Forest area in El Salvador
El Salvador: Forest area was 27.5% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Forest area in El Salvador, 1990–2023
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest area in El Salvador is 27.5%, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 34 years on record.
The figure is down 0.8% on the previous year and down 7.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in El Salvador peaked at 34.7% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 27.5%, in 2023.
That places El Salvador 113th out of 214 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Forest area in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 34.7% | — |
| 1991 | 34.5% | -0.6% |
| 1992 | 34.3% | -0.6% |
| 1993 | 34.0% | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 33.8% | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 33.6% | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 33.4% | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 33.2% | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 33.0% | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 32.7% | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 32.5% | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 32.3% | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 32.1% | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 31.9% | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 31.7% | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 31.4% | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 31.2% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 31.0% | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 30.8% | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 30.6% | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 30.4% | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 30.1% | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 29.9% | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 29.7% | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 29.5% | -0.7% |
| 2015 | 29.3% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 29.0% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 28.8% | -0.7% |
| 2018 | 28.6% | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 28.4% | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 28.2% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 28.0% | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 27.7% | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 27.5% | -0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 33.7% | 32.7% | 34.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 31.5% | 30.6% | 32.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 29.4% | 28.4% | 30.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.9% | 27.5% | 28.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More agriculture & rural data for El Salvador
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 2.84 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.044 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 253.9 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -1.41 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.2448 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 4.4% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 4.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.7% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is forest area in El Salvador?
- Forest area in El Salvador was 27.5% in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest forest area recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 34.7% in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 27.5% in 2023.
- How does El Salvador rank for forest area?
- El Salvador ranks 113th out of 214 countries with data for 2023.
- Is forest area rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this El Salvador data come from?
- The figures come from FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Forest area (% of land area). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Forest area (% of land area) is the share of total land area that is under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems (for example, in fruit plantations and agroforestry systems) and trees in urban parks and gardens.