Lithium Reserves by Country

The United States reported 35,000 metric tons of lithium reserves in 2018 and 4,400,000 in 2025. The source for the figures is the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2019-2026, which report estimated quantities that can be economically extracted. Reserves represent material considered recoverable under applicable conditions, not the amount mined in a given year. 11 countries appear in the table; 10 have reported 2025 values, and the listed 2025 total stands at 34,070,000 metric tons. USGS puts the rounded world total at 37,000,000 metric tons.

Chile (9,200,000 metric tons) and Australia (8,400,000) hold just over half of the listed total between them. Directly below, China (4,600,000), the United States (4,400,000) and Argentina (4,400,000) sit within 200,000 metric tons of one another. USGS separately lists 2,400,000 metric tons under Other countries without country attribution.

Lithium Reserves by Country

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#	Country	Latest Data (metric tons)	Year
1	Chile CL	9,200,000	2025
2	Australia AU	8,400,000	2025
3	China CN	4,600,000	2025
4	United States US	4,400,000	2025
5	Argentina AR	4,400,000	2025
6	Canada CA	1,600,000	2025
7	Brazil BR	540,000	2025
8	Zimbabwe ZW	500,000	2025
9	Mali ML	370,000	2025
10	Portugal PT	60,000	2025
11	Namibia NA	14,000	2024

Mali's 370,000 debut outweighs Portugal's 60,000 sixfold.

The leader barely moved

Chile reported either 9,200,000 or 9,300,000 metric tons in every year since 2020, ending the period at the same 9,200,000 figure where it began. Its gain across the full eight years, from 8,000,000 to 9,200,000, is the smallest change among the larger holders in the table.

Each of the three largest 2025 additions exceeded that entire eight-year gain on its own: the United States added 2,600,000 metric tons, China 1,600,000 and Australia 1,400,000. The ranking was reshaped around a leader that stood still.

From 35,000 to 4,400,000

The United States moved from 35,000 metric tons in 2018 to 630,000 in 2019, held at 750,000 through 2020 and 2021, then climbed through 1,000,000, 1,100,000 and 1,800,000 before reaching 4,400,000 in 2025 — a roughly 125-fold rise in the reported figure. It was not the only challenger multiplying: Australia tripled from 2,700,000 to 8,400,000, China rose from 1,000,000 to 4,600,000, and Argentina more than doubled from 2,000,000 to 4,400,000.

New names and flat lines at the bottom

Mali appears for the first time in 2025 with 370,000 metric tons, while Namibia reported 14,000 in 2024 and nothing for 2025. Portugal remained at 60,000 throughout the period. Brazil grew tenfold from 54,000 to 540,000 and Zimbabwe about sevenfold from 70,000 to 500,000 — yet the four smallest reported 2025 holdings together account for only about 4.3% of the listed total.

Lithium Reserves by Country

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#	Country	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
1	Chile	8,000,000	8,600,000	9,200,000	9,200,000	9,300,000	9,300,000	9,300,000	9,200,000
2	Australia	2,700,000	2,800,000	4,700,000	5,700,000	6,200,000	6,200,000	7,000,000	8,400,000
3	Argentina	2,000,000	1,700,000	1,900,000	2,200,000	2,700,000	3,600,000	4,000,000	4,400,000
4	China	1,000,000	1,000,000	1,500,000	1,500,000	2,000,000	3,000,000	3,000,000	4,600,000
5	Canada	-	370,000	530,000	-	930,000	930,000	1,200,000	1,600,000
6	Mali	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	370,000
7	Zimbabwe	70,000	1,100,000	220,000	220,000	310,000	310,000	480,000	500,000
8	Portugal	60,000	60,000	60,000	60,000	60,000	60,000	60,000	60,000
9	Brazil	54,000	95,000	95,000	95,000	250,000	390,000	390,000	540,000
10	United States	35,000	630,000	750,000	750,000	1,000,000	1,100,000	1,800,000	4,400,000
11	Namibia	-	-	-	-	-	-	14,000	-

Methodology

Figures come from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2019-2026, with 2025 values estimated. Units are metric tons, exactly as reported. Empty means the source reported no value; 0 means the source reports zero. The source’s world total, where published, may be rounded, approximate, a lower bound, or a textual estimate, so shares are computed against the sum of the listed countries. Reserves and production are different measures and should not be combined without equalizing units.