The US economy leads in per-capita wealth and technological innovation with a $27.4 trillion nominal GDP, while China's $17.9 trillion nominal GDP is the world's second-largest but serves a population 4.3x larger, giving it lower per-capita income of $12,720 versus America's $82,000. China leads in manufacturing output and foreign reserves, while the US dominates in financial markets, military spending, and technological patents.
China's Economy vs US Economy — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
World's largest developed economy with advanced financial systems, diversified sectors, and high per capita wealth.
World's second-largest economy with rapid growth, manufacturing dominance, and massive foreign reserves.
Nominal GDP (2024). GDP Per Capita (2024). Foreign Exchange Reserves. Manufacturing Output % of GDP. S&P 500 Market Cap. Annual Defense Spending (2024). Patent Filings Per Year
The US economy demonstrates superior wealth generation, financial market depth, and per-capita income, making it stronger for individual prosperity and capital formation. China's economy excels in manufacturing scale, labor force size, and total output volume, positioning it as a manufacturing and resource powerhouse. Choose the US economy model if prioritizing consumer wealth, innovation incentives, and market-driven growth; choose China's model if scaling production, leveraging population demographics, and achieving rapid industrialization are priorities.
United States Economy: 3.5% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $30.0-30.5 trillion | China's Economy: ~$31.7 trillion
United States Economy: 17% | China's Economy: 70%
United States Economy: ~6% | China's Economy: 94%
United States Economy: ~16% | China's Economy: 35%
United States Economy: ~3.8-4.0% | China's Economy: ~4.1%
Advanced Semiconductor Market Leadership
United States Economy: Dominant (Intel, TSMC partnership, Samsung); controls cutting-edge nodes | China's Economy: Limited by US export controls; dependent on SMIC/HiSilicon
United States Economy: 20-25% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Global leader in design and manufacturing | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Moderate exposure | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.2% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $925.8 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $4.18 trillion (2024) | China's Economy: $620 billion (2023)
United States Economy: 0.3-0.5% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 30.0+ | China's Economy: ~27-28 trillion
United States Economy: $4,175 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $4,481 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: ~20% | China's Economy: 70%
United States Economy: 6% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Leading edge (3nm and below) | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Minimal negative impact | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: ~10% | China's Economy: 80%+ of global output
United States Economy: Leading in design and manufacturing | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Minimal (exporter advantage) | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.0-2.5% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: €925.8 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.0-2.5% | China's Economy: 4.5-5.0%
United States Economy: 25-30% of global EVs | China's Economy: 70% of global EVs
United States Economy: 8-10% | China's Economy: 80%+
United States Economy: ~4.0% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $310 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $4,175,432 million (2024) | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: €925,796.8 million | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $89,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $10,266.8 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $925.8 | China's Economy: €296.5 billion
United States Economy: Global market leader | China's Economy: Limited by US export controls
United States Economy: Lower exposure | China's Economy: $400-800B potential loss
United States Economy: ~6% of global | China's Economy: 94% of global
United States Economy: Minimal | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 0.4-0.6% | China's Economy: N/A
Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Production
United States Economy: ~15% | China's Economy: 94%
United States Economy: $89,000+ | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 9% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 0.2-0.4pp | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 0.3-0.5% (from AI investment) | China's Economy: N/A
Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Production Share
United States Economy: 4% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 15% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 12% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $50-150B | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $31.5 trillion | China's Economy: $45.78 trillion
United States Economy: 2.1% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 1st | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 126% | China's Economy: 77%
United States Economy: 338M | China's Economy: 1,426 million
United States Economy: $809 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: AI, semiconductors, cloud, fintech | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $35,000-45,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $94,430 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $11.1 trillion ahead | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Data not available | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: ~25-26% of global GDP | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 1st (maintained) | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: ~1.8% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 26.2% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: Not specified | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $28.0 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $85,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $27.4 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: €10,217,935.3 million | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $3,981 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 44.5 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: ~2.8% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 1 EUR = 1.1797 USD | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.0-2.4% | China's Economy: 4.6-4.8%
