Agricultural land in New Zealand
New Zealand: Agricultural land was 9.71 million in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
9.71 million
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
73rd
of 227 countries
All-time high
15.19 million
in 1981
All-time low
9.71 million
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land in New Zealand, 1961–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 9.71 million for agricultural land in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 12.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land in New Zealand peaked at 15.19 million in 1981 and was at its lowest, 9.71 million, in 2023.
That places New Zealand 73rd 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 in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 13.16 million | — |
| 1962 | 13.25 million | +0.6% |
| 1963 | 13.29 million | +0.3% |
| 1964 | 13.32 million | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 13.25 million | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 13.23 million | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 13.25 million | +0.1% |
| 1968 | 13.25 million | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 13.09 million | -1.2% |
| 1970 | 13.09 million | -0.0% |
| 1971 | 13.09 million | -0.0% |
| 1972 | 13.49 million | +3.1% |
| 1973 | 13.48 million | -0.0% |
| 1974 | 13.48 million | -0.0% |
| 1975 | 13.94 million | +3.5% |
| 1976 | 14.35 million | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 14.28 million | -0.5% |
| 1978 | 14.50 million | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 14.44 million | -0.4% |
| 1980 | 14.59 million | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 15.19 million | +4.1% |
| 1982 | 14.62 million | -3.7% |
| 1983 | 14.59 million | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 14.47 million | -0.8% |
| 1985 | 14.39 million | -0.6% |
| 1986 | 14.39 million | -0.0% |
| 1987 | 14.27 million | -0.8% |
| 1988 | 14.19 million | -0.6% |
| 1989 | 14.10 million | -0.6% |
| 1990 | 13.92 million | -1.3% |
| 1991 | 13.76 million | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 13.60 million | -1.1% |
| 1993 | 13.44 million | -1.2% |
| 1994 | 13.29 million | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 13.13 million | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 12.97 million | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 12.81 million | -1.2% |
| 1998 | 12.65 million | -1.2% |
| 1999 | 12.50 million | -1.2% |
| 2000 | 12.34 million | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 12.18 million | -1.3% |
| 2002 | 12.02 million | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 11.86 million | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 11.89 million | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 11.71 million | -1.5% |
| 2006 | 11.38 million | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 11.49 million | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 11.37 million | -1.0% |
| 2009 | 11.49 million | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 11.41 million | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 11.37 million | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 11.21 million | -1.4% |
| 2013 | 11.11 million | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 11.12 million | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 10.71 million | -3.6% |
| 2016 | 10.61 million | -0.9% |
| 2017 | 10.64 million | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 10.50 million | -1.4% |
| 2019 | 10.35 million | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 10.15 million | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 10.18 million | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 9.75 million | -4.2% |
| 2023 | 9.71 million | -0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 13.23 million | 13.09 million | 13.32 million | 9 |
| 1970s | 13.81 million | 13.09 million | 14.50 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.48 million | 14.10 million | 15.19 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 13.21 million | 12.50 million | 13.92 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.77 million | 11.37 million | 12.34 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.90 million | 10.35 million | 11.41 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.95 million | 9.71 million | 10.18 million | 4 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More agriculture & rural data for New Zealand
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual -10.07 % change on previous year (2023)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0401 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,976 current US$ per person (2023)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.275 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.16 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture share gdp 4.01 (2023)
- Value added in the agricultural sector as of gdp vs gdp per capita 4.01 (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 9.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.8% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land in New Zealand?
- Agricultural land in New Zealand was 9.71 million in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agricultural land recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 15.19 million in 1981.
- What is the lowest agricultural land recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.71 million in 2023.
- How does New Zealand rank for agricultural land?
- New Zealand ranks 73rd out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Agricultural land. 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).