Cotton yields in India
India: Cotton yields was 1.31 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.31 tonnes per hectare
Change on year
up 1.4%
World rank
51st
of 101 countries
All-time high
1.62 tonnes per hectare
in 2013
All-time low
0.3579 tonnes per hectare
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cotton yields in India, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
In 2024, cotton yields in India stood at 1.31 tonnes per hectare.
That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and down 7.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cotton yields in India peaked at 1.62 tonnes per hectare in 2013 and was at its lowest, 0.3579 tonnes per hectare, in 1961.
India ranks 51st of 101 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cotton yields in India, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.3579 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 0.4274 tonnes per hectare | +19.4% |
| 1963 | 0.4358 tonnes per hectare | +2.0% |
| 1964 | 0.4032 tonnes per hectare | -7.5% |
| 1965 | 0.3923 tonnes per hectare | -2.7% |
| 1966 | 0.3978 tonnes per hectare | +1.4% |
| 1967 | 0.4371 tonnes per hectare | +9.9% |
| 1968 | 0.4339 tonnes per hectare | -0.7% |
| 1969 | 0.4263 tonnes per hectare | -1.8% |
| 1970 | 0.3918 tonnes per hectare | -8.1% |
| 1971 | 0.504 tonnes per hectare | +28.6% |
| 1972 | 0.4738 tonnes per hectare | -6.0% |
| 1973 | 0.4947 tonnes per hectare | +4.4% |
| 1974 | 0.5333 tonnes per hectare | +7.8% |
| 1975 | 0.4861 tonnes per hectare | -8.9% |
| 1976 | 0.487 tonnes per hectare | +0.2% |
| 1977 | 0.4894 tonnes per hectare | +0.5% |
| 1978 | 0.5207 tonnes per hectare | +6.4% |
| 1979 | 0.5065 tonnes per hectare | -2.7% |
| 1980 | 0.5164 tonnes per hectare | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 0.5195 tonnes per hectare | +0.6% |
| 1982 | 0.5082 tonnes per hectare | -2.2% |
| 1983 | 0.4395 tonnes per hectare | -13.5% |
| 1984 | 0.6122 tonnes per hectare | +39.3% |
| 1985 | 0.6154 tonnes per hectare | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 0.5279 tonnes per hectare | -14.2% |
| 1987 | 0.5248 tonnes per hectare | -0.6% |
| 1988 | 0.6326 tonnes per hectare | +20.5% |
| 1989 | 0.7885 tonnes per hectare | +24.6% |
| 1990 | 0.7027 tonnes per hectare | -10.9% |
| 1991 | 0.6736 tonnes per hectare | -4.1% |
| 1992 | 0.8032 tonnes per hectare | +19.2% |
| 1993 | 0.7794 tonnes per hectare | -3.0% |
| 1994 | 0.8024 tonnes per hectare | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 0.7562 tonnes per hectare | -5.8% |
| 1996 | 0.8289 tonnes per hectare | +9.6% |
| 1997 | 0.6501 tonnes per hectare | -21.6% |
| 1998 | 0.6987 tonnes per hectare | +7.5% |
| 1999 | 0.7032 tonnes per hectare | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 0.5979 tonnes per hectare | -15.0% |
| 2001 | 0.5836 tonnes per hectare | -2.4% |
| 2002 | 0.5974 tonnes per hectare | +2.4% |
| 2003 | 0.96 tonnes per hectare | +60.7% |
| 2004 | 0.9933 tonnes per hectare | +3.5% |
| 2005 | 1.13 tonnes per hectare | +14.0% |
| 2006 | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | +16.1% |
| 2007 | 1.46 tonnes per hectare | +11.1% |
| 2008 | 1.26 tonnes per hectare | -13.9% |
| 2009 | 1.24 tonnes per hectare | -1.6% |
| 2010 | 1.59 tonnes per hectare | +28.8% |
| 2011 | 1.57 tonnes per hectare | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 1.52 tonnes per hectare | -3.6% |
| 2013 | 1.62 tonnes per hectare | +6.6% |
| 2014 | 1.41 tonnes per hectare | -12.7% |
| 2015 | 1.34 tonnes per hectare | -5.0% |
| 2016 | 1.6 tonnes per hectare | +19.0% |
| 2017 | 1.4 tonnes per hectare | -12.3% |
| 2018 | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | -16.9% |
| 2019 | 1.47 tonnes per hectare | +26.3% |
| 2020 | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | -10.6% |
| 2021 | 1.29 tonnes per hectare | -1.6% |
| 2022 | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | -10.4% |
| 2023 | 1.29 tonnes per hectare | +11.4% |
| 2024 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | +1.4% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 1.31 tonnes per hectare is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.31 tonnes per hectare, 1.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.4124 tonnes per hectare | 0.3579 tonnes per hectare | 0.4371 tonnes per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.4887 tonnes per hectare | 0.3918 tonnes per hectare | 0.5333 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.5685 tonnes per hectare | 0.4395 tonnes per hectare | 0.7885 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.7398 tonnes per hectare | 0.6501 tonnes per hectare | 0.8289 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.01 tonnes per hectare | 0.5836 tonnes per hectare | 1.46 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.47 tonnes per hectare | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | 1.62 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.27 tonnes per hectare | 1.16 tonnes per hectare | 1.32 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near India
More agriculture & rural data for India
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual -2.83 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1623 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 438.73 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.4067 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.6431 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 16.2% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 16.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.5% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cotton yields in India?
- Cotton yields in India was 1.31 tonnes per hectare 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 cotton yields recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 1.62 tonnes per hectare in 2013.
- What is the lowest cotton yields recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3579 tonnes per hectare in 1961.
- How does India rank for cotton yields?
- India ranks 51st out of 101 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cotton yields rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India 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 Cotton yields. 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).
About this data
Yield is the amount produced per unit of land used, measured in tonnes per hectare.