United States Economy: 2.0% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $96,500+ | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $11.53 trillion lead | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $27.23 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 122.27% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 37.74% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $81,500 | China's Economy: $12,720
United States Economy: 336 million | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.8% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 11.8% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 25.5% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 38.5 years | China's Economy: 38.6 years
United States Economy: $27.4 trillion | China's Economy: $17.8 trillion
United States Economy: 4.2% | China's Economy: 4.1%
United States Economy: 2.9% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $156 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 167 companies | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 11.2% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $27.4T | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $82,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $0.13T | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 4.1% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $15.2T (Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Nvidia, Tesla, Broadcom) | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 38.9 years | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $2.1 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $84,696 | China's Economy: $13,072
United States Economy: 2.5% | China's Economy: 5.2%
United States Economy: $2.4 trillion | China's Economy: $4.3 trillion
United States Economy: $285 billion (2023) | China's Economy: $163 billion (2023)
United States Economy: $82,500 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 123% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $62,400 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 339 million | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 65% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.5% | China's Economy: 5.0%
United States Economy: $76,398 | China's Economy: $12,556
United States Economy: $0.1306 trillion | China's Economy: $3.3 trillion
United States Economy: 129% | China's Economy: 282%
United States Economy: 3.5% | China's Economy: 2.1%
United States Economy: 2.1% | China's Economy: 5.2%
United States Economy: $80,412 | China's Economy: $23,482
United States Economy: 16.3% | China's Economy: 42.8%
United States Economy: 123% | China's Economy: 77.8%
United States Economy: $12.8 trillion | China's Economy: $4.2 trillion
United States Economy: 340 million | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 21% of electricity | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $28.7 trillion | China's Economy: $17.9 trillion
United States Economy: 136 companies | China's Economy: 143 companies
United States Economy: $33.2 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.7% | China's Economy: 5.2%
United States Economy: 11% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 80.1% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $285 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $31.2 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 18% | China's Economy: 28%
United States Economy: -$73 billion deficit | China's Economy: $631.8 billion surplus
United States Economy: 12% | China's Economy: 28%
United States Economy: 4.1% | China's Economy: 5.1%
United States Economy: -$773 billion (deficit) | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $2.3T | China's Economy: $2.1T
United States Economy: 2.5% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 11.5% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $820 billion | China's Economy: $230 billion
United States Economy: 714,000 | China's Economy: 1,224,000
United States Economy: 8.2% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.5% | China's Economy: 5.4% (2024 estimate)
United States Economy: -$73.1 billion | China's Economy: +$632 billion surplus
United States Economy: +0.4% (growing) | China's Economy: -1.6% (declining)
United States Economy: $27.9 trillion | China's Economy: $17.9 trillion
United States Economy: 11% | China's Economy: 28%
United States Economy: $68,420 | China's Economy: $11,000
United States Economy: 0.38 million | China's Economy: 1.67 million
United States Economy: 17% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 9.8% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $42.8 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 16% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $7.1 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 11.8% | China's Economy: 28.2%
Foreign Direct Investment Inflows (2024)
United States Economy: $269 billion | China's Economy: $163 billion
United States Economy: 63.0% | China's Economy: N/A
Tech Sector Market Capitalization (Top 7 Companies)
United States Economy: $14.2 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
Average Annual GDP Growth Rate (2010-2023)
United States Economy: 2.4% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $28.2 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 26% of world GDP | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $285 billion | China's Economy: $189 billion
United States Economy: 0.41 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 17.3% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: -$773 billion deficit | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 398,144 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $329 billion | China's Economy: $163.5 billion
