Sand and Gravel (Industrial) Production by Country
Sand and gravel industrial production by country shows how much industrial sand and gravel is produced in each country, measured in tonnes. The figures refer to production of industrial sand and gravel, in line with the underlying sources; construction-grade sand and gravel is a separate classification. The statistics combine an Our World in Data series for the earlier years (2020-2024), built from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries and the BGS World Mineral Statistics, with 2024 and 2025 estimates taken directly from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026. The table covers 24 countries included in the underlying data during the period. USGS reports 2025 estimates for 20 countries, which produced a combined 402,400,000 tonnes in 2025; together with the "Other countries" value of 23,000,000 tonnes, this totals 425,400,000 tonnes, which is 4,600,000 tonnes below the reported World total of 430,000,000 tonnes in the source. South Africa (2021), Japan (2022), Guatemala (2020), and Austria (2020) retain the last available values from the earlier series.
Largest Sand and Gravel (Industrial)-Producing Countries in 2025
The United States produced the most industrial sand and gravel in 2025 with 120,000,000 tonnes. China ranked second with 92,000,000, followed by the Netherlands (68,000,000), Türkiye (14,000,000), Italy (13,000,000), France (13,000,000), India (12,000,000), Germany (9,200,000), Bulgaria (8,800,000), and Russia (7,300,000).
Sand and Gravel (Industrial) Production by Country
|
#
|
Country
|
Latest Data (tonnes)
|
Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
United States
US
|
120,000,000 | 2025 |
| 2 |
China
CN
|
92,000,000 | 2025 |
| 3 |
Netherlands
NL
|
68,000,000 | 2025 |
| 4 |
Türkiye
TR
|
14,000,000 | 2025 |
| 5 |
Italy
IT
|
13,000,000 | 2025 |
| 6 |
France
FR
|
13,000,000 | 2025 |
| 7 |
India
IN
|
12,000,000 | 2025 |
| 8 |
Germany
DE
|
9,200,000 | 2025 |
| 9 |
Bulgaria
BG
|
8,800,000 | 2025 |
| 10 |
Russia
RU
|
7,300,000 | 2025 |
| 11 |
Spain
ES
|
6,300,000 | 2025 |
| 12 |
Malaysia
MY
|
6,000,000 | 2025 |
| 13 |
Poland
PL
|
5,900,000 | 2025 |
| 14 |
Australia
AU
|
5,600,000 | 2025 |
| 15 |
United Kingdom
GB
|
4,700,000 | 2025 |
| 16 |
Argentina
AR
|
4,500,000 | 2025 |
| 17 |
Canada
CA
|
3,800,000 | 2025 |
| 18 |
Indonesia
ID
|
3,500,000 | 2025 |
| 19 |
Mexico
MX
|
2,700,000 | 2025 |
| 20 |
Saudi Arabia
SA
|
2,100,000 | 2025 |
| 21 |
South Africa
ZA
|
2,080,000 | 2021 |
| 22 |
Japan
JP
|
2,010,000 | 2022 |
| 23 |
Guatemala
GT
|
1,900,000 | 2020 |
| 24 |
Austria
AT
|
1,570,000 | 2020 |
The United States alone accounted for about 28 percent of the World total in 2025, and the United States and China together for about 49 percent; the top three countries accounted for about 65 percent. U.S. production was about 1.3 times that of China. Three countries produced at least 50 million tonnes in 2025.
Sand and Gravel (Industrial) Production Around the World
In North America, the United States (120,000,000) leads, ahead of Canada (3,800,000) and Mexico (2,700,000). In Asia, China (92,000,000) leads, ahead of India (12,000,000), Malaysia (6,000,000), and Indonesia (3,500,000). In Europe, the Netherlands (68,000,000) is the largest producer, ahead of Türkiye (14,000,000), Italy (13,000,000), France (13,000,000), Germany (9,200,000), Bulgaria (8,800,000), Russia (7,300,000), Spain (6,300,000), Poland (5,900,000), and the United Kingdom (4,700,000).
In Oceania, Australia (5,600,000) is the only listed producer. In South America, Argentina (4,500,000) is the only listed producer. In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia (2,100,000) is the only listed producer. South Africa (2,080,000, 2021), Japan (2,010,000, 2022), Guatemala (1,900,000, 2020), and Austria (1,570,000, 2020) retain older values.
Largest Changes in Sand and Gravel (Industrial) Production, 2024-2025
China recorded the largest increase, rising from 91,000,000 tonnes in 2024 to 92,000,000 in 2025 (up 1,000,000, about 1 percent). France rose from 12,600,000 to 13,000,000 (up 400,000, about 3 percent), Türkiye by 300,000, Argentina by 200,000, India by 100,000, Australia by 100,000, and Germany and Bulgaria each by 30,000. The Netherlands (68,000,000), Russia (7,300,000), Canada (3,800,000), Malaysia (6,000,000), Mexico (2,700,000), Poland (5,900,000), Indonesia (3,500,000), Saudi Arabia (2,100,000), and the United Kingdom (4,700,000) held their levels.
The largest decline came from the United States, falling from 131,000,000 to 120,000,000 tonnes (down 11,000,000, about 8 percent). Italy fell from 13,500,000 to 13,000,000 (down 500,000, about 4 percent), and Spain by 30,000.
The World total fell from 434,000,000 to 430,000,000 tonnes (down 4,000,000, about 1 percent); the World total is reported separately from the country figures in the source.
Where the earlier series provided a 2024 value, the revisions are visible: the Netherlands was revised up from 60,000,000 to 68,000,000 tonnes, Italy down from 33,000,000 to 13,500,000, Germany down from 11,000,000 to 9,170,000, and the United States up from 130,000,000 to 131,000,000.
