China vs India: Nitrogen fertilizer use
China
24.55 million tonnes
in 2023
India
20.46 million tonnes
in 2023
China rank
1st
India rank
2nd
Nitrogen fertilizer use over time
- China
- India
How they compare
China currently reports 24.55 million tonnes against 20.46 million tonnes in India, a difference of 4.09 million tonnes.
That makes China's figure about 1.2 times India's.
Across all 63 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.
China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 202 countries.
China has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.65 million tonnes | 714,067 tonnes | 932,600 tonnes | China |
| 1970s | 5.57 million tonnes | 2.37 million tonnes | 3.19 million tonnes | China |
| 1980s | 14.64 million tonnes | 5.41 million tonnes | 9.24 million tonnes | China |
| 1990s | 21.61 million tonnes | 9.63 million tonnes | 11.98 million tonnes | China |
| 2000s | 26.02 million tonnes | 12.68 million tonnes | 13.34 million tonnes | China |
| 2010s | 29.77 million tonnes | 17.19 million tonnes | 12.58 million tonnes | China |
| 2020s | 24.96 million tonnes | 20.14 million tonnes | 4.82 million tonnes | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher nitrogen fertilizer use, China or India?
- China, at 24.55 million tonnes against 20.46 million tonnes in India as of 2023.
- What is the difference in nitrogen fertilizer use between China and India?
- 4.09 million tonnes, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 63 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2023.
- How do China and India rank globally for nitrogen fertilizer use?
- China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 202 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Nitrogen fertilizer use. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measures total nitrogen inputs, including synthetic fertilizers alongside organic inputs from manure and crop fixation. Measured in tonnes of nitrogen.