China vs India: Share of global annual deforestation
China
3.2%
in 2020
India
6.9%
in 2020
China rank
5th
India rank
2nd
Share of global annual deforestation over time
- China
- India
How they compare
India currently reports 6.9% against 3.2% in China, a difference of 3.7%.
That makes India's figure about 2.1 times China's.
Across all 5 years both countries report, India has been ahead every year.
China ranks 5th and India ranks 2nd of 112 countries.
India has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.1% | 2.4% | 0.4% | India |
| 2000s | 2.3% | 4.7% | 2.4% | India |
| 2010s | 3.4% | 6.9% | 3.4% | India |
| 2020s | 3.2% | 6.9% | 3.7% | India |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of global annual deforestation, China or India?
- India, at 6.9% against 3.2% in China as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of global annual deforestation between China and India?
- 3.7%, with India ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 5 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2020.
- How do China and India rank globally for share of global annual deforestation?
- China ranks 5th and India ranks 2nd of 112 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of global annual deforestation. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Share of global deforestation represents the proportion of a country's deforestation relative to the total global deforestation.