Countries by fossil CO2 emissions
China had the highest fossil CO2 emissions of 215 countries in 2016, at 9,748.2 million tonnes of CO2. Christmas Island had the lowest, at 0 million tonnes of CO2. The median was 9.6 million tonnes of CO2 and the figure for the World was 35,392.8 million tonnes of CO2. Source: Global Carbon Project.
Map of countries, 2016
- Under 10
- 10 to 20
- 20 to 50
- 50 to 180
- 180 and over
- No data
Top 40 countries, 2016
Full ranking
| Rank | Countries | 2016 | Change on 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 9,748.2 | -1.1% |
| 2 | United States | 5,245.4 | -2.3% |
| 3 | India | 2,352.5 | +5.4% |
| 4 | Russia | 1,629.3 | -0.4% |
| 5 | Japan | 1,199.9 | -1.6% |
| 6 | Germany | 798 | -0.4% |
| 7 | Iran | 644.7 | +0.4% |
| 8 | Saudi Arabia | 641.2 | +2.7% |
| 9 | South Korea | 637.9 | +0.6% |
| 10 | Canada | 553.7 | -1.7% |
| 11 | Indonesia | 548 | -0.6% |
| 12 | Brazil | 491.7 | -6.9% |
| 13 | Mexico | 478.8 | -0.1% |
| 14 | South Africa | 457 | -0.1% |
| 15 | Australia | 409.7 | +2.3% |
| 16 | Türkiye | 405.6 | +4.6% |
| 17 | United Kingdom | 399.4 | -5.5% |
| 18 | Italy | 358.1 | -0.9% |
| 19 | France | 335.5 | +1% |
| 20 | Poland | 323.3 | +3.4% |
| 21 | Kazakhstan | 301.7 | -0.4% |
| 22 | Thailand | 284 | +2.5% |
| 23 | Taiwan | 280.2 | +1.4% |
| 24 | Spain | 259.6 | -4% |
| 25 | Egypt | 245.2 | +8.2% |
| 26 | Malaysia | 237.3 | +0.6% |
| 27 | Ukraine | 234.1 | +4.6% |
| 28 | United Arab Emirates | 227.9 | +1.3% |
| 29 | Vietnam | 221 | +3.6% |
| 30 | Argentina | 190 | -0.9% |
| 31 | Pakistan | 176.7 | +22% |
| 32 | Netherlands | 164.8 | +0.5% |
| 33 | Algeria | 158.3 | -1.3% |
| 34 | Iraq | 153.1 | +7.4% |
| 35 | Venezuela | 152.7 | -8.2% |
| 36 | Philippines | 120.2 | +8.3% |
| 37 | Nigeria | 116.4 | +5.3% |
| 38 | Uzbekistan | 109.8 | +6.3% |
| 39 | Czechia | 106.6 | +1.6% |
| 40 | Kuwait | 104 | +11.5% |
| 41 | Belgium | 99.8 | -1.5% |
| 42 | Colombia | 91.6 | +0.6% |
| 43 | Qatar | 91.4 | -2.1% |
| 44 | Chile | 84.3 | +3% |
| 45 | Bangladesh | 81.8 | +6.3% |
| 46 | Romania | 76.6 | -1.9% |
| 47 | Greece | 71.4 | -4.8% |
| 48 | Austria | 67.2 | +1.3% |
| 49 | Oman | 66.2 | -2.4% |
| 50 | Turkmenistan | 62.1 | -1.6% |
| 51 | Israel | 61.2 | -2.8% |
| 52 | Morocco | 58.5 | -0.1% |
| 53 | Belarus | 58.2 | -1.1% |
| 54 | Libya | 57.4 | -5.7% |
| 55 | Peru | 52.7 | +7.1% |
| 56 | Portugal | 50.3 | -3.7% |
| 57 | Singapore | 49.1 | -0.6% |
| 58 | Finland | 47.3 | +6.9% |
| 59 | Hungary | 47 | +1% |
| 60 | Bulgaria | 45.3 | -5.8% |
| 61 | Serbia | 45.2 | +3% |
| 62 | Norway | 44.7 | -1.8% |
| 63 | Hong Kong | 43.4 | +2.3% |
| 64 | Sweden | 43.3 | -0% |
| 65 | Ireland | 40.4 | +4.3% |
| 66 | Trinidad and Tobago | 39.9 | -12.4% |
