Arable land — Share in Agricultural land in China
China: Arable land — Share in Agricultural land was 27.78 % in 2024. ▲ Rising
Arable land — Share in Agricultural land in China, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, arable land — share in agricultural land in China stood at 27.78 %.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land — share in agricultural land in China peaked at 28.53 % in 2009 and was at its lowest, 23.18 %, in 1978.
That places China 150th out of 248 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Arable land — Share in Agricultural land in China, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 24.37 % | — |
| 1962 | 24.31 % | -0.2% |
| 1963 | 24.27 % | -0.2% |
| 1964 | 24.24 % | -0.1% |
| 1965 | 24.19 % | -0.2% |
| 1966 | 24.1 % | -0.4% |
| 1967 | 24.01 % | -0.4% |
| 1968 | 23.92 % | -0.4% |
| 1969 | 23.83 % | -0.4% |
| 1970 | 23.74 % | -0.4% |
| 1971 | 23.65 % | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 23.56 % | -0.4% |
| 1973 | 23.47 % | -0.4% |
| 1974 | 23.57 % | +0.4% |
| 1975 | 23.3 % | -1.1% |
| 1976 | 23.26 % | -0.2% |
| 1977 | 23.22 % | -0.2% |
| 1978 | 23.18 % | -0.2% |
| 1979 | 23.19 % | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 23.2 % | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 23.34 % | +0.6% |
| 1982 | 24.26 % | +3.9% |
| 1983 | 25.28 % | +4.2% |
| 1984 | 26.46 % | +4.7% |
| 1985 | 27.45 % | +3.7% |
| 1986 | 27.49 % | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 27.42 % | -0.3% |
| 1988 | 27.55 % | +0.5% |
| 1989 | 27.8 % | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 28.1 % | +1.1% |
| 1991 | 28.31 % | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 28.02 % | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 27.74 % | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 27.65 % | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 27.43 % | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 27.42 % | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 27.4 % | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 27.37 % | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 27.35 % | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 27.33 % | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 27.41 % | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 27.49 % | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 27.56 % | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 27.64 % | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 27.72 % | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 27.92 % | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 28.12 % | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 28.32 % | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 28.53 % | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 28.51 % | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 28.49 % | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 28.47 % | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 28.45 % | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 28.43 % | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 28.41 % | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 28.24 % | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 28.07 % | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 28.02 % | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 27.86 % | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 27.93 % | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 27.89 % | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 27.66 % | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 27.88 % | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 27.78 % | -0.4% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 27.78 % is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 30.94 %, 90% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- China's 27.78 % is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 24.07 %, 1.2× the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 24.14 % | 23.83 % | 24.37 % | 9 |
| 1970s | 23.41 % | 23.18 % | 23.74 % | 10 |
| 1980s | 26.02 % | 23.2 % | 27.8 % | 10 |
| 1990s | 27.68 % | 27.35 % | 28.31 % | 10 |
| 2000s | 27.8 % | 27.33 % | 28.53 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.29 % | 27.86 % | 28.51 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.83 % | 27.66 % | 27.93 % | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
- 147 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 28.57 % compare
- 147 Wallis and Futuna Islands 28.57 % compare
- 149 Qatar 28.29 % compare
- 151 China, mainland 27.68 % compare
- 152 Saint Lucia 26.79 % compare
- 153 Switzerland 26.73 % compare
More environment data for China
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.279 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.92 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 5.29 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.8065 % 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 -0.2517 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land — share in agricultural land in China?
- Arable land — share in agricultural land in China was 27.78 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest arable land — share in agricultural land recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 28.53 % in 2009.
- What is the lowest arable land — share in agricultural land recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.18 % in 1978.
- How does China rank for arable land — share in agricultural land?
- China ranks 150th out of 248 countries with data for 2024.
- Is arable land — share in agricultural land rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Arable land — Share in Agricultural land. 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.