Africa vs United States: Arable land — Area

Africa
266,831 1000 ha
in 2024
United States
151,553 1000 ha
in 2024
Africa rank
6th
United States rank
4th

Arable land — Area over time

  • Africa
  • United States
0100.0k200.0k300.0k196119922024

How they compare

Africa currently reports 266,831 1000 ha against 151,553 1000 ha in United States, a difference of 115,278 1000 ha.

That makes Africa's figure about 1.8 times United States's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 64 shared years of data; in 1961 it was United States ahead.

Africa ranks 6th and United States ranks 4th of 32 groups.

Across the 7 decades both report, Africa averaged higher in 4 and United States in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade Africa United States Difference Ahead
1960s 156,381 1000 ha 179,189 1000 ha 22,808 1000 ha United States
1970s 165,552 1000 ha 187,495 1000 ha 21,943 1000 ha United States
1980s 173,942 1000 ha 187,352 1000 ha 13,410 1000 ha United States
1990s 194,902 1000 ha 181,035 1000 ha 13,867 1000 ha Africa
2000s 217,445 1000 ha 167,481 1000 ha 49,964 1000 ha Africa
2010s 249,862 1000 ha 156,244 1000 ha 93,618 1000 ha Africa
2020s 264,047 1000 ha 152,257 1000 ha 111,790 1000 ha Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher arable land — area, Africa or United States?
Africa, at 266,831 1000 ha against 151,553 1000 ha in United States as of 2024.
What is the difference in arable land — area between Africa and United States?
115,278 1000 ha, with Africa ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Africa and United States?
64 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2024.
How do Africa and United States rank globally for arable land — area?
Africa ranks 6th and United States ranks 4th of 32 groups.
Where does this data come from?
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as Arable land — Area. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Africa vs United States: Arable land — Area. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 28 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/compare/arable-land-area/africa/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
Arable land — Area
Unit
1000 ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
281 places, 16,508 data points, 1961–2024
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.