United States energy mix & electricity

In 2025, the United States generated 4.52 PWh of electricity. That is about 14% of the world total. The biggest single contributor is natural gas with 40%; nuclear power adds 17.4% and coal 16.3%.

25.6% of the country’s power came from renewable sources: 96th of 158 countries. That is 8 points below the world average of 33.8%. It is also below the average for North America (28.8%). Add nuclear power (17.4%) and low-carbon sources reach 43% of generation. Each kilowatt-hour emitted on average 384 g CO₂e, against a world average of 458 g. That makes the grid somewhat cleaner than the world average. In the cleanest-grid ranking, the United States is 76th of 158.

Over the past decade natural gas added more generation than any other source (+474 TWh since 2015, plus 7.3 percentage points of share). In share terms the biggest gainer was solar power (up 7.7 percentage points). Meanwhile coal lost the most ground, down 615 TWh. The net effect: renewables gained 12 percentage points of share since 2015. Total generation grew by 436 TWh over the same period. Carbon intensity dropped from 505 to 384 g/kWh, a 24% cut.

The coal phase-down is well under way: 33.1% of generation in 2015, 16.3% by 2025. In absolute terms, coal generation peaked in 1999 at 2.04 PWh and has since fallen 64%.

Solar (8.6%) and wind (10.3%) now add up to 18.9% of generation; the global figure is 17.3%. Per person, that is 1,120 kWh of solar electricity a year, 3.3× the global average. In solar electricity per person, the United States ranks 9th in the world. Wind adds 1,337 kWh per person, the 11th-highest figure of 156 countries. Solar first passed 1% of the mix in 2016.

Generation per person is 13,015 kWh a year, 3.4× the world average of 3,860 kWh. Imports and exports roughly cancel out.