Statizoid

China vs United States of America: The global population hockey stick

China
1.42 billion people
in 2023
United States of America
343.48 million people
in 2023
China rank
2nd
United States of America rank
3rd

The global population hockey stick over time

  • China
  • United States of America
0500.0M1.0B1.5B100015112023

How they compare

China currently reports 1.42 billion people against 343.48 million people in United States of America, a difference of 1.08 billion people.

That makes China's figure about 4.1 times United States of America's.

Across all 241 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.

China ranks 2nd and United States of America ranks 3rd of 239 countries.

China has averaged higher in every one of the 40 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade China United States of America Difference Ahead
1000s 36.59 million people 1.22 million people 35.37 million people China
1100s 90.18 million people 1.31 million people 88.87 million people China
1200s 103.06 million people 1.45 million people 101.61 million people China
1300s 79.97 million people 1.57 million people 78.40 million people China
1400s 71.25 million people 1.74 million people 69.51 million people China
1500s 91.26 million people 1.89 million people 89.37 million people China
1600s 98.05 million people 778,503 people 97.28 million people China
1700s 99.43 million people 927,076 people 98.50 million people China
1710s 104.05 million people 1.37 million people 102.67 million people China
1720s 119.50 million people 1.82 million people 117.68 million people China
1730s 127.05 million people 2.26 million people 124.79 million people China
1740s 142.98 million people 2.71 million people 140.27 million people China
1750s 178.33 million people 3.16 million people 175.17 million people China
1760s 197.05 million people 3.60 million people 193.45 million people China
1770s 220.13 million people 4.05 million people 216.08 million people China
1780s 275.68 million people 4.49 million people 271.19 million people China
1790s 298.73 million people 4.94 million people 293.79 million people China
1800s 337.01 million people 6.54 million people 330.47 million people China
1810s 361.46 million people 8.42 million people 353.05 million people China
1820s 393.32 million people 11.38 million people 381.95 million people China
1830s 410.14 million people 15.05 million people 395.09 million people China
1840s 411.90 million people 20.07 million people 391.83 million people China
1850s 395.39 million people 27.06 million people 368.33 million people China
1860s 367.43 million people 35.24 million people 332.19 million people China
1870s 360.85 million people 44.20 million people 316.65 million people China
1880s 370.70 million people 55.20 million people 315.50 million people China
1890s 385.36 million people 67.69 million people 317.66 million people China
1900s 405.63 million people 81.59 million people 324.04 million people China
1910s 438.78 million people 96.24 million people 342.53 million people China
1920s 472.62 million people 111.00 million people 361.62 million people China
1930s 495.30 million people 123.98 million people 371.32 million people China
1940s 523.96 million people 137.35 million people 386.61 million people China
1950s 597.80 million people 165.22 million people 432.58 million people China
1960s 717.50 million people 193.61 million people 523.89 million people China
1970s 902.94 million people 217.97 million people 684.98 million people China
1980s 1.05 billion people 240.39 million people 814.60 million people China
1990s 1.21 billion people 266.50 million people 945.35 million people China
2000s 1.31 billion people 294.48 million people 1.01 billion people China
2010s 1.39 billion people 324.59 million people 1.07 billion people China
2020s 1.43 billion people 341.15 million people 1.08 billion people China

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher the global population hockey stick, China or United States of America?
China, at 1.42 billion people against 343.48 million people in United States of America as of 2023.
What is the difference in the global population hockey stick between China and United States of America?
1.08 billion people, with China ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States of America?
241 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2023.
How do China and United States of America rank globally for the global population hockey stick?
China ranks 2nd and United States of America ranks 3rd of 239 countries.
Where does this data come from?
HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as The global population hockey stick. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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China vs United States of America: The global population hockey stick. Statizoid, drawing on HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 10 September 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/compare/world-population-over-the-last-12000-years-and-un-projection-until-2100/china/united-states/

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<a href="https://population.statizoid.com/compare/world-population-over-the-last-12000-years-and-un-projection-until-2100/china/united-states/">China vs United States of America: The global population hockey stick</a> β€” Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
The global population hockey stick
Unit
people
Source
HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
239 places, 51,002 data points, 1000–2023
Last refreshed

Population by country, available from 10,000 BCE to 2023, based on data and estimates from different sources.