China's economy is the world's second-largest at $17.9 trillion GDP (2024), while Japan ranks fourth at $4.2 trillion, making China roughly 4.3x larger in absolute size. However, Japan has significantly higher GDP per capita ($39,285 vs $12,720), indicating superior individual wealth and living standards.
China vs Japan Economy — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
World's second-largest economy with rapid industrialization, massive manufacturing base, and emerging tech sector.
Advanced, mature economy with world-leading technology sector and low unemployment.
Total GDP (2024). GDP Per Capita (2024). Population. Manufacturing Output (% of global). Government Debt to GDP Ratio. Export Volume (2024). Unemployment Rate (2024)
China dominates in absolute economic scale, manufacturing capacity, and export power, making it the global economic engine for supply chains and mass-market production. Japan excels in quality of life, technological innovation, low unemployment, and per-capita wealth, positioning it as a premium economy with superior individual prosperity. Choose China for understanding global economic growth drivers and manufacturing; choose Japan for examining efficient, stable, wealthy economies with aging demographics.
China Economy: 4.2% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $12,800 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $220 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $189 billion | Japan Economy: $26 billion
China Economy: 5.0% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $12,720 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: ~80% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: Limited by US export controls, advancing in AI adoption | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: -0.5 to -2% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 4.5-5.0% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $296.5 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $620.1 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 0.5-2.0% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: Restricted to 7nm+ (export controls) | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $12,700 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $620 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $525 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $17.9 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: -0.5 to -2.0% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: Limited by US export controls | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 4.6-4.8% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: €296.5 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: €467 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 80%+ | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: ~5.2% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $13,500 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $5,708.7 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $296.5 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $680 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 0.2-0.3% | Japan Economy: N/A
Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Production
China Economy: 28.3% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $400-800B | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $17.9 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 4.7% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $400-800B reduction | Japan Economy: N/A
Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Production Share
China Economy: 0.5-2.0pp | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $18.7 trillion | Japan Economy: $4.2 trillion
Foreign Direct Investment Inflows (Annual)
China Economy: $163.5 billion | Japan Economy: $13.2 billion
China Economy: 38 years | Japan Economy: 49 years
China Economy: 28% (diversified) | Japan Economy: 20% (high-tech focused)
China Economy: $17.9 trillion | Japan Economy: $4.2 trillion
China Economy: $45.78 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 6.0% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 14.3% | Japan Economy: 3.9%
China Economy: ~5.5% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: EV manufacturing, 5G, solar, semiconductors | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $16,800 (119,800 yuan) | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $14,874 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $11.1 trillion behind | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 6.1% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: ~16-17% of global GDP | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 0.9% CPI | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 5.1% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 3-4% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: Data not available | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $14,800+ | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 36% smaller than US | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $189 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,420 million | Japan Economy: 125 million
China Economy: $17.9T | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 5.2% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $12,500 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3.4T | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 5.3% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $4.8T (Alibaba, Tencent, Meituan weighted total) | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 37.4 years (projected 53 by 2050) | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3.6 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 28% | Japan Economy: 7.2%
China Economy: 282% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3.6 trillion | Japan Economy: $925 billion
China Economy: $652 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: +$631 billion (surplus) | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 142 companies | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3.8 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $10.8 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 4.8% | Japan Economy: 1.2%
China Economy: 28.4% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 54.8% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $163 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $22.8 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $11.8 trillion | Japan Economy: $5.2 trillion
China Economy: 5.1% | Japan Economy: 2.5%
China Economy: +$632 billion (surplus) | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,480 GW | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $11,500 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $28.3 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 14.8% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,542,000 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $189B | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $35.5 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 687,231 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $15.2 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $6.8 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
Tech Sector Market Capitalization (Top 7 Companies)