| 67 | Ecuador | 39.4 | -4.7% |
| 68 | Switzerland | 39.2 | +1.2% |
| 69 | Denmark | 36.9 | +5.1% |
| 70 | Slovakia | 35 | +1.3% |
| 71 | Azerbaijan | 34.7 | +0.1% |
| 72 | North Korea | 34.2 | +9.5% |
| 73 | New Zealand | 34.1 | -4.7% |
| 74 | Bahrain | 31.6 | -2.7% |
| 75 | Tunisia | 31 | -1.3% |
| 76 | Syria | 29.2 | -6.3% |
| 77 | Cuba | 27.8 | -4.5% |
| 78 | Lebanon | 26.4 | +2.7% |
| 79 | Mongolia | 25.6 | +10.1% |
| 80 | Angola | 25.5 | -7.4% |
| 81 | Jordan | 24.9 | -3.3% |
| 82 | Dominican Republic | 24.1 | +5% |
| 83 | Sri Lanka | 22.3 | +16.5% |
| 84 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 21.7 | +17.7% |
| 85 | Bolivia | 21.2 | +6.8% |
| 86 | Myanmar | 21.1 | -3.4% |
| 87 | Sudan | 19.7 | +38.5% |
| 88 | Croatia | 18.1 | +1.6% |
| 89 | Estonia | 17.4 | +10.5% |
| 90 | Guatemala | 16.5 | +7% |
| 91 | Laos | 16.4 | +78.6% |
| 92 | Kenya | 16.3 | +7.1% |
| 93 | Slovenia | 14.5 | +5.9% |
| 94 | Ethiopia | 14.3 | +14% |
| 95 | Ghana | 13.9 | -4.5% |
| 96 | Tanzania | 13.5 | +5.8% |
| 97 | Lithuania | 13.1 | +0.4% |
| 98 | Côte d’Ivoire | 12 | +25.4% |
| 99 | Cambodia | 10.6 | +30% |
| 100 | Zimbabwe | 10.6 | -11.9% |
| 101 | Panama | 10.3 | -3% |
| 102 | Nepal | 10.1 | +46.1% |
| 103 | Yemen | 10 | -28.9% |
| 104 | Georgia | 10 | +2.6% |
| 105 | Senegal | 10 | +1.7% |
| 106 | Cameroon | 10 | +1.2% |
| 107 | Honduras | 9.9 | -8.8% |
| 108 | Kyrgyzstan | 9.6 | -6.3% |
| 109 | Luxembourg | 9.1 | -2.8% |
| 110 | Afghanistan | 8.6 | -8.3% |
| 111 | Mozambique | 8.5 | +27% |
| 112 | Jamaica | 8.1 | +2.1% |
| 113 | Costa Rica | 7.8 | +6.5% |
| 114 | Brunei | 7.6 | +10.1% |
| 115 | Equatorial Guinea | 7.5 | +7.5% |
| 116 | Cyprus | 7.3 | +5.7% |
| 117 | Latvia | 7.2 | -0.7% |
| 118 | Paraguay | 7.2 | +18.9% |
| 119 | Papua New Guinea | 7 | +11.2% |
| 120 | North Macedonia | 6.6 | -1.7% |
| 121 | El Salvador | 6.6 | -1% |
| 122 | Uruguay | 6.5 | -3.2% |
| 123 | Botswana | 6.3 | +17% |
| 124 | Curaçao | 6.2 | -15.4% |
| 125 | Tajikistan | 6 | +13.4% |
| 126 | Zambia | 6 | +8.2% |
| 127 | Republic of the Congo | 5.7 | +1.6% |
| 128 | Gabon | 5.6 | -2.8% |
| 129 | New Caledonia | 5.5 | +12.4% |
| 130 | Nicaragua | 5.4 | -0.5% |
| 131 | Benin | 5.3 | -0.1% |
| 132 | Armenia | 5.2 | -4.8% |
| 133 | Moldova | 4.9 | +2.6% |
| 134 | Uganda | 4.8 | +6.4% |
| 135 | Albania | 4.6 | -3.3% |
| 136 | Mauritius | 4.3 | +3.1% |
| 137 | Mali | 4.3 | +26.1% |
| 138 | Burkina Faso | 4 | +6.5% |
| 139 | Namibia | 3.6 | +5.6% |
| 140 | Iceland | 3.5 | -1.3% |
| 141 | Madagascar | 3.3 | +4.3% |
| 142 | Palestine | 3.2 | +7.8% |
| 143 | Haiti | 3 | +12.1% |
| 144 | Suriname | 2.9 | +7.4% |
| 145 | Guinea | 2.7 | +10% |
| 146 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 2.7 | -18.8% |
