Solar overtakes wind power globally for first time in 2025

Solar output reached 2,778 TWh in 2025.

Global solar power experienced record-breaking growth in 2025, with worldwide generation increasing by 636 TWh, an amount roughly equal to twice the total electricity demand of the United Kingdom, according to Ember's Global Electricity Review 2026.

This marked the largest annual expansion in solar energy in history and reflected a rapid acceleration in the global energy transition.

The growth in solar alone exceeded the energy equivalent of all LNG exports through the Strait of Hormuz in 2025, estimated at around 550 TWh of gas-fired electricity.

Solar growth in 2025 was significantly higher than previous years, rising 33% above 2024 and nearly double 2023 levels. It also outpaced all other major sources jaof electricity, growing more than three times faster than wind power and nearly 18 times faster than gas. Aside from the post-Covid coal rebound in 2021, it was the largest annual increase in electricity generation from any source in history.

For the first time, solar generation surpassed wind globally, reaching 2,778 TWh in 2025. Over the past decade, solar output has increased to nearly 11 times its 2015 level and now accounts for 8.7% of global electricity, up from 1.1%. Solar has doubled roughly every three years and provided half of global electricity demand growth between 2023 and 2025.

The rapid expansion has been driven by falling costs and large-scale deployment. Solar panel prices have dropped around 90% since 2015, and global installations reached a record 647 GW in 2025. Solar also accounted for 68% of renewable capacity additions from 2019 to 2024.

China remained the dominant force, adding 336 TWh in 2025 and contributing more than half of global solar growth for the second year in a row. Total solar generation in China reached 1,175 TWh, higher than the entire OECD combined and about three times that of the United States.

The United States saw the second-largest increase at 85 TWh, driven mainly by utility-scale projects, meeting about 65% of its electricity demand growth. India ranked third with a 53 TWh increase, supported by record capacity additions of 38 GW across utility-scale and rooftop systems.

Pakistan recorded one of the fastest growth rates, adding 17 TWh in 2025, an 85% increase from the previous year. Solar’s share in Pakistan has nearly tripled in three years, rising to 18.8%, driven mainly by distributed and off-grid systems. Solar was the fastest-growing electricity source in at least 23 countries.

Globally, solar penetration continues to rise rapidly across countries of all sizes. To rank amongst the top ten countries by solar share in 2025, a nation needed at least 17% of its electricity from solar, compared with 13.5% in 2024.

A total of 50 countries now generate more than 10% of their electricity from solar, up from just 15 in 2020 and none in 2015. Amongst larger electricity markets with over 5 TWh of solar generation, 19 countries exceeded this 10% threshold in 2025.

Per capita solar generation reached 338 kWh in 2025, up 29% from 2024. Australia remains the global leader per person, with 43% of households equipped with rooftop solar systems.