Annual change in forest area in Italy

Italy: Annual change in forest area was 12,490 hectares in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
12,490 hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
27th
of 235 countries
All-time high
90,502 hectares
in 2016
All-time low
-24,208 hectares
in 2011
Years of data
35
1991–2025

Annual change in forest area in Italy, 1991–2025

-25.0k025.0k50.0k75.0k100.0k1991200820251991: 78.0k hectares1992: 78.0k hectares1993: 78.0k hectares1994: 78.0k hectares1995: 78.0k hectares1996: 78.0k hectares1997: 78.0k hectares1998: 78.0k hectares1999: 78.0k hectares2000: 78.0k hectares2001: 65.9k hectares2002: 65.9k hectares2003: 65.9k hectares2004: 65.9k hectares2005: 65.9k hectares2006: 65.9k hectares2007: 65.9k hectares2008: 65.9k hectares2009: 65.9k hectares2010: 65.9k hectares2011: -24.2k hectares2012: -24.2k hectares2013: -24.2k hectares2014: -24.2k hectares2015: -24.2k hectares2016: 90.5k hectares2017: 90.5k hectares2018: 90.5k hectares2019: 90.5k hectares2020: 90.5k hectares2021: 12.5k hectares2022: 12.5k hectares2023: 12.5k hectares2024: 12.5k hectares2025: 12.5k hectares

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.

Analysis

Italy recorded 12,490 hectares for annual change in forest area in 2025.

That represents a change of up 151.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual change in forest area in Italy peaked at 90,502 hectares in 2016 and was at its lowest, -24,208 hectares, in 2011.

That places Italy 27th out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 77,950 hectares 77,950 hectares 77,950 hectares 9
2000s 67,086 hectares 65,879 hectares 77,950 hectares 10
2010s 30,685 hectares -24,208 hectares 90,502 hectares 10
2020s 25,492 hectares 12,490 hectares 90,502 hectares 6

Countries ranked near Italy

  1. 24 Kazakhstan 13,900 hectares compare
  2. 25 Bulgaria 12,600 hectares compare
  3. 25 United Kingdom 12,600 hectares compare
  4. 28 North Korea 11,356 hectares compare
  5. 29 Azerbaijan 10,494 hectares compare
  6. 30 Czechia 9,040 hectares compare

See the full ranking of 235 places →

More environment data for Italy

All data for Italy →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual change in forest area in Italy?
Annual change in forest area in Italy was 12,490 hectares in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual change in forest area recorded in Italy?
The highest recorded value was 90,502 hectares in 2016.
What is the lowest annual change in forest area recorded in Italy?
The lowest recorded value was -24,208 hectares in 2011.
How does Italy rank for annual change in forest area?
Italy ranks 27th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
Is annual change in forest area rising or falling in Italy?
Over the last ten years it is up 151.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Italy data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual change in forest area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Annual change in forest area
Unit
hectares
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
235 places, 8,225 data points, 1991–2025
Last refreshed

Net change in forest area measures forest expansion (the sum of afforestation and natural expansion) minus deforestation.