China Economy: $2.8 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
Average Annual GDP Growth Rate (2010-2023)
China Economy: 6.8% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $31.6 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 16% of world GDP | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $696 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $12,700 | Japan Economy: $39,285
China Economy: 4.1% | Japan Economy: 1.2%
China Economy: 77% | Japan Economy: 264%
China Economy: $4.2 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 920 million | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $189 billion | Japan Economy: $136 billion
China Economy: 1,820,000 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 0.2% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3.2 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $28.7 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,200,000 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $38,000 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 12.4% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $36.1 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 8.7% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,750,000 | Japan Economy: 310,000
China Economy: 38.8 years | Japan Economy: 48.7 years
China Economy: 2nd largest exporter (after USA) | Japan Economy: 4th largest exporter
China Economy: $3.6T | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 8-10% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 30 million | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $8.1 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 38.4 years | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: +$821 billion surplus | Japan Economy: +$229B
China Economy: $24 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $1,370 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $12.3 trillion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3,200 billion | Japan Economy: $1,300 billion
China Economy: 5.3% | Japan Economy: 2.5%
China Economy: $12,720 | Japan Economy: $31,546
China Economy: 5.0% | Japan Economy: 1.4%
China Economy: $12,700 | Japan Economy: $32,500
China Economy: 5.2% | Japan Economy: 1.8%
China Economy: 20.6% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 5.1% | Japan Economy: 2.4%
China Economy: 2.1% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $28.7T | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $163B | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $90 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,420 million | Japan Economy: 124 million
Annual GDP Growth Rate (2020-2026 Average)
China Economy: 14.2% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 1,425 million | Japan Economy: 123.3 million
China Economy: 142,000 | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 2.4% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 29.4% | Japan Economy: 18.9%
China Economy: 1.59 million | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 15.8% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $369 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 0.2% | Japan Economy: 2.8%
China Economy: 27% | Japan Economy: 19.3%
China Economy: $1,230 billion | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $35.4T | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: 29.2% | Japan Economy: N/A
Foreign Direct Investment Inflows (2024)
China Economy: 2.89% | Japan Economy: N/A
China Economy: $3.6 trillion | Japan Economy: $824 billion
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: $4.2 trillion
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: 2.6%
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: $32,100
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: 2.5%
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: 264%
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: $39,200
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: 123 million
China Economy: N/A | Japan Economy: 1.2%
How to choose between China Economy and Japan Economy
China vs Japan Economy — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for China vs Japan Economy. Contains 242 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
China vs Japan Economy — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for China vs Japan Economy.
Why is China's economy so much larger than Japan's if Japan is wealthier per capita?
China's economy is 4.3x larger primarily due to its population of 1.425 billion versus Japan's 123.3 million—a 11.5x difference. Total GDP is the product of population and per-capita wealth. Japan's higher per-capita GDP ($39,285 vs $12,720) means individual Japanese are roughly 3x wealthier, but China's massive population overwhelms this advantage in aggregate economic output.
What are the biggest economic challenges each country faces?
China faces slowing growth (down from 10% to 5%), a debt crisis in shadow banking sectors worth $10+ trillion, and a declining workforce as births fell 36% in 2023. Japan confronts the worst demographic collapse among developed nations (population shrinking 1 million annually) and unsustainable debt at 264% of GDP, the highest worldwide, limiting government spending flexibility.
Which country is better for manufacturing and exports?
China dominates manufacturing, producing 28% of global output and exporting $3.6 trillion annually—primarily electronics, textiles, machinery, and chemicals. Japan specializes in premium manufacturing (automobiles, semiconductors, robotics) with $824 billion in exports, focusing on quality and technology rather than volume, with 40% of the world's industrial robots installed there.
Japan has an exceptionally tight labor market with 2.5% unemployment, creating wage pressures and labor shortages, especially in healthcare and hospitality. China's 5.3% unemployment reflects a larger informal sector and rural-to-urban migration patterns, though major cities face talent competition. Japan's aging workforce (median age 49) contrasts sharply with China's younger population (median 38), but both face long-term labor availability concerns.
Which economy is more stable for long-term investment?
Japan offers stability through low unemployment (2.5%), mature institutions, and transparent governance, but faces stagnant growth (1.4% annually) and a demographic crisis. China offers higher growth potential (5% annually) but with greater volatility, government intervention risk, and a looming debt crisis in shadow banking. Risk-averse investors favor Japan; growth-seeking investors pursue China despite higher volatility.
How to Choose Between China Economy and Japan Economy
Total GDP (2024): China Economy has $17.9 trillion, while Japan Economy has $4.2 trillion.
GDP Per Capita (2024): China Economy has $12,720, while Japan Economy has $39,285.
Population: China Economy has 1.425 billion, while Japan Economy has 123.3 million.
Consider: Manufacturing Output (% of global)
Manufacturing Output (% of global): China Economy has 28%, while Japan Economy has 7.5%.
Government Debt to GDP Ratio: China Economy has 77%, while Japan Economy has 264%.
Export Volume (2024): China Economy has $3.6 trillion, while Japan Economy has $824 billion.
Unemployment Rate (2024): China Economy has 5.3%, while Japan Economy has 2.5%.