Arable land in Australia
Australia: Arable land was 1.16 hectares per person in 2023. ▼ Falling
Arable land in Australia, 1961–2023
Source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in hectares per person.
Analysis
The most recent figure for arable land in Australia is 1.16 hectares per person, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 3.3% on the previous year and down 13.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land in Australia peaked at 1.78 hectares per person in 1968 and was at its lowest, 0.9283 hectares per person, in 1992.
That places Australia 2nd out of 206 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.54 hectares per person | 1.37 hectares per person | 1.78 hectares per person | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.17 hectares per person | 0.977 hectares per person | 1.48 hectares per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.23 hectares per person | 1.04 hectares per person | 1.4 hectares per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.04 hectares per person | 0.9283 hectares per person | 1.22 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.22 hectares per person | 1.11 hectares per person | 1.31 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.29 hectares per person | 1.16 hectares per person | 1.42 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.19 hectares per person | 1.16 hectares per person | 1.22 hectares per person | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More agriculture & rural data for Australia
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2025)
- Rural population 12.3% (2025)
- Rural population growth 0.6% (2025)
- Rural population 3.39 million (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 2.3% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 40.76 billion current US$ (2025)
- Land under cereal production 19.46 million hectares (2024)
- Cereal yield 2,690 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal production 52.35 million metric tons (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land in Australia?
- Arable land in Australia was 1.16 hectares per person in 2023, according to FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest arable land recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.78 hectares per person in 1968.
- What is the lowest arable land recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9283 hectares per person in 1992.
- How does Australia rank for arable land?
- Australia ranks 2nd out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is arable land rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Arable land (hectares per person). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Arable land (hectares per person) includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. Land abandoned as a result of shifting cultivation is excluded.