What is forest area in World?

Forest area in World was 40.35 million sq. km in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

What is the highest forest area recorded in World?

The highest recorded value was 41.70 million sq. km in 1993.

What is the lowest forest area recorded in World?

The lowest recorded value was 40.35 million sq. km in 2023.

Is forest area rising or falling in World?

Over the last ten years it is down 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.

Where does this World 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.

Forest area in World

Name: Forest area in World
Creator: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
License: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)

World: Forest area was 40.35 million sq. km in 2023. ▬ Flat

Latest (2023)

40.35 million sq. km

Change on year

down 0.1%

All-time high

41.70 million sq. km

in 1993

All-time low

40.35 million sq. km

in 2023

Years of data

1992–2023

Forest area in World, 1992–2023

Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in sq. km.

Analysis

World recorded 40.35 million sq. km for forest area in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 32 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 1.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, forest area in World peaked at 41.70 million sq. km in 1993 and was at its lowest, 40.35 million sq. km, in 2023.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1990s	41.48 million sq. km	41.24 million sq. km	41.70 million sq. km	8
2000s	40.96 million sq. km	40.75 million sq. km	41.17 million sq. km	10
2010s	40.71 million sq. km	40.55 million sq. km	40.88 million sq. km	10
2020s	40.42 million sq. km	40.35 million sq. km	40.50 million sq. km	4

More agriculture & rural data for World

Agricultural raw materials exports 1.2% (2024)
Agricultural raw materials imports 1.2% (2024)
Rural population 42.2% (2025)
Rural population growth 0.3% (2025)
Rural population 3.46 billion (2025)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 4.0% (2025)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 4.75 trillion current US$ (2025)
Land under cereal production 415.70 million hectares (2024)
Cereal yield 3,955 kg per hectare (2024)
Cereal production 1.64 billion metric tons (2024)

All data for World →

Frequently asked questions

What is forest area in World?: Forest area in World was 40.35 million sq. km in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
What is the highest forest area recorded in World?: The highest recorded value was 41.70 million sq. km in 1993.
What is the lowest forest area recorded in World?: The lowest recorded value was 40.35 million sq. km in 2023.
Is forest area rising or falling in World?: Over the last ten years it is down 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this World 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 — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator: Forest area (sq. km)
Unit: sq. km
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 261 places, 8,639 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed: 06 August 2026

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.