Arable land (hectares) by country
Arable land (in hectares) 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.
Countries reporting
206
Highest
153.87 million hectares
India
Lowest
70 hectares
Faroe Islands
Median
1.12 million hectares
Years covered
63
1961–2023
Data points
11,871
What the numbers show
Arable land (hectares) is currently reported for 206 countries. The highest value is 153.87 million hectares in India; the lowest is 70 hectares in Faroe Islands.
The median across all reporting countries is 1.12 million hectares, and the mean is 6.70 million hectares.
Over the past decade 78 countries rose and 78 fell. The largest increase was in Oman (up 131.1%), and the largest decrease in Northern Mariana Islands (down 68.0%).
Arable land: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 153.87 million hectares | 2023 | down 1.6% | flat |
| 2 | United States | 151.56 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.5% | falling |
| 3 | Russia | 121.65 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 4 | China | 108.43 million hectares | 2023 | down 6.8% | rising |
| 5 | Brazil | 55.64 million hectares | 2023 | up 4.4% | rising |
| 6 | Argentina | 40.39 million hectares | 2023 | up 2.5% | rising |
| 7 | Canada | 38.15 million hectares | 2023 | up 1.0% | flat |
| 8 | Nigeria | 36.87 million hectares | 2023 | up 2.3% | rising |
| 9 | Ukraine | 32.92 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 10 | Australia | 30.99 million hectares | 2023 | down 0.7% | rising |
| 11 | Pakistan | 30.26 million hectares | 2023 | down 0.7% | flat |
| 12 | Kazakhstan | 29.67 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.9% | falling |
| 13 | Sudan | 21.00 million hectares | 2023 | up 5.8% | rising |
| 14 | Turkey | 20.28 million hectares | 2023 | down 1.4% | falling |
| 15 | Mexico | 20.02 million hectares | 2023 | down 11.0% | rising |
| 16 | Indonesia | 17.78 million hectares | 2023 | down 0.4% | rising |
| 17 | Niger | 17.70 million hectares | 2023 | up 5.4% | rising |
| 18 | France | 16.90 million hectares | 2023 | down 7.7% | flat |
| 19 | Ethiopia | 16.40 million hectares | 2023 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 20 | Thailand | 15.84 million hectares | 2023 | down 8.7% | rising |
| 21 | Iran | 15.70 million hectares | 2023 | up 6.9% | flat |
| 22 | Democratic Republic of Congo | 14.90 million hectares | 2023 | up 26.4% | rising |
| 23 | Tanzania | 13.50 million hectares | 2023 | up 10.4% | rising |
| 24 | South Africa | 12.00 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 25 | Germany | 11.68 million hectares | 2023 | down 1.6% | flat |
| 26 | Spain | 11.50 million hectares | 2023 | down 5.6% | falling |
| 27 | Poland | 11.20 million hectares | 2023 | up 3.8% | falling |
| 28 | Myanmar | 11.01 million hectares | 2023 | up 2.2% | rising |
| 29 | Romania | 8.41 million hectares | 2023 | down 3.9% | falling |
| 30 | Mali | 8.34 million hectares | 2023 | up 22.2% | volatile |
| 31 | Burkina Faso | 7.91 million hectares | 2023 | up 16.7% | rising |
| 32 | Bangladesh | 7.88 million hectares | 2023 | up 2.1% | falling |
| 33 | Afghanistan | 7.85 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.8% | flat |
| 34 | Algeria | 7.53 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.5% | rising |
| 35 | Italy | 7.08 million hectares | 2023 | up 3.8% | falling |
| 36 | Uganda | 6.90 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 37 | Morocco | 6.87 million hectares | 2023 | down 15.4% | rising |
| 38 | Vietnam | 6.73 million hectares | 2023 | up 4.8% | rising |
| 39 | Kenya | 6.63 million hectares | 2023 | up 3.0% | rising |
| 40 | Cameroon | 6.20 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 41 | United Kingdom | 6.04 million hectares | 2023 | down 3.5% | falling |
| 42 | Guinea | 6.00 million hectares | 2023 | up 41.4% | rising |
| 43 | Mozambique | 5.65 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 44 | Philippines | 5.59 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 45 | Belarus | 5.57 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.1% | falling |