Sand and Gravel (Industrial) Production by Country
| # |
Country
|
2020
|
2021
|
2022
|
2023
|
2024
|
2025
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
- | 87,700,000 | 87,700,000 | 88,100,000 | 91,000,000 | 92,000,000 |
| 2 |
|
70,000,000 | 74,600,000 | 114,000,000 | 133,000,000 | 131,000,000 | 120,000,000 |
| 3 |
|
54,000,000 | 54,000,000 | 10,000,000 | 60,000,000 | 68,000,000 | 68,000,000 |
| 4 |
|
11,900,000 | 11,900,000 | 11,900,000 | 11,900,000 | 11,900,000 | 12,000,000 |
| 5 |
|
11,000,000 | 11,000,000 | 13,000,000 | 11,900,000 | 12,600,000 | 13,000,000 |
| 6 |
|
10,300,000 | 11,200,000 | 14,500,000 | 13,000,000 | 13,700,000 | 14,000,000 |
| 7 |
|
10,000,000 | 13,000,000 | 14,000,000 | 33,000,000 | 13,500,000 | 13,000,000 |
| 8 |
|
- | 9,870,000 | 11,100,000 | 11,100,000 | 9,170,000 | 9,200,000 |
| 9 |
|
8,350,000 | 8,150,000 | 8,450,000 | 8,050,000 | 8,770,000 | 8,800,000 |
| 10 |
|
- | 7,300,000 | 7,300,000 | 7,300,000 | 7,300,000 | 7,300,000 |
| 11 |
|
5,700,000 | 5,990,000 | 6,600,000 | 6,600,000 | 6,330,000 | 6,300,000 |
| 12 |
|
5,490,000 | 5,180,000 | 5,570,000 | 5,930,000 | 5,900,000 | 5,900,000 |
| 13 |
|
4,700,000 | 4,650,000 | 5,000,000 | 4,100,000 | 3,800,000 | 3,800,000 |
| 14 |
|
4,400,000 | 5,300,000 | 4,200,000 | 4,900,000 | 4,700,000 | 4,700,000 |
| 15 |
|
3,700,000 | 3,900,000 | 4,500,000 | 7,000,000 | 6,000,000 | 6,000,000 |
| 16 |
|
3,000,000 | 4,000,000 | 5,000,000 | 5,500,000 | 5,500,000 | 5,600,000 |
| 17 |
|
2,700,000 | 2,500,000 | 2,700,000 | 2,700,000 | 2,700,000 | 2,700,000 |
| 18 |
|
2,640,000 | 3,540,000 | 3,540,000 | 3,540,000 | 3,540,000 | 3,500,000 |
| 19 |
|
2,500,000 | 3,600,000 | 3,900,000 | 4,000,000 | 4,300,000 | 4,500,000 |
| 20 |
|
2,300,000 | 2,080,000 | - | - | - | - |
| 21 |
|
- | - | - | 2,100,000 | 2,100,000 | 2,100,000 |
| 22 |
|
1,920,000 | - | 2,010,000 | - | - | - |
| 23 |
|
1,900,000 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 24 |
|
1,570,000 | - | - | - | - | - |
Methodology
The earlier figures come from Our World in Data, which compiles national industrial sand and gravel production figures from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries and the BGS World Mineral Statistics, with major processing by Our World in Data; USGS data is prioritized, with BGS data used to supplement it. The earlier series covers 2020-2024. The 2024 and 2025 figures are estimates from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 where available; South Africa, Japan, Guatemala, and Austria keep their last available values from the earlier series. Values refer to production of industrial sand and gravel, in tonnes, and 2025 figures are preliminary estimates from the source. The source reports production in thousand-ton units for 2024-2025; values here are expressed in tonnes. The sum of individually reported country estimates does not equal the reported World total because the source applies rounding and other adjustments at the country and World levels. In the table, a zero reflects no production, while an empty cell means that no value was reported.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country produces the most industrial sand and gravel in 2025?
The United States produced the most industrial sand and gravel in 2025 with 120,000,000 tonnes, followed by China (92,000,000) and the Netherlands (68,000,000).
How many countries are included in the dataset?
The dataset includes 24 countries. USGS provides 2025 estimates for 20; South Africa (2,080,000, 2021), Japan (2,010,000, 2022), Guatemala (1,900,000, 2020), and Austria (1,570,000, 2020) retain older values.
What does this indicator measure?
It measures production of industrial sand and gravel, in tonnes; construction-grade (building) sand and gravel is a separate classification in the source.
Which country produces the least industrial sand and gravel among those with 2025 data?
Saudi Arabia recorded the smallest 2025 output at 2,100,000 tonnes. Among countries with older data, Austria recorded 1,570,000 tonnes in 2020.
Why were the 2024 figures revised?
The USGS revises its prior-year estimates in each new release; this release revises the Netherlands up (60,000,000 to 68,000,000 tonnes), Italy down (33,000,000 to 13,500,000), Germany down (11,000,000 to 9,170,000), and the United States up (130,000,000 to 131,000,000).
What is the difference between industrial and construction sand and gravel?
Industrial sand and gravel is used for specialized purposes (such as glassmaking, foundry, and filtration) and is reported separately by the source from construction-grade sand and gravel used in building and road construction.
Data Disclaimer: Projected data (future years) are estimates based on mathematical models. Actual values may differ. Learn about our methodology →
Sources
-
Updated: 25.08.2026https://ourworldindata.org/explorers/minerals
-
Updated: 25.08.2026https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center/sand-and-gravel-industrial-statistics-and-information
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