Share of global plastic waste imports in Russia

Russia: Share of global plastic waste imports was 0.7% in 2021. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2021)
0.7%
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
23rd
of 183 countries
All-time high
0.8%
in 2019
All-time low
0.0%
in 1998
Years of data
26
1996–2021

Share of global plastic waste imports in Russia, 1996–2021

00.20.40.60.81996200820211996: 0.009 %1997: 0.004 %1998: 0.001 %1999: 0.004 %2000: 0.009 %2001: 0.011 %2002: 0.013 %2003: 0.024 %2004: 0.031 %2005: 0.047 %2006: 0.049 %2007: 0.045 %2008: 0.061 %2009: 0.036 %2010: 0.075 %2011: 0.074 %2012: 0.069 %2013: 0.099 %2014: 0.091 %2015: 0.135 %2016: 0.125 %2017: 0.131 %2018: 0.334 %2019: 0.849 %2020: 0.677 %2021: 0.677 %

Source: United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of global plastic waste imports in Russia is 0.7%, measured in 2021.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 819.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of global plastic waste imports in Russia peaked at 0.8% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1998.

Russia ranks 23rd of 183 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 4
2000s 0.0% 0.0% 0.1% 10
2010s 0.2% 0.1% 0.8% 10
2020s 0.7% 0.7% 0.7% 2

Countries ranked near Russia

  1. 20 India 1.2% compare
  2. 21 Pakistan 1.0% compare
  3. 22 Croatia 1.0% compare
  4. 24 Egypt 0.7% compare
  5. 26 Saudi Arabia 0.5% compare

See the full ranking of 183 places →

More environment data for Russia

All data for Russia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of global plastic waste imports in Russia?
Share of global plastic waste imports in Russia was 0.7% in 2021, according to United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Russia?
The highest recorded value was 0.8% in 2019.
What is the lowest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Russia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1998.
How does Russia rank for share of global plastic waste imports?
Russia ranks 23rd out of 183 countries with data for 2021.
Is share of global plastic waste imports rising or falling in Russia?
Over the last ten years it is up 819.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Russia data come from?
The figures come from United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global plastic waste imports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of global plastic waste imports
Unit
%
Source
United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
183 places, 4,496 data points, 1988–2024
Last refreshed

The percentage of global plastic waste imports that a country accounts for.