Agricultural land in United States of America

United States of America: Agricultural land was 4.22 million sq. km in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
4.22 million sq. km
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
2nd
of 209 countries
All-time high
4.48 million sq. km
in 1961
All-time low
4.13 million sq. km
in 2007
Years of data
63
1961–2023

Agricultural land in United States of America, 1961–2023

01.0M2.0M3.0M4.0M196119922023

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 sq. km.

Analysis

United States of America recorded 4.22 million sq. km for agricultural land in 2023.

The figure is down 0.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, agricultural land in United States of America peaked at 4.48 million sq. km in 1961 and was at its lowest, 4.13 million sq. km, in 2007.

That places United States of America 2nd out of 209 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.

Agricultural land in United States of America, year by year

Annual values for Agricultural land (sq. km) in United States of America, 1961 to 2023.
Year sq. km Change
1961 4.48 million sq. km
1962 4.44 million sq. km -0.8%
1963 4.41 million sq. km -0.6%
1964 4.39 million sq. km -0.6%
1965 4.36 million sq. km -0.7%
1966 4.36 million sq. km -0.1%
1967 4.35 million sq. km -0.1%
1968 4.36 million sq. km +0.1%
1969 4.35 million sq. km -0.1%
1970 4.39 million sq. km +0.9%
1971 4.37 million sq. km -0.5%
1972 4.35 million sq. km -0.5%
1973 4.32 million sq. km -0.5%
1974 4.30 million sq. km -0.5%
1975 4.30 million sq. km +0.0%
1976 4.30 million sq. km +0.0%
1977 4.30 million sq. km +0.0%
1978 4.28 million sq. km -0.5%
1979 4.28 million sq. km +0.0%
1980 4.28 million sq. km +0.0%
1981 4.28 million sq. km +0.0%
1982 4.31 million sq. km +0.8%
1983 4.31 million sq. km +0.0%
1984 4.31 million sq. km +0.0%
1985 4.31 million sq. km +0.0%
1986 4.31 million sq. km +0.0%
1987 4.27 million sq. km -1.0%
1988 4.27 million sq. km +0.0%
1989 4.27 million sq. km +0.0%
1990 4.27 million sq. km +0.0%
1991 4.27 million sq. km +0.0%
1992 4.25 million sq. km -0.4%
1993 4.23 million sq. km -0.6%
1994 4.21 million sq. km -0.4%
1995 4.20 million sq. km -0.2%
1996 4.16 million sq. km -0.9%
1997 4.15 million sq. km -0.3%
1998 4.15 million sq. km -0.1%
1999 4.14 million sq. km -0.2%
2000 4.14 million sq. km +0.1%
2001 4.15 million sq. km +0.1%
2002 4.13 million sq. km -0.5%
2003 4.13 million sq. km -0.0%
2004 4.13 million sq. km -0.0%
2005 4.13 million sq. km -0.0%
2006 4.13 million sq. km -0.0%
2007 4.13 million sq. km -0.0%
2008 4.15 million sq. km +0.5%
2009 4.17 million sq. km +0.5%
2010 4.19 million sq. km +0.5%
2011 4.21 million sq. km +0.5%
2012 4.23 million sq. km +0.5%
2013 4.24 million sq. km +0.2%
2014 4.25 million sq. km +0.2%
2015 4.26 million sq. km +0.2%
2016 4.26 million sq. km +0.2%
2017 4.27 million sq. km +0.2%
2018 4.26 million sq. km -0.3%
2019 4.25 million sq. km -0.3%
2020 4.24 million sq. km -0.3%
2021 4.23 million sq. km -0.3%
2022 4.22 million sq. km -0.3%
2023 4.22 million sq. km +0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 4.39 million sq. km 4.35 million sq. km 4.48 million sq. km 9
1970s 4.32 million sq. km 4.28 million sq. km 4.39 million sq. km 10
1980s 4.29 million sq. km 4.27 million sq. km 4.31 million sq. km 10
1990s 4.20 million sq. km 4.14 million sq. km 4.27 million sq. km 10
2000s 4.14 million sq. km 4.13 million sq. km 4.17 million sq. km 10
2010s 4.24 million sq. km 4.19 million sq. km 4.27 million sq. km 10
2020s 4.22 million sq. km 4.22 million sq. km 4.24 million sq. km 4

Countries ranked near United States of America

  1. 1 China 5.20 million sq. km compare
  2. 3 Australia 3.63 million sq. km compare
  3. 4 Brazil 2.37 million sq. km compare
  4. 5 Russian Federation 2.16 million sq. km compare

See the full ranking of 257 places →

More agriculture & rural data for United States of America

All data for United States of America →

Frequently asked questions

What is agricultural land in United States of America?
Agricultural land in United States of America was 4.22 million sq. km 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 agricultural land recorded in United States of America?
The highest recorded value was 4.48 million sq. km in 1961.
What is the lowest agricultural land recorded in United States of America?
The lowest recorded value was 4.13 million sq. km in 2007.
How does United States of America rank for agricultural land?
United States of America ranks 2nd out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
Is agricultural land rising or falling in United States of America?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States of America 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 Agricultural land (sq. km). 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).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Agricultural land in United States of America. Statizoid, drawing on 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). Retrieved 26 August 2026, from https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/agricultural-land-sq-km/united-states/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/agricultural-land-sq-km/united-states/">Agricultural land in United States of America</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Agricultural land (sq. km)
Unit
sq. km
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)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
257 places, 15,984 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed

Agricultural land refers to the land area that is arable, under permanent crops, and under permanent pastures. Arable land 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. Land under permanent crops is land cultivated with crops that occupy the land for long periods and need not be replanted after each harvest, such as cocoa, coffee, and rubber. This category includes land under flowering shrubs, fruit trees, nut trees, and vines, but excludes land under trees grown for wood or timber. Permanent pasture is land used for five or more years for forage, including natural and cultivated crops.