What is the difference in railways, goods transported between China and United States of America?

778,800 million ton-km, with China ahead.

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

25 years are reported by both, from 1995 to 2019.

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.

China vs United States of America: Railways, goods transported

China

3.02 million million ton-km

in 2019

United States of America

2.24 million million ton-km

in 2021

China rank

1st

United States of America rank

3rd

Railways, goods transported over time

China
United States of America

How they compare

China currently reports 3.02 million million ton-km against 2.24 million million ton-km in United States of America, a difference of 778,800 million ton-km.

That makes China's figure about 1.3 times United States of America's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 25 shared years of data; in 1995 it was United States of America ahead.

China ranks 1st and United States of America ranks 3rd of 104 countries.

Across the 3 decades both report, China averaged higher in 1 and United States of America in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade	China	United States of America	Difference	Ahead
1990s	1.30 million million ton-km	1.99 million million ton-km	693,666 million ton-km	United States of America
2000s	1.97 million million ton-km	2.37 million million ton-km	394,768 million ton-km	United States of America
2010s	2.77 million million ton-km	2.49 million million ton-km	272,417 million ton-km	China

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher railways, goods transported, China or United States of America?: China, at 3.02 million million ton-km against 2.24 million million ton-km in United States of America as of 2019.
What is the difference in railways, goods transported between China and United States of America?: 778,800 million ton-km, with China ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States of America?: 25 years are reported by both, from 1995 to 2019.
How do China and United States of America rank globally for railways, goods transported?: China ranks 1st and United States of America 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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China vs United States of America: Railways, goods transported. Statizoid, drawing on Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC). Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://infrastructure.statizoid.com/compare/railways-goods-transported-million-ton-km/china/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.