Cotton Production Statistics 2026: India vs China, Brazil and the US (USDA Data)

Last updated: 15 October 2026. Compiled by Vikash, co-founder of Vee Threads, a hand-embroidery studio run by women artisans in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh. Every figure links to its official source. Free to cite with a link back to this page.

Quick answer: The world grew 122.05 million bales of cotton in 2025/26, according to the USDA. China is the largest producer at 35.8 million bales (29.3%), followed by India at 23.8 million (19.5%), Brazil at 18.75 million and the United States at 13.9 million. India plants the most cotton of any country, 11.5 million hectares, but harvests far less per hectare than China or Brazil.

Key highlights

• World cotton production in 2025/26 is estimated at 122.05 million 480-lb bales, against 119.55 million in 2024/25 (USDA FAS). The 10-year average is 115.62 million.
• China, India, Brazil and the US together grow about 75% of the world's cotton (USDA ERS, September 2025).
• Brazil out-produced the United States for the third year in a row in 2025/26 and was the world's third largest producer (USDA Outlook Forum, February 2026).
• India's harvested cotton area is 11.5 million hectares, more than the US (3.2), China (3.1) and Brazil (2.1) combined (USDA FAS).
• USDA forecasts Brazil to stay the top cotton exporter in 2026/27 at a record 15.0 million bales, with the US second at 12.3 million (USDA FAS, May 2026).
• India suspended import duties on cotton from 1 June to 31 October 2026 to keep mills supplied, the Minister of State for Textiles told Parliament (reported by Supreme Magazine).

Five seasons of production

Brazil is the line to watch. It went from 10.8 million bales to 18.75 million in four seasons, a 73% jump. India went the other way, slipping from a 26.3 million peak in 2022/23 to 23.8 million.

India's yield gap

This is the number most cotton articles skip. India has the most land under cotton by a wide margin. It doesn't have the most cotton.

China gets more than five times as much cotton from a hectare as India does. Much of India's crop is rain-fed and grown on small farms, while China's and Brazil's cotton is concentrated on large, irrigated or highly mechanised land. The government has approved a cotton productivity programme for 2026-27 to 2030-31, per the same Parliament reply. Closing even part of this gap would change the world cotton table.

What GSM has to do with any of this

Every number above ends up in a fabric. We stitch on 220 GSM cotton tees and 350 GSM cotton sweatshirts. GSM is grams per square metre, so a heavier GSM simply means more cotton in each square metre of cloth. It costs more yarn. It also gives the embroidery a firm base so the stitches don't pucker or pull through.

Methodology and sources

All production, area and trade figures are USDA estimates in 480-lb bales; USDA revises them monthly, so check the live FAS page for the newest numbers. 2021/22 to 2024/25 values come from the May 2026 USDA FAS report; 2025/26 values from the current FAS production page. Yields and shares marked as ours are Vee Threads calculations.

• USDA FAS: Cotton production by country
• USDA FAS: Cotton, World Markets and Trade (May 2026)
• USDA ERS: Cotton and Wool Outlook (September 2025)
• USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum: Cotton Outlook (February 2026)
• Report on Lok Sabha reply: cotton duty suspension and productivity mission

Vee Threads (2026). Cotton Production Statistics 2026. https://veethreads.com/blogs/news/cotton-production-statistics

<a href="https://veethreads.com/blogs/news/cotton-production-statistics">Cotton production statistics (Vee Threads)</a>

More in our fashion data series: Indian textile and apparel industry statistics, handloom and handicraft artisan statistics, global apparel export statistics and textile waste statistics.

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