | up 102.8% | volatile |
| 23 | Ireland | 29.9% | 2020 | down 13.9% | rising |
| 24 | Portugal | 28.6% | 2022 | up 148.1% | rising |
| 25 | Switzerland | 28.5% | 2022 | down 18.0% | falling |
| 26 | Netherlands (Kingdom of the) | 28.1% | 2022 | up 17.9% | falling |
| 27 | Poland | 26.7% | 2022 | up 105.8% | volatile |
| 28 | Bulgaria | 26.6% | 2022 | up 12.4% | rising |
| 29 | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 26.2% | 2022 | down 2.4% | rising |
| 30 | Hungary | 24.9% | 2022 | up 19.2% | volatile |
| 31 | France | 23.5% | 2022 | up 11.3% | falling |
| 32 | Iceland | 23.3% | 2022 | down 1.2% | rising |
| 33 | Sweden | 20.9% | 2022 | down 35.8% | falling |
| 34 | Thailand | 20.5% | 2021 | down 19.7% | flat |
| 35 | Canada | 19.6% | 2018 | up 8.1% | rising |
| 36 | Japan | 19.4% | 2021 | down 4.5% | rising |
| 37 | Cyprus | 19.4% | 2022 | up 40.2% | volatile |
| 38 | Albania | 18.9% | 2022 | down 21.2% | falling |
| 39 | Australia | 18.6% | 2021 | down 44.2% | falling |
| 40 | Serbia | 18.4% | 2022 | — | volatile |
| 41 | Colombia | 16.7% | 2016 | — | flat |
| 42 | Greece | 15.9% | 2021 | up 6.8% | rising |
| 43 | Kazakhstan | 15.9% | 2021 | up 868.5% | volatile |
| 44 | Malta | 12.9% | 2022 | down 15.4% | rising |
| 45 | Martinique | 9.1% | 2019 | up 293.2% | volatile |
| 46 | Curaçao | 8.2% | 2017 | down 14.6% | volatile |
| 47 | Romania | 7.4% | 2022 | up 104.5% | volatile |
| 48 | Kuwait | 7.3% | 2017 | down 53.5% | volatile |
| 49 | Israel | 7.1% | 2022 | down 2.9% | falling |
| 50 | Argentina | 6.7% | 2021 | up 18.0% | rising |
| 51 | Guadeloupe | 6.0% | 2019 | up 57.1% | volatile |
| 52 | Cuba | 5.9% | 2020 | up 34.4% | falling |
| 53 | United Arab Emirates | 5.0% | 2020 | down 41.1% | rising |
| 54 | Ghana | 5.0% | 2017 | up 66.7% | rising |
| 54 | Dominica | 5.0% | 2016 | up 214.0% | rising |
| 54 | Niger | 5.0% | 2005 | unchanged | flat |
| 57 | Mexico | 5.0% | 2012 | up 105.6% | rising |
| 58 | Costa Rica | 4.6% | 2022 | up 384.9% | rising |
| 59 | Montenegro | 4.3% | 2022 | — | flat |
| 60 | French Guiana | 4.1% | 2019 | up 356.6% | volatile |
| 61 | Qatar | 0.7% | 2019 | up 34.8% | volatile |
| 62 | Bangladesh | 0.6% | 2021 | down 96.2% | volatile |
| 63 | Bermuda | 0.5% | 2019 | down 73.7% | falling |
| 64 | Chile | 0.4% | 2018 | — | volatile |
| 65 | French Polynesia | 0.3% | 2015 | — | volatile |
| 66 | Ukraine | 0.0% | 2019 | down 99.9% | volatile |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.