China vs Japan: Fixed telephone subscriptions

China
166.51 million
in 2024
Japan
59.33 million
in 2023
China rank
1st
Japan rank
3rd

Fixed telephone subscriptions over time

  • China
  • Japan
0100.0M200.0M300.0M400.0M196019922024

How they compare

China currently reports 166.51 million against 59.33 million in Japan, a difference of 107.18 million.

That makes China's figure about 2.8 times Japan's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 49 shared years of data; in 1975 it was Japan ahead.

China ranks 1st and Japan ranks 3rd of 214 countries.

Across the 6 decades both report, China averaged higher in 3 and Japan in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade China Japan Difference Ahead
1970s 1.85 million 35.70 million 33.85 million Japan
1980s 3.29 million 45.18 million 41.89 million Japan
1990s 43.35 million 60.45 million 17.10 million Japan
2000s 285.19 million 58.44 million 226.75 million China
2010s 238.86 million 64.01 million 174.85 million China
2020s 180.36 million 60.81 million 119.55 million China

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher fixed telephone subscriptions, China or Japan?
China, at 166.51 million against 59.33 million in Japan as of 2024.
What is the difference in fixed telephone subscriptions between China and Japan?
107.18 million, with China ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for China and Japan?
49 years are reported by both, from 1975 to 2023.
How do China and Japan rank globally for fixed telephone subscriptions?
China ranks 1st and Japan ranks 3rd of 214 countries.
Where does this data come from?
World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), published as Fixed telephone subscriptions. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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China vs Japan: Fixed telephone subscriptions. Statizoid, drawing on World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://infrastructure.statizoid.com/compare/fixed-telephone-subscriptions/china/japan/

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About this data

Indicator
Fixed telephone subscriptions
Source
World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
261 places, 14,489 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

Fixed telephone subscriptions refers to the sum of active number of analogue fixed telephone lines, voice-over-IP (VoIP) subscriptions, fixed wireless local loop (WLL) subscriptions, ISDN voice-channel equivalents and fixed public payphones.