What is the difference in annual freight transport between Japan and United States?

73,383 Tonnes-kilometres, with United States ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and United States?

44 years are reported by both, from 1978 to 2021.

Where does this data come from?

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as Annual freight transport. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Japan vs United States: Annual freight transport

Japan

153,059 Tonnes-kilometres

in 2024

United States

226,442 Tonnes-kilometres

in 2021

Japan rank

3rd

United States rank

2nd

Annual freight transport over time

Japan
United States

How they compare

United States currently reports 226,442 Tonnes-kilometres against 153,059 Tonnes-kilometres in Japan, a difference of 73,383 Tonnes-kilometres.

That makes United States's figure about 1.5 times Japan's.

Across all 44 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.

Japan ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 21 countries.

United States has averaged higher in every one of the 6 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Japan	United States	Difference	Ahead
1970s	218,878 Tonnes-kilometres	783,030 Tonnes-kilometres	564,151 Tonnes-kilometres	United States
1980s	208,069 Tonnes-kilometres	871,087 Tonnes-kilometres	663,018 Tonnes-kilometres	United States
1990s	238,633 Tonnes-kilometres	612,524 Tonnes-kilometres	373,891 Tonnes-kilometres	United States
2000s	213,629 Tonnes-kilometres	365,845 Tonnes-kilometres	152,217 Tonnes-kilometres	United States
2010s	179,109 Tonnes-kilometres	252,129 Tonnes-kilometres	73,020 Tonnes-kilometres	United States
2020s	157,810 Tonnes-kilometres	228,322 Tonnes-kilometres	70,512 Tonnes-kilometres	United States

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher annual freight transport, Japan or United States?: United States, at 226,442 Tonnes-kilometres against 153,059 Tonnes-kilometres in Japan as of 2021.
What is the difference in annual freight transport between Japan and United States?: 73,383 Tonnes-kilometres, with United States ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and United States?: 44 years are reported by both, from 1978 to 2021.
How do Japan and United States rank globally for annual freight transport?: Japan ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 21 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as Annual freight transport. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Japan vs United States: Annual freight transport. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/annual-freight-transport/japan/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator: Annual freight transport
Unit: Tonnes-kilometres
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence: OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage: 25 places, 933 data points, 1970–2024
Last refreshed: 20 August 2026

Freight transport by rail, road, inland waterways and pipeline.