| 46 | Bolivia | 5.56 million hectares | 2023 | up 14.5% | rising |
| 47 | Angola | 5.38 million hectares | 2023 | up 11.1% | rising |
| 48 | Chad | 5.30 million hectares | 2023 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 49 | Iraq | 4.97 million hectares | 2023 | up 8.9% | falling |
| 50 | Cote d'Ivoire | 4.80 million hectares | 2023 | up 37.2% | rising |
| 51 | Ghana | 4.71 million hectares | 2023 | up 7.7% | rising |
| 52 | Paraguay | 4.56 million hectares | 2023 | up 14.9% | volatile |
| 53 | Syria | 4.40 million hectares | 2023 | down 5.6% | falling |
| 54 | Hungary | 4.14 million hectares | 2023 | down 4.0% | falling |
| 55 | Cambodia | 4.12 million hectares | 2023 | up 6.1% | rising |
| 56 | Japan | 4.04 million hectares | 2023 | down 4.6% | falling |
| 57 | Uzbekistan | 4.03 million hectares | 2023 | down 0.6% | falling |
| 58 | Zimbabwe | 4.02 million hectares | 2023 | down 0.7% | rising |
| 59 | Malawi | 4.00 million hectares | 2023 | up 12.8% | rising |
| 60 | Peru | 3.92 million hectares | 2023 | up 1.7% | rising |
| 61 | Senegal | 3.83 million hectares | 2023 | up 16.1% | rising |
| 62 | Zambia | 3.80 million hectares | 2023 | up 2.7% | rising |
| 63 | Benin | 3.55 million hectares | 2023 | up 31.3% | rising |
| 64 | Bulgaria | 3.49 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.2% | falling |
| 65 | Saudi Arabia | 3.43 million hectares | 2023 | down 1.6% | rising |
| 66 | Egypt | 3.10 million hectares | 2023 | up 14.6% | rising |
| 67 | Madagascar | 3.00 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 68 | Cuba | 2.91 million hectares | 2023 | down 7.9% | rising |
| 69 | Tunisia | 2.83 million hectares | 2023 | down 0.8% | falling |
| 70 | Togo | 2.65 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 71 | Serbia | 2.60 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.5% | flat |
| 72 | Venezuela | 2.60 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 73 | Colombia | 2.55 million hectares | 2023 | up 73.4% | falling |
| 74 | Sweden | 2.53 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.4% | falling |
| 75 | Czechia | 2.52 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.9% | falling |
| 76 | South Sudan | 2.49 million hectares | 2023 | down 4.9% | falling |
| 77 | Denmark | 2.37 million hectares | 2023 | down 1.8% | falling |
| 78 | Lithuania | 2.30 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.5% | falling |
| 79 | North Korea | 2.29 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.3% | rising |
| 80 | Finland | 2.24 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.9% | falling |
| 81 | Uruguay | 2.20 million hectares | 2023 | down 4.7% | rising |
| 82 | Azerbaijan | 2.09 million hectares | 2023 | up 8.6% | rising |
| 83 | Moldova | 1.87 million hectares | 2023 | up 3.0% | flat |
| 84 | Greece | 1.86 million hectares | 2023 | down 25.9% | falling |
| 85 | Nepal | 1.80 million hectares | 2023 | down 14.0% | flat |
| 86 | Central African Republic | 1.80 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 87 | Libya | 1.72 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 88 | Turkmenistan | 1.59 million hectares | 2023 | down 14.6% | rising |
| 89 | Sierra Leone | 1.58 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.0% | volatile |
| 90 | Guatemala | 1.55 million hectares | 2023 | up 12.7% | rising |
| 91 | Nicaragua | 1.50 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 92 | South Korea | 1.46 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.7% | falling |
| 93 | Chile | 1.41 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.9% | falling |
| 94 | Sri Lanka | 1.37 million hectares | 2023 | up 5.5% | rising |
| 95 | Latvia | 1.36 million hectares | 2023 | up 12.6% | rising |
| 96 | Austria | 1.32 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.4% | falling |
| 97 | Burundi | 1.32 million hectares | 2023 | up 25.4% | rising |
