Cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Cattle livestock count heads was 1.13 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
1.13 million
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
105th
of 197 countries
All-time high
1.90 million
in 1965
All-time low
945,150
in 2016
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka, 1961–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka is 1.13 million, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 1.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka peaked at 1.90 million in 1965 and was at its lowest, 945,150, in 2016.
That places Sri Lanka 105th out of 197 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.52 million | — |
| 1962 | 1.36 million | -10.1% |
| 1963 | 1.59 million | +16.5% |
| 1964 | 1.85 million | +16.5% |
| 1965 | 1.90 million | +2.8% |
| 1966 | 1.75 million | -8.3% |
| 1967 | 1.66 million | -5.0% |
| 1968 | 1.66 million | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 1.58 million | -4.5% |
| 1970 | 1.59 million | +0.6% |
| 1971 | 1.62 million | +2.0% |
| 1972 | 1.62 million | -0.5% |
| 1973 | 1.67 million | +3.5% |
| 1974 | 1.72 million | +2.6% |
| 1975 | 1.71 million | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 1.74 million | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 1.69 million | -3.0% |
| 1978 | 1.54 million | -8.9% |
| 1979 | 1.62 million | +5.3% |
| 1980 | 1.64 million | +1.3% |
| 1981 | 1.72 million | +4.6% |
| 1982 | 1.70 million | -1.3% |
| 1983 | 1.70 million | +0.1% |
| 1984 | 1.74 million | +2.2% |
| 1985 | 1.78 million | +2.6% |
| 1986 | 1.78 million | -0.0% |
| 1987 | 1.81 million | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 1.79 million | -1.1% |
| 1989 | 1.82 million | +1.8% |
| 1990 | 1.77 million | -2.6% |
| 1991 | 1.48 million | -16.7% |
| 1992 | 1.57 million | +6.1% |
| 1993 | 1.70 million | +8.7% |
| 1994 | 1.70 million | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 1.70 million | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 1.64 million | -3.5% |
| 1997 | 1.58 million | -4.0% |
| 1998 | 1.18 million | -25.4% |
| 1999 | 1.19 million | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 1.15 million | -3.7% |
| 2001 | 1.15 million | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 1.11 million | -3.5% |
| 2003 | 1.14 million | +2.3% |
| 2004 | 1.16 million | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 1.19 million | +2.1% |
| 2006 | 1.18 million | -0.0% |
| 2007 | 1.21 million | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 1.20 million | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 1.14 million | -4.9% |
| 2010 | 1.17 million | +2.9% |
| 2011 | 1.19 million | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 1.24 million | +3.7% |
| 2013 | 1.17 million | -5.4% |
| 2014 | 1.10 million | -5.5% |
| 2015 | 1.09 million | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 945,150 | -13.1% |
| 2017 | 1.00 million | +5.9% |
| 2018 | 1.11 million | +11.0% |
| 2019 | 1.09 million | -2.2% |
| 2020 | 1.10 million | +1.6% |
| 2021 | 1.13 million | +2.5% |
| 2022 | 1.13 million | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 1.12 million | -0.5% |
| 2024 | 1.13 million | +0.3% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 1.13 million is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 918,057, 1.2× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 1.13 million is below the median for South Asia, which is 5.20 million, 22% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | -25.4% | 1.58 million | 1.18 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.65 million | 1.36 million | 1.90 million | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.65 million | 1.54 million | 1.74 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.75 million | 1.64 million | 1.82 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.55 million | 1.18 million | 1.77 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.16 million | 1.11 million | 1.21 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.11 million | 945,150 | 1.24 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.12 million | 1.10 million | 1.13 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More agriculture & rural data for Sri Lanka
- Cropland extent over the long-term, annual growth rate 0.0051 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per capita 0.109 hectares per person (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, annual growth rate 0.0043 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per capita 0.1293 hectares per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 9.1 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0836 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 418.3 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9172 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka?
- Cattle livestock count heads in Sri Lanka was 1.13 million in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cattle livestock count heads recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 1.90 million in 1965.
- What is the lowest cattle livestock count heads recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 945,150 in 2016.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for cattle livestock count heads?
- Sri Lanka ranks 105th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cattle livestock count heads rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Cattle livestock count heads. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).