Agricultural land — Area in Ireland
Ireland: Agricultural land — Area was 4,488 1000 ha in 2024. ▼ Falling
Agricultural land — Area in Ireland, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.
Analysis
The most recent figure for agricultural land — area in Ireland is 4,488 1000 ha, measured in 2024.
The figure is up 7.1% on the previous year and up 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land — area in Ireland peaked at 4,932 1000 ha in 1980 and was at its lowest, 4,189 1000 ha, in 2023.
That places Ireland 110th out of 255 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Agricultural land — Area in Ireland, year by year
| Year | 1000 ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 4,558 1000 ha | — |
| 1962 | 4,614 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 1963 | 4,617 1000 ha | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 4,660 1000 ha | +0.9% |
| 1965 | 4,708 1000 ha | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 4,754 1000 ha | +1.0% |
| 1967 | 4,783 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1968 | 4,803 1000 ha | +0.4% |
| 1969 | 4,816 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 4,794 1000 ha | -0.5% |
| 1971 | 4,824 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1972 | 4,827 1000 ha | +0.1% |
| 1973 | 4,842 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1974 | 4,849 1000 ha | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 4,836 1000 ha | -0.3% |
| 1976 | 4,852 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1977 | 4,881 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 1978 | 4,885 1000 ha | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 4,896 1000 ha | +0.2% |
| 1980 | 4,932 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 1981 | 4,909 1000 ha | -0.5% |
| 1982 | 4,895 1000 ha | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 4,876 1000 ha | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 4,893 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 4,884 1000 ha | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 4,845 1000 ha | -0.8% |
| 1987 | 4,817 1000 ha | -0.6% |
| 1988 | 4,800 1000 ha | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 4,677 1000 ha | -2.6% |
| 1990 | 4,537 1000 ha | -3.0% |
| 1991 | 4,445 1000 ha | -2.0% |
| 1992 | 4,416 1000 ha | -0.6% |
| 1993 | 4,407 1000 ha | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 4,394 1000 ha | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 4,389 1000 ha | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 4,342 1000 ha | -1.1% |
| 1997 | 4,356 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1998 | 4,369 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 4,383 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 4,396 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 4,410 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 4,373 1000 ha | -0.8% |
| 2003 | 4,370 1000 ha | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 4,305 1000 ha | -1.5% |
| 2005 | 4,302 1000 ha | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 4,260 1000 ha | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 4,276 1000 ha | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 4,629 1000 ha | +8.3% |
| 2009 | 4,594 1000 ha | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 4,568 1000 ha | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 4,555 1000 ha | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 4,533 1000 ha | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 4,477 1000 ha | -1.2% |
| 2014 | 4,466 1000 ha | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 4,430 1000 ha | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 4,461 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 4,489 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 4,516 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 4,524 1000 ha | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 4,512 1000 ha | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 4,337 1000 ha | -3.9% |
| 2022 | 4,348 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 4,189 1000 ha | -3.7% |
| 2024 | 4,488 1000 ha | +7.1% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 4,488 1000 ha is above the median for high income countries, which is 851 1000 ha, 5.3× the median. (76 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 4,488 1000 ha is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2,605 1000 ha, 1.7× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4,701 1000 ha | 4,558 1000 ha | 4,816 1000 ha | 9 |
| 1970s | 4,849 1000 ha | 4,794 1000 ha | 4,896 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1980s | 4,853 1000 ha | 4,677 1000 ha | 4,932 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1990s | 4,404 1000 ha | 4,342 1000 ha | 4,537 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 4,392 1000 ha | 4,260 1000 ha | 4,629 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 4,502 1000 ha | 4,430 1000 ha | 4,568 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 4,375 1000 ha | 4,189 1000 ha | 4,512 1000 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 107 Benin 4,865 1000 ha compare
- 108 Azerbaijan 4,774 1000 ha compare
- 109 Japan 4,582 1000 ha compare
- 111 Egypt 4,229 1000 ha compare
- 112 Sierra Leone 3,987 1000 ha compare
- 113 Tajikistan 3,888 1000 ha compare
More environment data for Ireland
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.51 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.17 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.412 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.89 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -1.13 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -0.0083 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land — area in Ireland?
- Agricultural land — area in Ireland was 4,488 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest agricultural land — area recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 4,932 1000 ha in 1980.
- What is the lowest agricultural land — area recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 4,189 1000 ha in 2023.
- How does Ireland rank for agricultural land — area?
- Ireland ranks 110th out of 255 countries with data for 2024.
- Is agricultural land — area rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Agricultural land — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.