Forest area in North Korea
North Korea: Forest area was 59,664 sq. km in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in North Korea, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in sq. km.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest area in North Korea is 59,664 sq. km, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 3.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in North Korea peaked at 69,120 sq. km in 1990 and was at its lowest, 59,664 sq. km, in 2023.
North Korea ranks 70th of 214 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 67,062 sq. km | 65,004 sq. km | 69,120 sq. km | 10 |
| 2000s | 63,592 sq. km | 62,636 sq. km | 64,547 sq. km | 10 |
| 2010s | 61,469 sq. km | 60,510 sq. km | 62,424 sq. km | 10 |
| 2020s | 59,984 sq. km | 59,664 sq. km | 60,300 sq. km | 4 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
More agriculture & rural data for North Korea
- Rural population 35.8% (2025)
- Rural population growth -0.6% (2025)
- Rural population 9.52 million (2025)
- Cereal yield 3,610 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal production 4.89 million metric tons (2024)
- Land under cereal production 1.35 million hectares (2024)
- Fertilizer consumption 14.68 kilograms per hectare of arable land (2023)
- Permanent cropland 2.1% (2023)
- Land area 120,410 sq. km (2023)
- Agricultural land 25,953 sq. km (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in North Korea?
- Forest area in North Korea was 59,664 sq. km in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 69,120 sq. km in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 59,664 sq. km in 2023.
- How does North Korea rank for forest area?
- North Korea ranks 70th out of 214 countries with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this North Korea data come from?
- The figures come from FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Forest area (sq. km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems (for example, in fruit plantations and agroforestry systems) and trees in urban parks and gardens.