How Texas and Other U.S. States Stack Up Against Oil-Producing Nations

The United States already leads the world in crude oil production at 13.58 million barrels per day, but a closer look at individual states shows how concentrated that output really is. Texas alone averaged 5.75 million barrels per day in 2025, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, about 42 percent of the national total. If Texas were treated as a separate country, it would rank fourth globally, behind only the United States, Russia and Saudi Arabia — and ahead of Canada, Iraq and China.

The ranking is not meant to suggest that Texas adds production on top of the national figure. Country totals use average daily output from January through November, while U.S. state figures are full-year 2025 averages. The state and federal offshore numbers are components of the same 13.58 mb/d U.S. total, so the comparison is about scale rather than additional barrels.

New Mexico, also part of the Permian Basin, produced 2.24 million barrels per day and would rank 12th, ahead of Kazakhstan, Norway, Mexico and Nigeria. North Dakota's 1.15 million barrels per day would sit just above Algeria, Angola, Oman and Venezuela. Federal offshore production in the Gulf of Mexico averaged 1.90 million barrels per day, between Kazakhstan and Norway, while smaller producing states such as Colorado, Alaska, Oklahoma, Wyoming and California also outproduce several entire countries.

Why the Permian Basin Makes U.S. Output Unlike Any Other Country's

The Permian Basin Is Now a Two-State Oil Power

Texas and New Mexico together produced roughly 7.99 million barrels per day in 2025 — about 59 percent of the U.S. total. The Permian Basin's unconventional development, driven by horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, is the common factor. That means any supply forecast, pipeline constraint or permitting change in West Texas now has a direct counterpart in southeastern New Mexico.

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U.S. Supply Is More Distributed Than the Saudi Archetype

Texas dominates, but the ranking also highlights meaningful federal offshore production of 1.90 million barrels per day and North Dakota's 1.15 million barrels per day. Unlike a single-country producer where one field or region can skew national output, the U.S. base spans several country-sized producing areas, from the federal Gulf of Mexico to North Dakota and the Permian. That diversity can buffer supply, but it also means infrastructure problems in any one region become national-scale issues.

The Comparison Has a Built-In Caveat

Because the United States is included as a country while Texas is also ranked separately, the exercise is notional rather than additive. Country figures cover January through November averages, while U.S. state figures are full-year 2025 averages. The gaps between some mid-table positions are narrow — Colorado versus Ecuador, Utah versus Turkmenistan — so small monthly swings could reorder those rankings.

What the State-Level Comparisons Mean for Energy Analysts and Operators

  • When benchmarking U.S. crude supply, use the EIA's full-year 2025 state averages — Texas 5.75 mb/d, New Mexico 2.24 mb/d, North Dakota 1.15 mb/d and federal Gulf of Mexico 1.90 mb/d — rather than treating U.S. output as a single undifferentiated barrel.
  • Treat Permian growth as a two-state issue: New Mexico's 2.24 mb/d already outranks Norway and Mexico, so infrastructure, labor and regulatory conditions in New Mexico now carry weight comparable to Texas for U.S. supply forecasts.
  • In country-level oil-production comparisons, do not add Texas or other state volumes to the 13.58 mb/d U.S. total; they are components of that national figure, not additional barrels.