Agricultural land use in Italy
Italy: Agricultural land use was 13.09 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
13.09 million hectares
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
63rd
of 227 countries
All-time high
20.68 million hectares
in 1961
All-time low
12.40 million hectares
in 2021
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in Italy, 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 Italy stood at 13.09 million hectares.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.7% on the previous year and down 4.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in Italy peaked at 20.68 million hectares in 1961 and was at its lowest, 12.40 million hectares, in 2021.
That places Italy 63rd 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 Italy, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 20.68 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 20.65 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1963 | 20.51 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1964 | 20.46 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1965 | 20.44 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1966 | 20.41 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1967 | 20.38 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 20.36 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1969 | 20.23 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1970 | 20.18 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1971 | 17.65 million hectares | -12.5% |
| 1972 | 17.51 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1973 | 17.48 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1974 | 17.50 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 17.52 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1976 | 17.53 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 17.50 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1978 | 17.59 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 1979 | 17.61 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 17.56 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1981 | 17.55 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1982 | 17.54 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 17.26 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1984 | 17.24 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 17.09 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1986 | 17.04 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1987 | 17.01 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1988 | 16.84 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 1989 | 16.85 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 16.84 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 16.05 million hectares | -4.7% |
| 1992 | 15.98 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 15.91 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 15.70 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 15.33 million hectares | -2.4% |
| 1996 | 15.35 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 15.35 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1998 | 15.48 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 15.80 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 15.64 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 15.50 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 15.27 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2003 | 14.91 million hectares | -2.4% |
| 2004 | 14.88 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 14.74 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2006 | 14.20 million hectares | -3.6% |
| 2007 | 14.16 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 14.46 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 2009 | 13.98 million hectares | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 14.33 million hectares | +2.5% |
| 2011 | 13.85 million hectares | -3.3% |
| 2012 | 13.73 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 13.63 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 13.16 million hectares | -3.4% |
| 2015 | 12.95 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 2016 | 12.81 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 12.83 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 12.40 million hectares | -3.3% |
| 2019 | 13.12 million hectares | +5.8% |
| 2020 | 12.52 million hectares | -4.6% |
| 2021 | 12.40 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 13.00 million hectares | +4.8% |
| 2023 | 13.09 million hectares | +0.7% |
Italy compared with similar countries
- Italy's 13.09 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 982,000 hectares, 13.3× the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Italy's 13.09 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2.61 million hectares, 5.0× the median. (54 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 20.46 million hectares | 20.23 million hectares | 20.68 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 17.81 million hectares | 17.48 million hectares | 20.18 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 17.20 million hectares | 16.84 million hectares | 17.56 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 15.78 million hectares | 15.33 million hectares | 16.84 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.77 million hectares | 13.98 million hectares | 15.64 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.28 million hectares | 12.40 million hectares | 14.33 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.75 million hectares | 12.40 million hectares | 13.09 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Italy
More agriculture & rural data for Italy
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 10.12 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0207 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 894.54 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.3131 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3032 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.1% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.5% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in Italy?
- Agricultural land use in Italy was 13.09 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 Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 20.68 million hectares in 1961.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.40 million hectares in 2021.
- How does Italy rank for agricultural land use?
- Italy ranks 63rd out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Italy 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Land used for cultivation of crops and animal husbandry. The total of areas under cropland and permanent meadows and pastures.