Number of cattle in Ecuador
Ecuador: Number of cattle was 3.44 million animals in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
3.44 million animals
Change on year
down 7.7%
World rank
65th
of 197 countries
All-time high
5.44 million animals
in 1997
All-time low
1.55 million animals
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Number of cattle in Ecuador, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in animals.
Analysis
Ecuador recorded 3.44 million animals for number of cattle in 2024.
The figure is down 7.7% on the previous year and down 25.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of cattle in Ecuador peaked at 5.44 million animals in 1997 and was at its lowest, 1.55 million animals, in 1961.
That places Ecuador 65th out of 197 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Number of cattle in Ecuador, year by year
| Year | animals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.55 million animals | — |
| 1962 | 1.72 million animals | +11.0% |
| 1963 | 1.91 million animals | +11.0% |
| 1964 | 1.90 million animals | -0.5% |
| 1965 | 2.00 million animals | +5.3% |
| 1966 | 2.27 million animals | +13.7% |
| 1967 | 2.31 million animals | +1.8% |
| 1968 | 2.35 million animals | +1.7% |
| 1969 | 2.39 million animals | +1.7% |
| 1970 | 2.43 million animals | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 2.35 million animals | -3.6% |
| 1972 | 2.36 million animals | +0.5% |
| 1973 | 2.38 million animals | +1.0% |
| 1974 | 2.41 million animals | +1.3% |
| 1975 | 2.46 million animals | +2.2% |
| 1976 | 2.55 million animals | +3.5% |
| 1977 | 2.71 million animals | +6.3% |
| 1978 | 2.78 million animals | +2.4% |
| 1979 | 2.85 million animals | +2.5% |
| 1980 | 3.01 million animals | +5.6% |
| 1981 | 3.11 million animals | +3.5% |
| 1982 | 3.22 million animals | +3.6% |
| 1983 | 3.27 million animals | +1.5% |
| 1984 | 3.57 million animals | +9.3% |
| 1985 | 3.73 million animals | +4.4% |
| 1986 | 3.76 million animals | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 3.88 million animals | +3.2% |
| 1988 | 4.00 million animals | +2.9% |
| 1989 | 4.18 million animals | +4.5% |
| 1990 | 4.36 million animals | +4.4% |
| 1991 | 4.52 million animals | +3.6% |
| 1992 | 4.68 million animals | +3.7% |
| 1993 | 4.80 million animals | +2.6% |
| 1994 | 4.94 million animals | +2.8% |
| 1995 | 5.00 million animals | +1.2% |
| 1996 | 5.19 million animals | +3.9% |
| 1997 | 5.44 million animals | +4.8% |
| 1998 | 5.08 million animals | -6.6% |
| 1999 | 5.11 million animals | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 4.49 million animals | -12.1% |
| 2001 | 4.66 million animals | +3.8% |
| 2002 | 5.02 million animals | +7.7% |
| 2003 | 4.99 million animals | -0.6% |
| 2004 | 5.08 million animals | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 4.97 million animals | -2.2% |
| 2006 | 5.03 million animals | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 4.73 million animals | -6.1% |
| 2008 | 4.89 million animals | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 5.19 million animals | +6.2% |
| 2010 | 5.25 million animals | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 5.36 million animals | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 5.24 million animals | -2.3% |
| 2013 | 5.13 million animals | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 4.58 million animals | -10.8% |
| 2015 | 4.12 million animals | -10.1% |
| 2016 | 4.13 million animals | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 4.19 million animals | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 4.06 million animals | -3.2% |
| 2019 | 4.31 million animals | +6.1% |
| 2020 | 4.34 million animals | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 4.07 million animals | -6.2% |
| 2022 | 3.86 million animals | -5.1% |
| 2023 | 3.72 million animals | -3.6% |
| 2024 | 3.44 million animals | -7.7% |
Ecuador compared with similar countries
- Ecuador's 3.44 million animals is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 918,057 animals, 3.7× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Ecuador's 3.44 million animals is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 1.55 million animals, 2.2× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.05 million animals | 1.55 million animals | 2.39 million animals | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.53 million animals | 2.35 million animals | 2.85 million animals | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.57 million animals | 3.01 million animals | 4.18 million animals | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.91 million animals | 4.36 million animals | 5.44 million animals | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.90 million animals | 4.49 million animals | 5.19 million animals | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.64 million animals | 4.06 million animals | 5.36 million animals | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.88 million animals | 3.44 million animals | 4.34 million animals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ecuador
- 62 South Korea 3.89 million animals compare
- 63 Senegal 3.71 million animals compare
- 64 Netherlands 3.56 million animals compare
- 66 Cuba 3.25 million animals compare
- 67 Dominican Republic 3.03 million animals compare
- 68 Chile 2.96 million animals compare
More agriculture & rural data for Ecuador
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 10.59 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.097 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 691.36 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.4287 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3661 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 9.7% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 9.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 3.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of cattle in Ecuador?
- Number of cattle in Ecuador was 3.44 million animals in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of cattle recorded in Ecuador?
- The highest recorded value was 5.44 million animals in 1997.
- What is the lowest number of cattle recorded in Ecuador?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.55 million animals in 1961.
- How does Ecuador rank for number of cattle?
- Ecuador ranks 65th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of cattle rising or falling in Ecuador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ecuador 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 Number of cattle. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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