Malaysia vs Thailand: Forest area
Malaysia
18.88 million hectares
in 2025
Thailand
19.65 million hectares
in 2025
Malaysia rank
35th
Thailand rank
32nd
Forest area over time
- Malaysia
- Thailand
How they compare
Thailand currently reports 19.65 million hectares against 18.88 million hectares in Malaysia, a difference of 762,800 hectares.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 36 shared years of data; in 1990 it was Malaysia ahead.
Malaysia ranks 35th and Thailand ranks 32nd of 235 countries.
Thailand has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Malaysia | Thailand | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 20.20 million hectares | 20.20 million hectares | 2,210 hectares | Thailand |
| 2000s | 19.36 million hectares | 20.13 million hectares | 776,810 hectares | Thailand |
| 2010s | 19.25 million hectares | 20.13 million hectares | 872,660 hectares | Thailand |
| 2020s | 19.03 million hectares | 19.99 million hectares | 957,817 hectares | Thailand |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher forest area, Malaysia or Thailand?
- Thailand, at 19.65 million hectares against 18.88 million hectares in Malaysia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in forest area between Malaysia and Thailand?
- 762,800 hectares, with Thailand ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Malaysia and Thailand?
- 36 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2025.
- How do Malaysia and Thailand rank globally for forest area?
- Malaysia ranks 35th and Thailand ranks 32nd of 235 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Forest area. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems.