Wind: Across the Earth
Coasts, plains and passes: where the best winds blow
What this tab covers How the resource varies with latitude, climate, terrain and geology: the richest and poorest regions and the leading countries.The best winds blow along exposed coasts and at sea, across open plains and through mountain passes. China, the US and Germany lead in installed capacity; Denmark and Uruguay get the largest shares of their electricity from wind.
The IPCC AR6 map of mean wind power density at 100 m (Global Wind Atlas data, covering land and areas within 100 km of the coastline) shows the strongest resource on exposed coasts, open plains and uplands, and the weakest over forests and sheltered interiors. Offshore, steadier winds give higher capacity factors (about 41% for new plants against 36% onshore, IRENA).
Rich and poor regions
| Region | Resource | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Exposed coasts, open plains and uplands | Highest mapped mean wind power density at 100 m on land and near shore16 | high |
| Central plains of the United States | Could supply as much as 16 times total US electricity demand5 | high |
| Offshore worldwide | More than 420,000 TWh a year of technical potential6 | high |
| Denmark | Wind supplied 56% of electricity in 2024, the highest share reported10 | high |
| Uruguay | 38% of electricity from wind10 | high |
| China | 992 TWh in 2024, 40% of world wind generation7 | medium |
Top countries by installed wind capacity, end of 2024 2024 10
| Country | GW |
|---|---|
| China | 520.6 |
| United States | 154.8 |
| Germany | 72.7 |
| India | 48.2 |
| Brazil | 33.7 |
| United Kingdom | 31.6 |
| Spain | 31.2 |
| France | 24.4 |
The IPCC AR6 map of mean wind power density at 100 m, drawn from the Global Wind Atlas, shows the strongest winds on exposed coasts and open plains and the weakest over forests and sheltered inland regions. In the US, the central plain states alone could host turbines producing as much as 16 times national electricity demand.
Offshore wind is concentrated in a few shallow seas: of 83.1 GW installed at sea at the end of 2024, China had 41.8 GW, the UK 15.9 GW, Germany 9.1 GW and the Netherlands 4.7 GW. Nine or more European countries obtained over a quarter of their electricity from wind in 2024.
Sources
- Global potential for wind-generated electricity (Lu, McElroy and Kiviluoma, PNAS 106) Harvard-China Project, 2009
- Offshore Wind Outlook 2019 International Energy Agency, 2019
- Global Electricity Review 2025: Global electricity source trends Ember, 2025
- Renewables 2025 Global Status Report: Wind power REN21, 2025
- IPCC AR6 WGIII Figure 6.10: Mean wind power density at 100 m above ground level (from the Global Wind Atlas) IPCC AR6 Working Group III, 2022