Number of cattle in Tonga
Tonga: Number of cattle was 12,196 animals in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
12,196 animals
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
178th
of 197 countries
All-time high
12,196 animals
in 2024
All-time low
1,775 animals
in 1967
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Number of cattle in Tonga, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in animals.
Analysis
The most recent figure for number of cattle in Tonga is 12,196 animals, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
The figure is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 3.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of cattle in Tonga peaked at 12,196 animals in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1,775 animals, in 1967.
Tonga ranks 178th of 197 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Number of cattle in Tonga, year by year
| Year | animals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2,419 animals | — |
| 1962 | 2,318 animals | -4.2% |
| 1963 | 2,830 animals | +22.1% |
| 1964 | 2,662 animals | -5.9% |
| 1965 | 2,101 animals | -21.1% |
| 1966 | 2,037 animals | -3.0% |
| 1967 | 1,775 animals | -12.9% |
| 1968 | 2,217 animals | +24.9% |
| 1969 | 2,461 animals | +11.0% |
| 1970 | 3,097 animals | +25.8% |
| 1971 | 3,181 animals | +2.7% |
| 1972 | 3,781 animals | +18.9% |
| 1973 | 4,225 animals | +11.7% |
| 1974 | 3,970 animals | -6.0% |
| 1975 | 6,441 animals | +62.2% |
| 1976 | 5,898 animals | -8.4% |
| 1977 | 6,268 animals | +6.3% |
| 1978 | 9,601 animals | +53.2% |
| 1979 | 9,840 animals | +2.5% |
| 1980 | 10,000 animals | +1.6% |
| 1981 | 10,800 animals | +8.0% |
| 1982 | 9,987 animals | -7.5% |
| 1983 | 7,762 animals | -22.3% |
| 1984 | 7,900 animals | +1.8% |
| 1985 | 9,318 animals | +17.9% |
| 1986 | 9,000 animals | -3.4% |
| 1987 | 10,000 animals | +11.1% |
| 1988 | 10,000 animals | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 11,651 animals | +16.5% |
| 1990 | 10,000 animals | -14.2% |
| 1991 | 10,000 animals | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 9,600 animals | -4.0% |
| 1993 | 9,500 animals | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 9,500 animals | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 9,318 animals | -1.9% |
| 1996 | 9,500 animals | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 9,500 animals | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 9,500 animals | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 10,328 animals | +8.7% |
| 2000 | 11,250 animals | +8.9% |
| 2001 | 11,250 animals | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 11,250 animals | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 11,250 animals | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 11,250 animals | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 11,250 animals | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 11,250 animals | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 11,300 animals | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 11,300 animals | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 11,300 animals | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 11,300 animals | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 11,300 animals | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 11,500 animals | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 11,700 animals | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 11,800 animals | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 11,881 animals | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 11,941 animals | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 11,975 animals | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 12,005 animals | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 12,028 animals | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 12,048 animals | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 12,157 animals | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 12,148 animals | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 12,172 animals | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 12,196 animals | +0.2% |
Tonga compared with similar countries
- Tonga's 12,196 animals is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 918,057 animals, 1% of the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Tonga's 12,196 animals is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 650,522 animals, 2% of the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Number of cattle in Tonga 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | +62.2% | 3,970 animals | 6,441 animals |
| 1978 | +53.2% | 6,268 animals | 9,601 animals |
| 1970 | +25.8% | 2,461 animals | 3,097 animals |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2,313 animals | 1,775 animals | 2,830 animals | 9 |
| 1970s | 5,630 animals | 3,097 animals | 9,840 animals | 10 |
| 1980s | 9,642 animals | 7,762 animals | 11,651 animals | 10 |
| 1990s | 9,675 animals | 9,318 animals | 10,328 animals | 10 |
| 2000s | 11,265 animals | 11,250 animals | 11,300 animals | 10 |
| 2010s | 11,743 animals | 11,300 animals | 12,028 animals | 10 |
| 2020s | 12,144 animals | 12,048 animals | 12,196 animals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Tonga
- 175 Dominica 13,873 animals compare
- 176 Malta 13,800 animals compare
- 177 French Guiana 13,386 animals compare
- 179 Barbados 11,241 animals compare
- 180 Saint Lucia 10,486 animals compare
- 181 French Polynesia 8,097 animals compare
More agriculture & rural data for Tonga
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 7.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1857 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,154 current US$ per person (2024)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.4224 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7884 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 18.6% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 18.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.6% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.7% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of cattle in Tonga?
- Number of cattle in Tonga was 12,196 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 Tonga?
- The highest recorded value was 12,196 animals in 2024.
- What is the lowest number of cattle recorded in Tonga?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,775 animals in 1967.
- How does Tonga rank for number of cattle?
- Tonga ranks 178th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of cattle rising or falling in Tonga?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tonga 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
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).