Agricultural land use in OECD (FAO)
OECD (FAO): Agricultural land use was 1.17 billion hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.17 billion hectares
Change on year
down 0.3%
Rank
1st
of 1 groups
All-time high
1.38 billion hectares
in 1968
All-time low
1.16 billion hectares
in 2016
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in OECD (FAO), 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 OECD (FAO) stood at 1.17 billion hectares.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 1.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in OECD (FAO) peaked at 1.38 billion hectares in 1968 and was at its lowest, 1.16 billion hectares, in 2016.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Agricultural land use in OECD (FAO), year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.35 billion hectares | — |
| 1962 | 1.35 billion hectares | -0.1% |
| 1963 | 1.35 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 1.35 billion hectares | -0.0% |
| 1965 | 1.35 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 1.35 billion hectares | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 1.35 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1968 | 1.38 billion hectares | +1.8% |
| 1969 | 1.37 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 1970 | 1.36 billion hectares | -1.2% |
| 1971 | 1.36 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1972 | 1.36 billion hectares | -0.1% |
| 1973 | 1.35 billion hectares | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 1.35 billion hectares | -0.0% |
| 1975 | 1.35 billion hectares | -0.1% |
| 1976 | 1.35 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 1.34 billion hectares | -0.7% |
| 1978 | 1.35 billion hectares | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 1.34 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 1980 | 1.34 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 1.34 billion hectares | -0.0% |
| 1982 | 1.34 billion hectares | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 1.33 billion hectares | -0.5% |
| 1984 | 1.34 billion hectares | +0.2% |
| 1985 | 1.34 billion hectares | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 1.32 billion hectares | -1.4% |
| 1987 | 1.32 billion hectares | -0.0% |
| 1988 | 1.32 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1989 | 1.32 billion hectares | -0.3% |
| 1990 | 1.31 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 1991 | 1.31 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 1992 | 1.31 billion hectares | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 1.31 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 1.32 billion hectares | +0.5% |
| 1995 | 1.31 billion hectares | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 1.31 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 1997 | 1.30 billion hectares | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 1.30 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 1.29 billion hectares | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 1.29 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 1.29 billion hectares | -0.0% |
| 2002 | 1.28 billion hectares | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 1.27 billion hectares | -0.8% |
| 2004 | 1.23 billion hectares | -3.5% |
| 2005 | 1.24 billion hectares | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 1.24 billion hectares | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 1.22 billion hectares | -1.1% |
| 2008 | 1.21 billion hectares | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 1.21 billion hectares | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 1.20 billion hectares | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 1.21 billion hectares | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 1.21 billion hectares | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 1.19 billion hectares | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 1.19 billion hectares | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 1.16 billion hectares | -2.2% |
| 2016 | 1.16 billion hectares | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 1.19 billion hectares | +2.4% |
| 2018 | 1.17 billion hectares | -1.3% |
| 2019 | 1.17 billion hectares | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 1.16 billion hectares | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 1.17 billion hectares | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 1.17 billion hectares | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 1.17 billion hectares | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.36 billion hectares | 1.35 billion hectares | 1.38 billion hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.35 billion hectares | 1.34 billion hectares | 1.36 billion hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.33 billion hectares | 1.32 billion hectares | 1.34 billion hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.31 billion hectares | 1.29 billion hectares | 1.32 billion hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.25 billion hectares | 1.21 billion hectares | 1.29 billion hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.18 billion hectares | 1.16 billion hectares | 1.21 billion hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.17 billion hectares | 1.16 billion hectares | 1.17 billion hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near OECD (FAO)
More agriculture & rural data for OECD (FAO)
- Projections for global peak agricultural land 1.17 billion hectares (2023)
- Is agricultural land expanding? Change over the prior decade -1.9% (2023)
- Agricultural land use, annual growth rate -0.261 % change on previous year (2023)
- Cropland area 382.61 million hectares (2023)
- Organic agricultural area 74.61 million hectares (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in OECD (FAO)?
- Agricultural land use in OECD (FAO) was 1.17 billion 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 OECD (FAO)?
- The highest recorded value was 1.38 billion hectares in 1968.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in OECD (FAO)?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.16 billion hectares in 2016.
- How does OECD (FAO) rank for agricultural land use?
- OECD (FAO) ranks 1st out of 1 groups with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in OECD (FAO)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this OECD (FAO) 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.