Key facts
- Global electricity generation reached 32,202 TWh in 2025.
- Renewables accounted for 33.4% of global electricity in 2025.
- Solar generation surpassed wind generation for the first time in 2025.
- Solar generated 2,811 TWh, while wind generated 2,714 TWh.
- Solar generation increased by 30.1% in 2025, making it the fastest-growing renewable category.
- China is the largest producer of both solar and wind electricity globally.
Solar power generation has surpassed wind power globally for the first time in 2025, according to the latest Statistical Review of World Energy. Worldwide electricity generation reached approximately 32,202 terawatt-hours (TWh), with renewables supplying 33.4% of this total.
Solar generated 2,811 TWh, representing 8.7% of the global total, while wind produced 2,714 TWh, or 8.4%. Hydropower remained the largest renewable source, contributing 4,479 TWh (13.9% of global electricity). The overall growth in renewable generation was 9.1% in 2025, but solar's surge of 30.1% significantly outpaced wind's 8.2% growth.
China leads both solar and wind generation markets, accounting for nearly 42% of global solar output and 42% of global wind output in 2025. The U.S. ranks second in solar generation, followed by India and Japan. In wind generation, the U.S. is second, followed by Germany, Brazil, and India.
While solar's growth is accelerating, hydropower, despite slower growth (0.4% in 2025), remains the largest single renewable source. Biofuels, primarily used in transportation, saw stagnant overall consumption, with biogasoline increasing and biodiesel decreasing. Importantly, the rapid growth in renewables is still not outpacing the overall increase in global energy demand, meaning fossil fuel consumption is not yet being significantly displaced.