OPEC and the World's Oil
Annual data through 2025 (Energy Institute Statistical Review) · Updated August 21, 2026
OPEC's twelve members produced 34.2% of the world's oil in 2025: 34,379 of 100,590 thousand barrels per day. The share peaked at 50.0% in 1973, bottomed at 26.5% in 1985, and has never regained its peak. The reason is not that OPEC shrank; it is that the United States grew. U.S. output fell to 6,783 thousand barrels per day in 2008, its lowest point in this series, then rose 211% to 21,065 in 2025, the highest single-country total in any year on record. In 1973 OPEC produced 2.7 barrels for every U.S. barrel; today it produces 1.6.
OPEC vs the rest of the world since 1965
- OPEC (today's 12 members, back-cast)
- Non-OPEC
Source: Energy Institute, Statistical Review of World Energy, oil production in thousand barrels per day, annual.
OPEC's absolute output is not the story. It produced 29,273 thousand barrels per day in 1973 and 34,379 in 2025, up 17% across 52 years, while the world market grew 72%. The share fell because everyone else grew faster.
The 1985 trough is its own chapter: OPEC's output roughly halved between 1979 and 1985 while world demand was falling, a defense of price that cost it half its market share and preceded the 1986 price collapse.
The three largest producers
Same source and units. Russia appears from 1985, when the Energy Institute series begins reporting it separately (Soviet-era totals are reported as the USSR and are not spliced onto the Russia line).
Every OPEC member's production, 2025
| Member | Production (thousand b/d) | Share of world |
|---|---|---|
| Saudi Arabia | 11,408 | 11.3% |
| Iran | 5,184 | 5.2% |
| Iraq | 4,396 | 4.4% |
| United Arab Emirates | 4,207 | 4.2% |
| Kuwait | 2,820 | 2.8% |
| Nigeria | 1,760 | 1.7% |
| Algeria | 1,517 | 1.5% |
| Libya | 1,400 | 1.4% |
| Venezuela | 1,104 | 1.1% |
| Republic of Congo | 278 | 0.3% |
| Gabon | 227 | 0.2% |
| Equatorial Guinea | 79 | 0.1% |
| OPEC total | 34,379 | 34.2% |
| United States (non-OPEC) | 21,065 | 20.9% |
| Russia (non-OPEC) | 10,737 | 10.7% |
Energy Institute Statistical Review, 2025. The U.S. and Russia rows are shown for scale: the U.S. alone out-produces every individual OPEC member; only the group's combined total exceeds it.
Questions people ask
What share of the world's oil does OPEC produce?
34.2% in 2025: 34,379 thousand barrels per day of the world's 100,590, counting today's 12 members (Energy Institute Statistical Review). The share peaked at 50.0% in 1973 and bottomed at 26.5% in 1985.
Which country produces the most oil?
The United States, at 21,065 thousand barrels per day in 2025 (20.9% of the world), the highest single-country total in any year of the series back to 1965. Saudi Arabia produced 11,408 and Russia 10,737. The figures count crude oil, condensates and natural gas liquids.
Did OPEC's production fall as its share fell?
No. OPEC produced 29,273 thousand barrels per day in 1973 and 34,379 in 2025, up 17% across 52 years, while the world market grew 72%. The share fell because everyone else grew faster, led by the United States.
Which countries are in OPEC?
As counted in this data, the 12 current members: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Nigeria, Algeria, Libya, Venezuela, Republic of Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea. The roster has changed over time: Indonesia, Qatar, Ecuador and Angola were members in the past and are not today, so historical values on this page describe today's members back-cast, not the organization as it existed in each year.
Related pages
- Top oil, gas and coal producing countries: the wider producer rankings
- World oil chokepoints: where the barrels physically move
- The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve: the stockpile built after the 1973 embargo
- Why are gas prices high right now?