| 147 | Mauritania | 2.6 | -12.6% |
| 148 | Chad | 2.4 | +1.3% |
| 149 | Togo | 2.3 | +27.5% |
| 150 | Bahamas | 2.2 | +0.7% |
| 151 | Guyana | 2.2 | +12.5% |
| 152 | Niger | 2.1 | -2.6% |
| 153 | Lesotho | 2 | -0.9% |
| 154 | Montenegro | 2 | -10% |
| 155 | Macao | 1.8 | +0.4% |
| 156 | South Sudan | 1.7 | -10.9% |
| 157 | Bhutan | 1.6 | +8.8% |
| 158 | Maldives | 1.4 | +11.7% |
| 159 | Malta | 1.4 | -18.9% |
| 160 | Barbados | 1.4 | +2.8% |
| 161 | Fiji | 1.3 | -8% |
| 162 | Malawi | 1.2 | +11.7% |
| 163 | Sierra Leone | 1.1 | +5.1% |
| 164 | Rwanda | 1.1 | +8.8% |
| 165 | Eswatini | 1 | +20.3% |
| 166 | Somalia | 1 | +3.6% |
| 167 | Aruba | 0.9 | -1.6% |
| 168 | French Polynesia | 0.9 | +2.6% |
| 169 | Sint Maarten | 0.7 | +0.5% |
| 170 | Belize | 0.7 | -1.6% |
| 171 | Liberia | 0.6 | -7.4% |
| 172 | Timor-Leste | 0.6 | +8.9% |
| 173 | Faroe Islands | 0.6 | +3% |
| 174 | Bermuda | 0.6 | +13.5% |
| 175 | Antigua and Barbuda | 0.6 | +2.5% |
| 176 | Gambia | 0.6 | +1.3% |
| 177 | Eritrea | 0.6 | -0.6% |
| 178 | Seychelles | 0.6 | +11% |
| 179 | Cape Verde | 0.5 | +7.4% |
| 180 | Greenland | 0.5 | -7% |
| 181 | Andorra | 0.5 | +1.6% |
| 181 | Saint Lucia | 0.5 | -1.5% |
| 183 | Burundi | 0.4 | +20.6% |
| 184 | Djibouti | 0.4 | -15.3% |
| 185 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.3 | +3.5% |
| 186 | Solomon Islands | 0.3 | -1.2% |
| 187 | Grenada | 0.3 | +5.6% |
| 188 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 0.2 | +3.1% |
| 189 | Central African Republic | 0.2 | +22.6% |
| 189 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.2 | +3.2% |
| 189 | Samoa | 0.2 | +4.8% |
| 192 | British Virgin Islands | 0.2 | +1.6% |
| 193 | Palau | 0.2 | +3.6% |
| 194 | Comoros | 0.2 | +14.3% |
| 195 | Dominica | 0.2 | -2.1% |
| 196 | Guinea-Bissau | 0.2 | +9.5% |
| 197 | Vanuatu | 0.2 | +13.9% |
| 198 | Liechtenstein | 0.1 | -6.3% |
| 199 | São Tomé and Príncipe | 0.1 | +8.1% |
| 200 | Marshall Islands | 0.1 | 0% |
| 200 | Micronesia | 0.1 | 0% |
| 202 | Anguilla | 0.1 | +2.7% |
| 202 | Tonga | 0.1 | +31% |
| 204 | Caribbean Netherlands | 0.1 | +2.9% |
| 205 | Cook Islands | 0.1 | 0% |
| 206 | Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 0.1 | 0% |
| 207 | Kiribati | 0.1 | -6.3% |
| 208 | Nauru | 0.1 | -6.7% |
| 209 | Montserrat | 0 | -42.9% |
| 210 | Wallis and Futuna | 0 | 0% |
| 211 | Saint Helena | 0 | +33.3% |
| 212 | Niue | 0 | 0% |
| 212 | Tuvalu | 0 | 0% |
| 214 | Antarctica | 0 | |
| 214 | Christmas Island | 0 |
Other periods
About this ranking
Carbon dioxide emitted from fossil sources in the year, in million tonnes of CO2, as estimated by the Global Carbon Project for the Global Carbon Budget.