| 98 | Slovakia | 1.31 million hectares | 2023 | down 4.0% | falling |
| 99 | Kyrgyzstan | 1.29 million hectares | 2023 | up 0.6% | falling |
| 100 | Laos | 1.22 million hectares | 2023 | down 18.3% | rising |
| 101 | Rwanda | 1.16 million hectares | 2023 | down 8.1% | rising |
| 102 | Yemen | 1.16 million hectares | 2023 | down 3.6% | falling |
| 103 | Mongolia | 1.14 million hectares | 2023 | down 11.2% | rising |
| 104 | Somalia | 1.10 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 105 | Ecuador | 1.03 million hectares | 2023 | down 13.9% | falling |
| 106 | Honduras | 1.02 million hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 107 | Netherlands | 1.01 million hectares | 2023 | down 2.8% | rising |
| 108 | Haiti | 1.00 million hectares | 2023 | down 14.8% | rising |
| 109 | Dominican Republic | 975,760 hectares | 2023 | up 17.4% | flat |
| 110 | Portugal | 927,263 hectares | 2023 | down 18.6% | falling |
| 111 | Croatia | 868,000 hectares | 2023 | down 1.0% | falling |
| 112 | Belgium | 863,154 hectares | 2023 | up 5.8% | flat |
| 113 | Tajikistan | 844,400 hectares | 2023 | up 9.7% | flat |
| 114 | Norway | 803,000 hectares | 2023 | down 0.6% | flat |
| 115 | Namibia | 800,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 116 | Malaysia | 784,300 hectares | 2023 | down 2.3% | falling |
| 117 | El Salvador | 721,000 hectares | 2023 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 118 | Estonia | 711,000 hectares | 2023 | up 11.4% | falling |
| 119 | Eritrea | 690,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 120 | Albania | 590,700 hectares | 2023 | down 4.3% | rising |
| 121 | Panama | 565,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 122 | Congo | 550,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 123 | New Zealand | 520,000 hectares | 2023 | down 4.9% | rising |
| 124 | Liberia | 500,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 125 | Mauritania | 450,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 126 | Armenia | 441,600 hectares | 2023 | down 1.5% | flat |
| 127 | Gambia | 440,000 hectares | 2023 | down 2.2% | rising |
| 128 | Ireland | 439,000 hectares | 2023 | down 7.4% | falling |
| 129 | North Macedonia | 416,000 hectares | 2023 | up 0.7% | falling |
| 130 | Switzerland | 396,421 hectares | 2023 | down 1.6% | rising |
| 131 | Guinea-Bissau | 395,530 hectares | 2023 | up 31.8% | rising |
| 132 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 370,000 hectares | 2023 | down 63.3% | falling |
| 133 | Lesotho | 356,748 hectares | 2023 | up 43.8% | falling |
| 134 | Papua New Guinea | 330,000 hectares | 2023 | up 10.0% | rising |
| 135 | Gabon | 325,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 136 | Georgia | 304,000 hectares | 2023 | down 26.9% | falling |
| 137 | Israel | 271,400 hectares | 2023 | down 5.0% | falling |
| 138 | Botswana | 260,000 hectares | 2023 | down 7.1% | falling |
| 139 | Jordan | 204,000 hectares | 2023 | down 11.7% | falling |
| 140 | Slovenia | 178,890 hectares | 2023 | down 3.3% | flat |
| 141 | Eswatini | 177,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 142 | Costa Rica | 167,133 hectares | 2023 | down 28.0% | falling |
| 143 | Lebanon | 134,214 hectares | 2023 | up 1.7% | falling |
| 144 | Iceland | 121,000 hectares | 2023 | down 0.2% | flat |
| 145 | Jamaica | 120,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 146 | East Timor | 111,500 hectares | 2023 | down 2.9% | rising |
| 147 | Belize | 100,000 hectares | 2023 | up 28.2% | rising |
| 147 | Bhutan | 100,000 hectares | 2023 | down 0.2% | flat |
| 149 | Cyprus | 97,873 hectares | 2023 | up 22.8% | volatile |
| 150 | Guyana | 97,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 151 | Oman | 87,130 hectares | 2023 | up 131.1% | volatile |
| 152 | Fiji | 76,800 hectares | 2023 | up 13.9% | falling |
| 153 | Mauritius | 75,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 154 | Comoros | 65,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 155 | Luxembourg | 61,326 hectares | 2023 | down 1.8% | flat |