United States Economy: 170 million workers | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $28.7 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $12.4 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 615,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.6% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $0.13 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $76,398 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 11.2% | China's Economy: 27%
United States Economy: 415,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $48.2 trillion | China's Economy: $14.2 trillion
United States Economy: $120,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $76,500 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 680 GW | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $27.4 trillion | China's Economy: $17.9 trillion
United States Economy: 2.7% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 32.4% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 16.9% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 21.6% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $2.9 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $28.7 trillion | China's Economy: $17-18 trillion
United States Economy: 18% | China's Economy: 27.3%
United States Economy: $12.5 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $32 trillion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 80% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 26% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 31% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $189 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 4.0% | China's Economy: 5.0%
United States Economy: 3.4% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 82% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 41.1 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $7.25 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $68.40 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $119 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: $289B | China's Economy: N/A
Annual GDP Growth Rate (2020-2026 Average)
United States Economy: 195 companies | China's Economy: 88 companies
United States Economy: 38.7 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 285,000 | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 18% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 0.84 million | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 13.3% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 123% | China's Economy: 280%
United States Economy: $840 billion | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 12.3% | China's Economy: N/A
United States Economy: 2.1% | China's Economy: 5.0%
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: $296.5 billion
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: 80%+
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: $6,177 billion
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: 4.6-4.8%
Government Education Spending Per Capita
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: €467
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: Constrained by US export controls
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: $12,720
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: $3.58 trillion
United States Economy: N/A | China's Economy: 38.4 years
How to choose between United States Economy and China's Economy
Compare United States Economy vs China's Economy
China's Economy vs US Economy — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for China's Economy vs US Economy. Contains 282 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
China's Economy vs US Economy — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for China's Economy vs US Economy.
Why does China have a lower GDP per capita despite being the second-largest economy?
China's population of 1.4 billion is 4.3x larger than the US (330 million). While China's total GDP is $17.9 trillion versus the US $27.4 trillion, dividing by population yields $12,720 per capita for China versus $82,000 for the US. This reflects the difference between aggregate economic output and wealth distribution per person.
China's economy grew at 5.0% in 2024 compared to the US at 2.5%, more than double the rate. However, China's growth is from a lower baseline income level, and the US growth compounds on a much larger per-capita wealth foundation.
Why does the US have much larger financial markets?
The S&P 500 has $52 trillion in market capitalization versus China's Shanghai Exchange at $8.2 trillion due to: (1) higher per-capita wealth creating investor capital, (2) institutional investor dominance (pension funds, insurance companies), (3) greater capital flow freedoms and lower foreign ownership restrictions, and (4) more publicly-listed companies with transparent financial reporting.
China's total debt-to-GDP ratio is approximately 280% (government 77%, corporate 160%, household 63%), while the US federal debt-to-GDP is 127% with additional private sector debt. China's debt is more concentrated in state-owned enterprises and local governments, creating different systemic risks than US treasury-based debt.
Which economy is better positioned for the future?
The US has structural advantages in financial innovation, demographic sustainability (immigration), and technological dominance, while China has advantages in manufacturing scale, infrastructure investment, and domestic market growth. The answer depends on investment horizon and sector: technology favors the US; manufacturing and EV/renewable energy favor China.
How to Choose Between United States Economy and China's Economy
Nominal GDP (2024): United States Economy has $27.4 trillion, while China's Economy has $17.9 trillion.
GDP Per Capita (2024): United States Economy has $82,000, while China's Economy has $12,720.
Foreign Exchange Reserves: United States Economy has $3.2 trillion, while China's Economy has $3.5 trillion.
Manufacturing Output % of GDP: United States Economy has 16%, while China's Economy has 27%.
S&P 500 Market Cap: United States Economy has $52 trillion, while China's Economy has $8.2 trillion (Shanghai Exchange).
Consider: Annual Defense Spending (2024)
Annual Defense Spending (2024): United States Economy has $820 billion, while China's Economy has $230 billion.
Patent Filings Per Year: United States Economy has 1.36 million, while China's Economy has 1.43 million.