Agricultural land use, per square kilometre in Australia
Australia: Agricultural land use, per square kilometre was 47.22 hectares per square kilometre in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
47.22 hectares per square kilometre
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
69th
of 209 countries
All-time high
66.85 hectares per square kilometre
in 1968
All-time low
44.54 hectares per square kilometre
in 2016
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use, per square kilometre in Australia, 1961–2023
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in hectares per square kilometre.
Analysis
Australia recorded 47.22 hectares per square kilometre for agricultural land use, per square kilometre in 2023.
The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use, per square kilometre in Australia peaked at 66.85 hectares per square kilometre in 1968 and was at its lowest, 44.54 hectares per square kilometre, in 2016.
That places Australia 69th out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Agricultural land use, per square kilometre in Australia, year by year
| Year | hectares per square kilometre | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 61.76 hectares per square kilometre | — |
| 1962 | 62.04 hectares per square kilometre | +0.4% |
| 1963 | 62.4 hectares per square kilometre | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 62.73 hectares per square kilometre | +0.5% |
| 1965 | 63.3 hectares per square kilometre | +0.9% |
| 1966 | 63.4 hectares per square kilometre | +0.2% |
| 1967 | 63.73 hectares per square kilometre | +0.5% |
| 1968 | 66.85 hectares per square kilometre | +4.9% |
| 1969 | 66.5 hectares per square kilometre | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 64.23 hectares per square kilometre | -3.4% |
| 1971 | 65.02 hectares per square kilometre | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 65.06 hectares per square kilometre | +0.1% |
| 1973 | 64.81 hectares per square kilometre | -0.4% |
| 1974 | 65.13 hectares per square kilometre | +0.5% |
| 1975 | 65.03 hectares per square kilometre | -0.2% |
| 1976 | 65.18 hectares per square kilometre | +0.2% |
| 1977 | 63.98 hectares per square kilometre | -1.8% |
| 1978 | 64.58 hectares per square kilometre | +0.9% |
| 1979 | 64.2 hectares per square kilometre | -0.6% |
| 1980 | 64.52 hectares per square kilometre | +0.5% |
| 1981 | 64.51 hectares per square kilometre | -0.0% |
| 1982 | 63.88 hectares per square kilometre | -1.0% |
| 1983 | 62.97 hectares per square kilometre | -1.4% |
| 1984 | 63.33 hectares per square kilometre | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 63.37 hectares per square kilometre | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 60.99 hectares per square kilometre | -3.7% |
| 1987 | 61.31 hectares per square kilometre | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 61.45 hectares per square kilometre | +0.2% |
| 1989 | 60.8 hectares per square kilometre | -1.0% |
| 1990 | 60.46 hectares per square kilometre | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 60.24 hectares per square kilometre | -0.4% |
| 1992 | 60.66 hectares per square kilometre | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 59.89 hectares per square kilometre | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 61.07 hectares per square kilometre | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 60.32 hectares per square kilometre | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 60.56 hectares per square kilometre | +0.4% |
| 1997 | 60.17 hectares per square kilometre | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 60.38 hectares per square kilometre | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 59.06 hectares per square kilometre | -2.2% |
| 2000 | 59.29 hectares per square kilometre | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 59.32 hectares per square kilometre | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 58.19 hectares per square kilometre | -1.9% |
| 2003 | 57.21 hectares per square kilometre | -1.7% |
| 2004 | 51.4 hectares per square kilometre | -10.1% |
| 2005 | 53.4 hectares per square kilometre | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 53.28 hectares per square kilometre | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 51.85 hectares per square kilometre | -2.7% |
| 2008 | 50.67 hectares per square kilometre | -2.3% |
| 2009 | 50.02 hectares per square kilometre | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 48.99 hectares per square kilometre | -2.1% |
| 2011 | 51.56 hectares per square kilometre | +5.2% |
| 2012 | 50.39 hectares per square kilometre | -2.3% |
| 2013 | 48.39 hectares per square kilometre | -4.0% |
| 2014 | 48.74 hectares per square kilometre | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 45.31 hectares per square kilometre | -7.0% |
| 2016 | 44.54 hectares per square kilometre | -1.7% |
| 2017 | 48.34 hectares per square kilometre | +8.5% |
| 2018 | 46.66 hectares per square kilometre | -3.5% |
| 2019 | 47.12 hectares per square kilometre | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 46.25 hectares per square kilometre | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 47.26 hectares per square kilometre | +2.2% |
| 2022 | 47.26 hectares per square kilometre | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 47.22 hectares per square kilometre | -0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 63.63 hectares per square kilometre | 61.76 hectares per square kilometre | 66.85 hectares per square kilometre | 9 |
| 1970s | 64.72 hectares per square kilometre | 63.98 hectares per square kilometre | 65.18 hectares per square kilometre | 10 |
| 1980s | 62.71 hectares per square kilometre | 60.8 hectares per square kilometre | 64.52 hectares per square kilometre | 10 |
| 1990s | 60.28 hectares per square kilometre | 59.06 hectares per square kilometre | 61.07 hectares per square kilometre | 10 |
| 2000s | 54.46 hectares per square kilometre | 50.02 hectares per square kilometre | 59.32 hectares per square kilometre | 10 |
| 2010s | 48 hectares per square kilometre | 44.54 hectares per square kilometre | 51.56 hectares per square kilometre | 10 |
| 2020s | 47 hectares per square kilometre | 46.25 hectares per square kilometre | 47.26 hectares per square kilometre | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 66 Sri Lanka 48.61 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 67 Poland 47.61 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 68 Germany 47.47 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 70 Namibia 47.14 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 71 Pakistan 46.69 hectares per square kilometre compare
- 72 British Virgin Islands 46.67 hectares per square kilometre compare
More agriculture & rural data for Australia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0227 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,476 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.5855 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1228 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.3% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use, per square kilometre in Australia?
- Agricultural land use, per square kilometre in Australia was 47.22 hectares per square kilometre in 2023, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest agricultural land use, per square kilometre recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 66.85 hectares per square kilometre in 1968.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use, per square kilometre recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 44.54 hectares per square kilometre in 2016.
- How does Australia rank for agricultural land use, per square kilometre?
- Australia ranks 69th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use, per square kilometre rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Agricultural land use, per square kilometre. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Agricultural land use divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.
Agricultural land use ÷ Land area (sq. km)
Computed from
- Agricultural land use Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
- Land area FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Agricultural land use divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.