| 156 | Equatorial Guinea | 53,000 hectares | 2023 | down 1.9% | rising |
| 157 | Suriname | 52,965 hectares | 2023 | down 11.7% | rising |
| 158 | United Arab Emirates | 50,384 hectares | 2023 | up 34.4% | volatile |
| 159 | Puerto Rico | 50,200 hectares | 2023 | down 7.4% | volatile |
| 160 | Cape Verde | 50,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 161 | Palestine | 41,900 hectares | 2023 | down 32.0% | falling |
| 162 | Trinidad and Tobago | 25,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 163 | Isle of Man | 23,440 hectares | 2023 | up 7.0% | flat |
| 164 | Solomon Islands | 23,000 hectares | 2023 | up 4.5% | rising |
| 165 | Qatar | 21,000 hectares | 2023 | up 22.8% | volatile |
| 166 | Tonga | 20,000 hectares | 2023 | up 11.1% | rising |
| 166 | Vanuatu | 20,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 168 | Samoa | 10,710 hectares | 2023 | down 55.4% | rising |
| 169 | Montenegro | 9,050 hectares | 2023 | up 16.0% | volatile |
| 170 | Bahamas | 8,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 170 | Kuwait | 8,000 hectares | 2023 | down 31.0% | volatile |
| 172 | Malta | 7,300 hectares | 2023 | down 18.6% | falling |
| 173 | Barbados | 7,000 hectares | 2023 | down 26.3% | falling |
| 174 | Dominica | 6,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 175 | New Caledonia | 5,970 hectares | 2023 | down 0.5% | falling |
| 176 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 5,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 177 | Antigua and Barbuda | 4,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 177 | Brunei | 4,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 177 | Maldives | 4,000 hectares | 2023 | up 2.6% | rising |
| 177 | Sao Tome and Principe | 4,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | volatile |
| 181 | Djibouti | 3,000 hectares | 2023 | up 50.0% | rising |
| 181 | Grenada | 3,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 183 | Saint Lucia | 2,670 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 184 | French Polynesia | 2,500 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | rising |
| 185 | Bahrain | 2,100 hectares | 2023 | up 1.4% | rising |
| 186 | Aruba | 2,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 186 | Micronesia (country) | 2,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 186 | Hong Kong | 2,000 hectares | 2023 | down 35.5% | falling |
| 186 | Kiribati | 2,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 186 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 2,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 191 | San Marino | 1,985 hectares | 2023 | up 98.5% | rising |
| 192 | Liechtenstein | 1,730 hectares | 2023 | down 10.8% | falling |
| 193 | American Samoa | 1,030 hectares | 2023 | up 15.7% | rising |
| 194 | Guam | 1,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 194 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 1,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 194 | British Virgin Islands | 1,000 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 197 | United States Virgin Islands | 900 hectares | 2023 | down 10.0% | volatile |
| 198 | Andorra | 732.5 hectares | 2023 | down 9.6% | falling |
| 199 | Singapore | 560 hectares | 2023 | down 1.8% | volatile |
| 200 | Marshall Islands | 500 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 201 | Bermuda | 300 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 201 | Palau | 300 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 203 | Cayman Islands | 200 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | flat |
| 204 | Seychelles | 150 hectares | 2023 | unchanged | falling |
| 205 | Northern Mariana Islands | 80 hectares | 2023 | down 68.0% | volatile |
| 206 | Faroe Islands | 70 hectares | 2023 | up 9.4% | flat |
About this data
Arable land (in hectares) 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.