South Africa vs Zimbabwe: Per capita nitrous oxide emissions
South Africa
0.3171 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 2024
Zimbabwe
0.3176 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person
in 2024
South Africa rank
89th
Zimbabwe rank
88th
Per capita nitrous oxide emissions over time
- South Africa
- Zimbabwe
How they compare
Zimbabwe currently reports 0.3176 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person against 0.3171 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in South Africa, a difference of 0.0005 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person.
The two have swapped places 13 times across 175 shared years of data; in 1850 it was South Africa ahead.
South Africa ranks 89th and Zimbabwe ranks 88th of 201 countries.
Across the 18 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 13 and Zimbabwe in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Zimbabwe | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 0.4278 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.2879 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.14 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1860s | 0.4143 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.2797 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1346 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1870s | 0.4394 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.3066 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1328 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1880s | 0.4839 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.3523 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1317 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1890s | 0.4885 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.3612 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1273 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1900s | 0.4793 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.3598 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1195 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1910s | 0.504 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.393 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1109 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1920s | 0.5789 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.4736 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1052 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1930s | 0.5295 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.4264 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1031 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1940s | 0.8987 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.7573 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1414 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1950s | 1.08 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.8963 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1866 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1960s | 0.7635 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.6903 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.0732 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
| 1970s | 0.6443 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.7582 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.1138 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | Zimbabwe |
| 1980s | 0.5142 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.5529 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.0388 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | Zimbabwe |
| 1990s | 0.4691 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.4982 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.0291 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | Zimbabwe |
| 2000s | 0.42 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.4432 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.0232 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | Zimbabwe |
| 2010s | 0.3589 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.3884 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.0295 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | Zimbabwe |
| 2020s | 0.3253 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.3131 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | 0.0122 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher per capita nitrous oxide emissions, South Africa or Zimbabwe?
- Zimbabwe, at 0.3176 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person against 0.3171 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person in South Africa as of 2024.
- What is the difference in per capita nitrous oxide emissions between South Africa and Zimbabwe?
- 0.0005 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents per person, with Zimbabwe ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Zimbabwe?
- 175 years are reported by both, from 1850 to 2024.
- How do South Africa and Zimbabwe rank globally for per capita nitrous oxide emissions?
- South Africa ranks 89th and Zimbabwe ranks 88th of 201 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Jones et al. (2025); Population based on various sources (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Per capita nitrous oxide emissions. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Measured in tonnes per person of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.