What is forest area in Japan?

Forest area in Japan was 249,350 sq. km in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

What is the highest forest area recorded in Japan?

The highest recorded value was 249,660 sq. km in 2010.

What is the lowest forest area recorded in Japan?

The lowest recorded value was 248,760 sq. km in 2000.

How does Japan rank for forest area?

Japan ranks 23rd out of 213 countries with data for 2023.

Is forest area rising or falling in Japan?

Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.

Where does this Japan data come from?

The figures come from FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Forest area (sq. km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Forest area in Japan

Name: Forest area in Japan
Creator: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
License: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)

Japan: Forest area was 249,350 sq. km in 2023. ▬ Flat

Latest (2023)

249,350 sq. km

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

23rd

of 213 countries

All-time high

249,660 sq. km

in 2010

All-time low

248,760 sq. km

in 2000

Years of data

1990–2023

Forest area in Japan, 1990–2023

Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in sq. km.

Analysis

Japan recorded 249,350 sq. km for forest area in 2023.

That represents a change of down 0.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, forest area in Japan peaked at 249,660 sq. km in 2010 and was at its lowest, 248,760 sq. km, in 2000.

That places Japan 23rd out of 213 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1990s	249,167 sq. km	248,834 sq. km	249,500 sq. km	10
2000s	249,165 sq. km	248,760 sq. km	249,570 sq. km	10
2010s	249,475 sq. km	249,350 sq. km	249,660 sq. km	10
2020s	249,350 sq. km	249,350 sq. km	249,350 sq. km	4

Countries ranked near Japan

20 Argentina 282,462 sq. km compare
21 Sweden 279,800 sq. km compare
22 Myanmar 276,748 sq. km compare
24 Gabon 234,950 sq. km compare
25 Turkey 226,884 sq. km compare
26 Finland 224,090 sq. km compare

See the full ranking of 261 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Japan

Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 40.15 billion current US$ (2024)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.0% (2024)
Rural population 9.50 million (2025)
Rural population growth -1.9% (2025)
Rural population 7.7% (2025)
Agricultural raw materials imports 1.6% (2025)
Agricultural raw materials exports 0.5% (2025)
Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.0% (2024)
Share of GDP from agriculture 1.0% (2024)
Land under cereal production 1.84 million hectares (2023)

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is forest area in Japan?: Forest area in Japan was 249,350 sq. km in 2023, according to FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
What is the highest forest area recorded in Japan?: The highest recorded value was 249,660 sq. km in 2010.
What is the lowest forest area recorded in Japan?: The lowest recorded value was 248,760 sq. km in 2000.
How does Japan rank for forest area?: Japan ranks 23rd out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
Is forest area rising or falling in Japan?: Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Japan data come from?: The figures come from FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Forest area (sq. km). 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

Indicator: Forest area (sq. km)
Unit: sq. km
Source: FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 261 places, 8,639 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed: 06 August 2026

Forest area is land 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.