Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United States of America
United States of America: Share of land area used for arable agriculture was 16.6% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United States of America, 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
The most recent figure for share of land area used for arable agriculture in United States of America is 16.6%, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area used for arable agriculture in United States of America peaked at 20.7% in 1969 and was at its lowest, 16.6%, in 2022.
United States of America ranks 62nd of 206 countries on this measure, 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 arable agriculture in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 19.7% | — |
| 1962 | 19.3% | -2.0% |
| 1963 | 19.6% | +1.4% |
| 1964 | 19.4% | -0.9% |
| 1965 | 19.3% | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 19.2% | -0.7% |
| 1967 | 19.1% | -0.7% |
| 1968 | 19.8% | +3.7% |
| 1969 | 20.7% | +4.6% |
| 1970 | 20.6% | -0.3% |
| 1971 | 20.5% | -0.3% |
| 1972 | 20.5% | -0.3% |
| 1973 | 20.4% | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 20.4% | -0.3% |
| 1975 | 20.4% | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 20.4% | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 20.4% | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 20.6% | +1.2% |
| 1979 | 20.6% | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 20.6% | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 20.6% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 20.5% | -0.5% |
| 1983 | 20.5% | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 20.5% | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 20.5% | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 20.5% | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 20.3% | -1.1% |
| 1988 | 20.3% | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 20.3% | -0.0% |
| 1990 | 20.3% | -0.0% |
| 1991 | 20.3% | -0.0% |
| 1992 | 20.1% | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 19.9% | -0.7% |
| 1994 | 19.9% | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 19.8% | -0.0% |
| 1996 | 19.5% | -1.6% |
| 1997 | 19.4% | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 19.3% | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 19.2% | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 19.2% | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 19.2% | -0.0% |
| 2002 | 18.9% | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 18.6% | -1.3% |
| 2004 | 18.4% | -1.3% |
| 2005 | 18.1% | -1.3% |
| 2006 | 17.9% | -1.3% |
| 2007 | 17.7% | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 17.5% | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 17.4% | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 17.2% | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 17.1% | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 16.9% | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 17.0% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 17.0% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 17.1% | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 17.2% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 17.2% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 17.1% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 17.0% | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 16.8% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 16.7% | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 16.6% | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 16.6% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 19.6% | 19.1% | 20.7% | 9 |
| 1970s | 20.5% | 20.4% | 20.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 20.5% | 20.3% | 20.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 19.8% | 19.2% | 20.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 18.3% | 17.4% | 19.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.1% | 16.9% | 17.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.7% | 16.6% | 16.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More agriculture & rural data for United States of America
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 11.96 % change on previous year (2021)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0094 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2021)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 673.66 current US$ per person (2021)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.1831 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1981 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 0.9% (2021)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 0.9% (2021)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.8% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area used for arable agriculture in United States of America?
- Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United States of America was 16.6% 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 arable agriculture recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 20.7% in 1969.
- What is the lowest share of land area used for arable agriculture recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.6% in 2022.
- How does United States of America rank for share of land area used for arable agriculture?
- United States of America ranks 62nd out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of land area used for arable agriculture rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States of America 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 arable 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 arable agriculture, measured as a percentage of total land area. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow.