China vs United States: Patent applications, nonresidents
Patent applications, nonresidents over time
- China
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 329,229 against 159,019 in China, a difference of 170,210.
That makes United States's figure about 2.1 times China's.
Across all 37 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.
China ranks 2nd and United States ranks 1st of 150 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,575 | 63,157 | 58,582 | United States |
| 1990s | 12,812 | 96,464 | 83,652 | United States |
| 2000s | 65,444 | 180,895 | 115,451 | United States |
| 2010s | 128,170 | 292,836 | 164,666 | United States |
| 2020s | 155,680 | 328,408 | 172,727 | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher patent applications, nonresidents, China or United States?
- United States, at 329,229 against 159,019 in China as of 2021.
- What is the difference in patent applications, nonresidents between China and United States?
- 170,210, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States?
- 37 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2021.
- How do China and United States rank globally for patent applications, nonresidents?
- China ranks 2nd and United States ranks 1st 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.