Farming, factories and households drink through about 11 billion cubic metres of fresh water a day. Here is the breakdown.
The Daily Volume
Humanity withdraws roughly 4 trillion cubic metres of fresh water a year, which is about 11 billion cubic metres every day — enough to fill more than four million Olympic swimming pools. Withdrawals have roughly sextupled over the past century, growing about twice as fast as the population.
Where It All Goes
Agriculture accounts for about 70% of all fresh water use, industry for roughly 20% and households for the remaining 10%. A single kilogram of beef takes around 15,000 litres to produce, a kilogram of rice about 2,500 litres, and a cotton T-shirt roughly 2,700 litres. Most of the water you 'use' never passes through your tap.
Who Uses the Most
Direct household use ranges from over 300 litres per person per day in the United States to under 20 litres in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. Around two billion people still live in countries under high water stress, and roughly 700 million lack a safely managed drinking water source.
Reading the Counter
Our live water counter projects annual global withdrawal estimates from the FAO AQUASTAT database evenly across the year, so it shows the pace of consumption rather than a metered reading.
Frequently asked questions
How much water does the world use per day?
Roughly 11 billion cubic metres of fresh water are withdrawn worldwide each day.
What uses the most water?
Agriculture, at about 70% of all global fresh water withdrawals.
How much water does one person use a day?
Direct household use ranges from under 20 litres to over 300 litres per person per day depending on the country.
How much water does it take to make a T-shirt?
About 2,700 litres, mostly for growing the cotton.