Agricultural land use in United States
United States: Agricultural land use was 421.54 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
421.54 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
3rd
of 227 countries
All-time high
447.51 million hectares
in 1961
All-time low
412.86 million hectares
in 2007
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Agricultural land use in United States, 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 States recorded 421.54 million hectares for agricultural land use in 2023.
That represents a change of down 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in United States peaked at 447.51 million hectares in 1961 and was at its lowest, 412.86 million hectares, in 2007.
That places United States 3rd out of 227 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Agricultural land use in United States, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 447.51 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 443.99 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1963 | 441.44 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1964 | 439.01 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 435.87 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1966 | 435.55 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 435.31 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 435.80 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1969 | 435.45 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1970 | 439.33 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1971 | 437.01 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1972 | 434.69 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1973 | 432.46 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1974 | 430.16 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1975 | 430.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 430.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 430.33 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 428.16 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1979 | 428.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 428.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 428.16 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 431.40 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1983 | 431.40 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 431.40 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 431.40 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 431.40 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 426.95 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 426.95 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 426.95 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 426.95 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 426.95 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 425.43 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 422.95 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 421.14 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 420.14 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 416.31 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 414.88 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 414.59 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 413.89 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 414.40 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 414.94 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 413.06 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 413.02 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2004 | 412.98 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2005 | 412.94 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2006 | 412.90 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2007 | 412.86 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 414.88 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 416.90 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 418.93 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 420.95 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 422.97 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 423.83 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 424.68 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 425.54 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 426.39 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 427.24 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 426.10 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 424.96 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 423.82 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 422.68 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 421.54 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 421.54 million hectares | +0.0% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 421.54 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 982,000 hectares, 429.3× the median. (79 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 438.88 million hectares | 435.31 million hectares | 447.51 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 432.06 million hectares | 428.16 million hectares | 439.33 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 429.42 million hectares | 426.95 million hectares | 431.40 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 420.32 million hectares | 413.89 million hectares | 426.95 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 413.89 million hectares | 412.86 million hectares | 416.90 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 424.16 million hectares | 418.93 million hectares | 427.24 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 422.40 million hectares | 421.54 million hectares | 423.82 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near United States
More agriculture & rural data for United States
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 11.96 % change on previous year (2021)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0094 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2021)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 673.66 current US$ per person (2021)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.1831 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1981 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 0.9% (2021)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 0.9% (2021)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.8% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in United States?
- Agricultural land use in United States was 421.54 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 States?
- The highest recorded value was 447.51 million hectares in 1961.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 412.86 million hectares in 2007.
- How does United States rank for agricultural land use?
- United States ranks 3rd out of 227 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States 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.