China vs North America: Patent applications, nonresidents
Patent applications, nonresidents over time
- China
- North America
How they compare
North America currently reports 357,699 against 159,019 in China, a difference of 198,680.
That makes North America's figure about 2.2 times China's.
Across all 36 years both countries report, North America has been ahead every year.
China ranks 2nd and North America ranks 3rd of 150 countries.
North America has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | North America | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,575 | 90,878 | 86,303 | North America |
| 1990s | 12,812 | 121,879 | 109,067 | North America |
| 2000s | 65,444 | 215,798 | 150,354 | North America |
| 2010s | 128,170 | 323,999 | 195,829 | North America |
| 2020s | 152,342 | 357,699 | 205,357 | North America |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher patent applications, nonresidents, China or North America?
- North America, at 357,699 against 159,019 in China as of 2020.
- What is the difference in patent applications, nonresidents between China and North America?
- 198,680, with North America ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and North America?
- 36 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2020.
- How do China and North America rank globally for patent applications, nonresidents?
- China ranks 2nd and North America ranks 3rd of 150 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- WIPO Patent Report: Statistics on Worldwide Patent Activity, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), note: The International Bureau of WIPO assumes no responsibility with respect to the trans, published as Patent applications, nonresidents. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Patent applications are worldwide patent applications filed through the Patent Cooperation Treaty procedure or with a national patent office for exclusive rights for an invention--a product or process that provides a new way of doing something or offers a new technical solution to a problem. A patent provides protection for the invention to the owner of the patent for a limited period, generally 20 years.