Sub-Saharan Africa vs United States: Arable land — Area

Sub-Saharan Africa
223,442 1000 ha
in 2024
United States
151,553 1000 ha
in 2024
Sub-Saharan Africa rank
7th
United States rank
4th

Arable land — Area over time

  • Sub-Saharan Africa
  • United States
050.0k100.0k150.0k200.0k196119922024

How they compare

Sub-Saharan Africa currently reports 223,442 1000 ha against 151,553 1000 ha in United States, a difference of 71,889 1000 ha.

That makes Sub-Saharan Africa's figure about 1.5 times United States's.

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

Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 7th and United States ranks 4th of 32 groups.

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

Head to head by decade

Decade Sub-Saharan Africa United States Difference Ahead
1960s 124,668 1000 ha 179,189 1000 ha 54,521 1000 ha United States
1970s 131,850 1000 ha 187,495 1000 ha 55,645 1000 ha United States
1980s 139,337 1000 ha 187,352 1000 ha 48,015 1000 ha United States
1990s 155,960 1000 ha 181,035 1000 ha 25,075 1000 ha United States
2000s 176,116 1000 ha 167,481 1000 ha 8,635 1000 ha Sub-Saharan Africa
2010s 207,037 1000 ha 156,244 1000 ha 50,793 1000 ha Sub-Saharan Africa
2020s 220,703 1000 ha 152,257 1000 ha 68,446 1000 ha Sub-Saharan Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher arable land — area, Sub-Saharan Africa or United States?
Sub-Saharan Africa, at 223,442 1000 ha against 151,553 1000 ha in United States as of 2024.
What is the difference in arable land — area between Sub-Saharan Africa and United States?
71,889 1000 ha, with Sub-Saharan Africa ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Sub-Saharan Africa and United States?
64 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2024.
How do Sub-Saharan Africa and United States rank globally for arable land — area?
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 7th 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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Sub-Saharan 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/sub-saharan-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.