Share of land area used for agriculture in Germany
Germany: Share of land area used for agriculture was 47.5% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of land area used for agriculture in Germany, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
In 2023, share of land area used for agriculture in Germany stood at 47.5%. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 0.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area used for agriculture in Germany peaked at 56.0% in 1965 and was at its lowest, 47.5%, in 2023.
That places Germany 68th out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Share of land area used for agriculture in Germany, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 55.5% | — |
| 1962 | 55.5% | +0.1% |
| 1963 | 55.6% | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 55.7% | +0.3% |
| 1965 | 56.0% | +0.4% |
| 1966 | 55.9% | -0.0% |
| 1967 | 55.6% | -0.6% |
| 1968 | 55.2% | -0.7% |
| 1969 | 55.1% | -0.2% |
| 1970 | 54.5% | -1.2% |
| 1971 | 54.3% | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 54.3% | -0.0% |
| 1973 | 54.1% | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 53.9% | -0.4% |
| 1975 | 53.8% | -0.2% |
| 1976 | 53.7% | -0.2% |
| 1977 | 53.6% | -0.3% |
| 1978 | 53.4% | -0.3% |
| 1979 | 53.3% | -0.3% |
| 1980 | 53.0% | -0.4% |
| 1981 | 52.9% | -0.3% |
| 1982 | 52.7% | -0.4% |
| 1983 | 52.5% | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 52.4% | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 52.3% | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 52.2% | -0.2% |
| 1987 | 51.9% | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 51.8% | -0.2% |
| 1989 | 51.7% | -0.2% |
| 1990 | 51.6% | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 49.1% | -5.0% |
| 1992 | 48.6% | -1.1% |
| 1993 | 49.2% | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 49.6% | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 49.7% | +0.2% |
| 1996 | 49.7% | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 49.6% | -0.0% |
| 1998 | 49.8% | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 49.1% | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 48.9% | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 48.8% | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 48.6% | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 48.7% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 48.8% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 48.8% | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 48.6% | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 48.6% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 48.5% | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 48.4% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 47.9% | -1.1% |
| 2011 | 48.0% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 47.8% | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 47.9% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 47.9% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 48.0% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 47.7% | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 47.8% | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 47.6% | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 47.7% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 47.5% | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 47.5% | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 47.5% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 47.5% | -0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 55.6% | 55.1% | 56.0% | 9 |
| 1970s | 53.9% | 53.3% | 54.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 52.3% | 51.7% | 53.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 49.6% | 48.6% | 51.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 48.7% | 48.4% | 48.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 47.8% | 47.6% | 48.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 47.5% | 47.5% | 47.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More agriculture & rural data for Germany
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 2.73 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0087 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 527.18 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.6813 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1786 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 0.9% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 0.9% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.7% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.1% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area used for agriculture in Germany?
- Share of land area used for agriculture in Germany was 47.5% in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of land area used for agriculture recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 56.0% in 1965.
- What is the lowest share of land area used for agriculture recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 47.5% in 2023.
- How does Germany rank for share of land area used for agriculture?
- Germany ranks 68th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of land area used for agriculture rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land area used for agriculture. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The share of land area used for agriculture, measured as a percentage of total land area. Agricultural land refers to the share of land area that is arable, under permanent crops, and under permanent pastures.