Agricultural land use in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Agricultural land use was 17.01 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
17.01 million hectares
Change on year
down 2.3%
World rank
54th
of 227 countries
All-time high
19.80 million hectares
in 1961
All-time low
16.95 million hectares
in 2001
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in United Kingdom, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 17.01 million hectares for agricultural land use in 2023.
That represents a change of down 2.3% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in United Kingdom peaked at 19.80 million hectares in 1961 and was at its lowest, 16.95 million hectares, in 2001.
United Kingdom ranks 54th of 227 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Agricultural land use in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 19.80 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 19.78 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1963 | 19.75 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1964 | 19.70 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1965 | 19.59 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1966 | 19.55 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1967 | 19.55 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 19.43 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1969 | 19.38 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1970 | 18.85 million hectares | -2.7% |
| 1971 | 18.84 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1972 | 18.76 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1973 | 18.70 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 18.64 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1975 | 18.58 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1976 | 18.57 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1977 | 18.49 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1978 | 18.48 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1979 | 18.45 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1980 | 18.47 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 18.32 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1982 | 18.28 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1983 | 18.22 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 18.20 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 18.17 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 18.13 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1987 | 18.12 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1988 | 18.42 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1989 | 18.31 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1990 | 18.20 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 18.14 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 18.07 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 17.53 million hectares | -3.0% |
| 1994 | 17.41 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1995 | 17.38 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 17.49 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 17.59 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 17.52 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1999 | 17.22 million hectares | -1.7% |
| 2000 | 16.96 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2001 | 16.95 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 16.98 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 16.96 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 17.05 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 16.96 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 17.84 million hectares | +5.2% |
| 2007 | 17.65 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 2008 | 17.68 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 17.32 million hectares | -2.0% |
| 2010 | 17.22 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 17.16 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 17.18 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 17.25 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 17.23 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 17.14 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 17.35 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 17.47 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 17.35 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 17.52 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 17.26 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2021 | 17.22 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 17.41 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 17.01 million hectares | -2.3% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 17.01 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 982,000 hectares, 17.3× the median. (79 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 17.01 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2.61 million hectares, 6.5× the median. (54 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 19.61 million hectares | 19.38 million hectares | 19.80 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 18.64 million hectares | 18.45 million hectares | 18.85 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 18.26 million hectares | 18.12 million hectares | 18.47 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.66 million hectares | 17.22 million hectares | 18.20 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 17.23 million hectares | 16.95 million hectares | 17.84 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.29 million hectares | 17.14 million hectares | 17.52 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.22 million hectares | 17.01 million hectares | 17.41 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More agriculture & rural data for United Kingdom
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 8.26 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0064 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 368.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.1852 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1668 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 0.6% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 0.6% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.1% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in United Kingdom?
- Agricultural land use in United Kingdom was 17.01 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 United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 19.80 million hectares in 1961.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.95 million hectares in 2001.
- How does United Kingdom rank for agricultural land use?
- United Kingdom ranks 54th out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom 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.