The United States operates more nuclear generating capacity than any other country today, but its lead narrows once planned and proposed projects worldwide are counted, according to a Visual Capitalist analysis of Global Energy Monitor data. The U.S. currently runs about 102.5 gigawatts of nuclear capacity, more than 35 gigawatts ahead of France, the next-largest operator.

China's operating fleet is smaller today, at roughly 60.9 gigawatts, but its combined pipeline of operating and proposed reactors totals nearly 186 gigawatts once projects under construction and in planning are included. That would put China's future total capacity ahead of the United States, whose combined operating and prospective capacity reaches about 117.9 gigawatts, based on sites tracked as of September 2025. France's total, including planned additions, comes to roughly 75.6 gigawatts.

The comparison reflects a broader global buildout as countries add reliable, low-carbon generation to meet rising electricity demand. Much of the growth in the prospective totals includes both large-scale plants and smaller, modular reactor designs backed by government and private funding.

In the United States, that buildout is showing up mainly as reactor uprates at existing plants, license renewals and construction permits for advanced designs, rather than a wave of new large-scale plants. The domestic pipeline remains far smaller than the operating fleet already in service, a gap that will shape how much of the near-term generation mix continues to rely on plants built decades ago.

Source: Visual Capitalist (Global Energy Monitor data) - https://www.visualcapitalist.com/expected-nuclear-capacity-by-country/