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Firewood is commonly used in developing regions, mainly as a primary energy source. This study quantified and analyzed the carbon footprint associated with firewood consumption in the Brazilian Northeast. The Life Cycle Assessment methodology was applied, using the IPCC GWP 100y environmental impact assessment method and EcoInvent database, within software SimaPro. Forest product harvesting (extractivism) and silviculture were compared from available data (1994 and 2013). The results revealed that the burning of firewood from extractivism presented a higher carbon footprint than silviculture: 16 versus 10 kg CO2-eq/m(3), respectively. The Rio Grande do Norte state presented the highest carbon footprint per area associated with extractivism and silviculture, for the year 1994. Considering the most recent available 2013 data, the highest carbon footprints per area associated with extractivism and silviculture were, respectively, for the Ceara and Bahia states. Quantification of carbon footprints are crucial to monitor progress in climate change mitigation, and can be utilized to build inventories, which are important for policy formulation and implementation.