More on how it is measured
- Fossil CO2 covers the burning of coal, oil and gas, gas flaring, cement production and other industrial carbonate use.
- Emissions are counted in the country where they occur (territorial emissions).
- International aviation and shipping are left out of country figures and included in the World total.
- Land use change is not included.
Higher than energy_co2_emissions (EIA), which counts CO2 from energy use only, and lower than greenhouse gas totals, which add methane, nitrous oxide and fluorinated gases. Each annual Global Carbon Budget release revises past years.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
Andrew, R. M. and Peters, G. P., The Global Carbon Project's fossil CO2 emissions dataset, Global Carbon Budget (Friedlingstein et al.). Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2. https://zenodo.org/records/17417124. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.Citation styles
APA 7
Global Carbon Project. (2025). Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2 (Countries by fossil CO2 emissions, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://zenodo.org/records/17417124
MLA 9
Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2, Countries by fossil CO2 emissions, 2016. Global Carbon Project, 22 Oct. 2025, https://zenodo.org/records/17417124. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fossil-co2-emissions/countries?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
Global Carbon Project. 2025. Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2. Countries by fossil CO2 emissions, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://zenodo.org/records/17417124. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fossil-co2-emissions/countries?period=2016.
Harvard
Global Carbon Project (2025) Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2, Countries by fossil CO2 emissions, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://zenodo.org/records/17417124, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/fossil-co2-emissions/countries?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{global_countries_by_fossil_co2_2016,
author = {{Global Carbon Project}},
title = {{Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2: Countries by fossil CO2 emissions, 2016}},
year = {2025},
howpublished = {Data set},
url = {https://zenodo.org/records/17417124},
urldate = {2026-10-12},
note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fossil-co2-emissions/countries?period=2016. Publisher attribution: Andrew, R. M. and Peters, G. P., The Global Carbon Project's fossil CO2 emissions dataset, Global Carbon Budget (Friedlingstein et al.). Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2. https://zenodo.org/records/17417124. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - Global Carbon Project
TI - Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2: Countries by fossil CO2 emissions, 2016
PY - 2025
DA - 2025/10/22
PB - Global Carbon Project
DB - Invokely
UR - https://zenodo.org/records/17417124
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/fossil-co2-emissions/countries?period=2016
Y2 - 2026/10/12
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fossil-co2-emissions/countries?period=2016.
N1 - Publisher attribution: Andrew, R. M. and Peters, G. P., The Global Carbon Project's fossil CO2 emissions dataset, Global Carbon Budget (Friedlingstein et al.). Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2. https://zenodo.org/records/17417124. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
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Rank Countries by fossil CO2 emissions using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"fossil_co2_emissions","level":"country","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=fossil_co2_emissions&level=country&limit=10Questions
Which country has the highest fossil CO2 emissions?
China, with 9,748.2 million tonnes of CO2 in 2016, according to Global Carbon Project.
Which country has the lowest fossil CO2 emissions?
Christmas Island, with 0 million tonnes of CO2 in 2016.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Global Carbon Project, Global Carbon Project fossil CO2 emissions dataset: total fossil CO2 emissions, million tonnes of CO2. Retrieved 2026-10-12.