Australia vs China: Land use over the long-term
Australia
318.70 million hectares
in 2025
China
392.61 million hectares
in 2025
Australia rank
2nd
China rank
1st
Land use over the long-term over time
- Australia
- China
How they compare
China currently reports 392.61 million hectares against 318.70 million hectares in Australia, a difference of 73.91 million hectares.
That makes China's figure about 1.2 times Australia's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 108 shared years of data; in 1000 it was China ahead.
Australia ranks 2nd and China ranks 1st of 202 countries.
Across the 40 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 8 and China in 32.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | China | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 0 hectares | 13.08 million hectares | 13.08 million hectares | China |
| 1100s | 0 hectares | 32.25 million hectares | 32.25 million hectares | China |
| 1200s | 0 hectares | 36.86 million hectares | 36.86 million hectares | China |
| 1300s | 0 hectares | 28.60 million hectares | 28.60 million hectares | China |
| 1400s | 0 hectares | 25.48 million hectares | 25.48 million hectares | China |
| 1500s | 0 hectares | 32.64 million hectares | 32.64 million hectares | China |
| 1600s | 0 hectares | 35.07 million hectares | 35.07 million hectares | China |
| 1700s | 0 hectares | 35.56 million hectares | 35.56 million hectares | China |
| 1710s | 0 hectares | 37.21 million hectares | 37.21 million hectares | China |
| 1720s | 0 hectares | 42.74 million hectares | 42.74 million hectares | China |
| 1730s | 0 hectares | 45.44 million hectares | 45.44 million hectares | China |
| 1740s | 0 hectares | 51.14 million hectares | 51.14 million hectares | China |
| 1750s | 0 hectares | 63.78 million hectares | 63.78 million hectares | China |
| 1760s | 0 hectares | 70.48 million hectares | 70.48 million hectares | China |
| 1770s | 0 hectares | 78.73 million hectares | 78.73 million hectares | China |
| 1780s | 0 hectares | 98.61 million hectares | 98.61 million hectares | China |
| 1790s | 247,019 hectares | 106.85 million hectares | 106.60 million hectares | China |
| 1800s | 392,578 hectares | 104.44 million hectares | 104.05 million hectares | China |
| 1810s | 925,486 hectares | 122.30 million hectares | 121.37 million hectares | China |
| 1820s | 1.62 million hectares | 126.16 million hectares | 124.54 million hectares | China |
| 1830s | 2.90 million hectares | 138.91 million hectares | 136.01 million hectares | China |
| 1840s | 5.29 million hectares | 146.96 million hectares | 141.67 million hectares | China |
| 1850s | 9.81 million hectares | 153.51 million hectares | 143.70 million hectares | China |
| 1860s | 18.47 million hectares | 150.90 million hectares | 132.43 million hectares | China |
| 1870s | 29.51 million hectares | 128.04 million hectares | 98.54 million hectares | China |
| 1880s | 42.50 million hectares | 129.55 million hectares | 87.04 million hectares | China |
| 1890s | 65.44 million hectares | 133.61 million hectares | 68.17 million hectares | China |
| 1900s | 94.10 million hectares | 142.34 million hectares | 48.24 million hectares | China |
| 1910s | 128.16 million hectares | 150.53 million hectares | 22.37 million hectares | China |
| 1920s | 168.71 million hectares | 167.96 million hectares | 746,000 hectares | Australia |
| 1930s | 217.83 million hectares | 174.01 million hectares | 43.81 million hectares | Australia |
| 1940s | 265.15 million hectares | 185.34 million hectares | 79.81 million hectares | Australia |
| 1950s | 367.85 million hectares | 216.48 million hectares | 151.37 million hectares | Australia |
| 1960s | 419.19 million hectares | 250.20 million hectares | 168.99 million hectares | Australia |
| 1970s | 425.03 million hectares | 298.04 million hectares | 126.99 million hectares | Australia |
| 1980s | 414.69 million hectares | 348.86 million hectares | 65.83 million hectares | Australia |
| 1990s | 392.86 million hectares | 388.00 million hectares | 4.86 million hectares | Australia |
| 2000s | 361.56 million hectares | 392.60 million hectares | 31.04 million hectares | China |
| 2010s | 322.00 million hectares | 392.61 million hectares | 70.61 million hectares | China |
| 2020s | 316.62 million hectares | 392.61 million hectares | 75.98 million hectares | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher land use over the long-term, Australia or China?
- China, at 392.61 million hectares against 318.70 million hectares in Australia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in land use over the long-term between Australia and China?
- 73.91 million hectares, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and China?
- 108 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2025.
- How do Australia and China rank globally for land use over the long-term?
- Australia ranks 2nd and China ranks 1st of 202 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Land use over the long-term. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Total grazingland area for each separate country over time.