Agricultural land use in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Agricultural land use was 5.00 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
5.00 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
90th
of 227 countries
All-time high
6.21 million hectares
in 1978
All-time low
4.98 million hectares
in 2014
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in Bulgaria, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, agricultural land use in Bulgaria stood at 5.00 million hectares.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and up 0.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in Bulgaria peaked at 6.21 million hectares in 1978 and was at its lowest, 4.98 million hectares, in 2014.
That places Bulgaria 90th out of 227 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 in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 5.67 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 5.68 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1963 | 5.69 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 5.77 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1965 | 5.79 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1966 | 5.80 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1967 | 5.86 million hectares | +1.1% |
| 1968 | 5.88 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 6.02 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 1970 | 6.01 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1971 | 6.01 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1972 | 6.02 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1973 | 5.98 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1974 | 6.04 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1975 | 5.96 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 1976 | 6.20 million hectares | +4.1% |
| 1977 | 6.21 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 6.21 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 6.21 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1980 | 6.18 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1981 | 6.18 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1982 | 6.18 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 6.18 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1984 | 6.17 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 6.17 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1986 | 6.17 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1987 | 6.17 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 6.16 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 6.17 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 6.16 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 6.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 6.15 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 6.12 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 6.16 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 6.16 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 6.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 6.20 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 5.64 million hectares | -9.0% |
| 1999 | 5.68 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 5.58 million hectares | -1.7% |
| 2001 | 5.50 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2002 | 5.33 million hectares | -3.1% |
| 2003 | 5.33 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 5.33 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 5.26 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 5.19 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 5.12 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 5.10 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 5.03 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 5.05 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 5.09 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 5.12 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 5.00 million hectares | -2.5% |
| 2014 | 4.98 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 5.01 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 5.02 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 5.03 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 5.03 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 5.04 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 5.05 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 5.05 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 5.02 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 5.00 million hectares | -0.4% |
Bulgaria compared with similar countries
- Bulgaria's 5.00 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 982,000 hectares, 5.1× the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Bulgaria's 5.00 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2.61 million hectares, 1.9× the median. (54 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5.80 million hectares | 5.67 million hectares | 6.02 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 6.08 million hectares | 5.96 million hectares | 6.21 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.17 million hectares | 6.16 million hectares | 6.18 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.06 million hectares | 5.64 million hectares | 6.20 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.28 million hectares | 5.03 million hectares | 5.58 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.04 million hectares | 4.98 million hectares | 5.12 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.03 million hectares | 5.00 million hectares | 5.05 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More agriculture & rural data for Bulgaria
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 21.46 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0247 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 503.12 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9803 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.2583 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.7% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.8% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in Bulgaria?
- Agricultural land use in Bulgaria was 5.00 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agricultural land use recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 6.21 million hectares in 1978.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.98 million hectares in 2014.
- How does Bulgaria rank for agricultural land use?
- Bulgaria ranks 90th out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Agricultural land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Land used for cultivation of crops and animal husbandry. The total of areas under cropland and permanent meadows and pastures.