Canada vs China: Share of global forest area
Canada
8.9%
in 2025
China
5.5%
in 2025
Canada rank
3rd
China rank
5th
Share of global forest area over time
- Canada
- China
How they compare
Canada currently reports 8.9% against 5.5% in China, a difference of 3.4%.
That makes Canada's figure about 1.6 times China's.
Across all 36 years both countries report, Canada has been ahead every year.
Canada ranks 3rd and China ranks 5th of 235 countries.
Canada has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Canada | China | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 8.4% | 3.9% | 4.5% | Canada |
| 2000s | 8.6% | 4.4% | 4.1% | Canada |
| 2010s | 8.8% | 5.0% | 3.8% | Canada |
| 2020s | 8.9% | 5.4% | 3.5% | Canada |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of global forest area, Canada or China?
- Canada, at 8.9% against 5.5% in China as of 2025.
- What is the difference in share of global forest area between Canada and China?
- 3.4%, with Canada ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and China?
- 36 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2025.
- How do Canada and China rank globally for share of global forest area?
- Canada ranks 3rd and China ranks 5th 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 Share of global forest area. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Share of global forest area represents the proportion of a country's forest area relative to the total global forest area.