What is the difference in railways, goods transported between Canada and United States?

1.81 million million ton-km, with United States ahead.

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

26 years are reported by both, from 1996 to 2021.

Where does this data come from?

Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC), published as Railways, goods transported (million ton-km). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Canada vs United States: Railways, goods transported

Canada

430,170 million ton-km

in 2021

United States

2.24 million million ton-km

in 2021

Canada rank

6th

United States rank

3rd

Railways, goods transported over time

Canada
United States

How they compare

United States currently reports 2.24 million million ton-km against 430,170 million ton-km in Canada, a difference of 1.81 million million ton-km.

That makes United States's figure about 5.2 times Canada's.

Across all 26 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.

Canada ranks 6th and United States ranks 3rd of 104 countries.

United States has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Canada	United States	Difference	Ahead
1990s	259,234 million ton-km	2.01 million million ton-km	1.75 million million ton-km	United States
2000s	314,930 million ton-km	2.37 million million ton-km	2.05 million million ton-km	United States
2010s	397,065 million ton-km	2.49 million million ton-km	2.10 million million ton-km	United States
2020s	437,101 million ton-km	2.17 million million ton-km	1.73 million million ton-km	United States

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher railways, goods transported, Canada or United States?: United States, at 2.24 million million ton-km against 430,170 million ton-km in Canada as of 2021.
What is the difference in railways, goods transported between Canada and United States?: 1.81 million million ton-km, with United States ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and United States?: 26 years are reported by both, from 1996 to 2021.
How do Canada and United States rank globally for railways, goods transported?: Canada ranks 6th and United States ranks 3rd of 104 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC), published as Railways, goods transported (million ton-km). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Canada vs United States: Railways, goods transported. Statizoid, drawing on Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC). Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://infrastructure.statizoid.com/compare/railways-goods-transported-million-ton-km/canada/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator: Railways, goods transported (million ton-km)
Unit: million ton-km
Source: Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 134 places, 2,685 data points, 1995–2021
Last refreshed: 20 August 2026

Goods transported by railway are the volume of goods transported by railway, measured in metric tons times kilometers traveled.