Democratic Republic of Congo vs United States: Drivers of deforestation
Drivers of deforestation over time
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- United States
How they compare
Democratic Republic of Congo currently reports 44,747 hectares against 39,492 hectares in United States, a difference of 5,255 hectares.
That makes Democratic Republic of Congo's figure about 1.1 times United States's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 23 shared years of data; in 2001 it was United States ahead.
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 6th and United States ranks 7th of 166 countries.
Across the 3 decades both report, Democratic Republic of Congo averaged higher in 1 and United States in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Democratic Republic of Congo | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 42,279 hectares | 76,260 hectares | 33,981 hectares | United States |
| 2010s | 32,453 hectares | 56,484 hectares | 24,030 hectares | United States |
| 2020s | 44,747 hectares | 42,416 hectares | 2,331 hectares | Democratic Republic of Congo |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher drivers of deforestation, Democratic Republic of Congo or United States?
- Democratic Republic of Congo, at 44,747 hectares against 39,492 hectares in United States as of 2023.
- What is the difference in drivers of deforestation between Democratic Republic of Congo and United States?
- 5,255 hectares, with Democratic Republic of Congo ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Democratic Republic of Congo and United States?
- 23 years are reported by both, from 2001 to 2023.
- How do Democratic Republic of Congo and United States rank globally for drivers of deforestation?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 6th and United States ranks 7th of 166 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Singh et al. (2026) β processed by Our World in Data, published as Drivers of deforestation. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Estimates of commodity-driven deforestation, measured in hectares per year. This includes deforestation caused by the production of agricultural products and forestry, which account for approximately 90% of the world's deforestation.