Arable land use per person in Spain
Spain: Arable land use per person was 0.2378 hectares per person in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
0.2378 hectares per person
Change on year
down 2.8%
World rank
44th
of 206 countries
All-time high
0.5285 hectares per person
in 1961
All-time low
0.2378 hectares per person
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Arable land use per person in Spain, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares per person.
Analysis
Spain recorded 0.2378 hectares per person for arable land use per person in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.8% on the previous year and down 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land use per person in Spain peaked at 0.5285 hectares per person in 1961 and was at its lowest, 0.2378 hectares per person, in 2023.
That places Spain 44th out of 206 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Arable land use per person in Spain, year by year
| Year | hectares per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.5285 hectares per person | — |
| 1962 | 0.5253 hectares per person | -0.6% |
| 1963 | 0.5178 hectares per person | -1.4% |
| 1964 | 0.5036 hectares per person | -2.7% |
| 1965 | 0.4997 hectares per person | -0.8% |
| 1966 | 0.4804 hectares per person | -3.9% |
| 1967 | 0.4816 hectares per person | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 0.4739 hectares per person | -1.6% |
| 1969 | 0.4809 hectares per person | +1.5% |
| 1970 | 0.464 hectares per person | -3.5% |
| 1971 | 0.4774 hectares per person | +2.9% |
| 1972 | 0.4707 hectares per person | -1.4% |
| 1973 | 0.4588 hectares per person | -2.5% |
| 1974 | 0.45 hectares per person | -1.9% |
| 1975 | 0.4424 hectares per person | -1.7% |
| 1976 | 0.4333 hectares per person | -2.1% |
| 1977 | 0.4281 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 1978 | 0.4243 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 1979 | 0.4189 hectares per person | -1.3% |
| 1980 | 0.415 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 1981 | 0.4123 hectares per person | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 0.4098 hectares per person | -0.6% |
| 1983 | 0.4085 hectares per person | -0.3% |
| 1984 | 0.4083 hectares per person | -0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.4046 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 1986 | 0.4034 hectares per person | -0.3% |
| 1987 | 0.4028 hectares per person | -0.1% |
| 1988 | 0.4018 hectares per person | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 0.3995 hectares per person | -0.6% |
| 1990 | 0.3945 hectares per person | -1.2% |
| 1991 | 0.3916 hectares per person | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 0.3882 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 0.3806 hectares per person | -2.0% |
| 1994 | 0.3744 hectares per person | -1.6% |
| 1995 | 0.3536 hectares per person | -5.6% |
| 1996 | 0.3622 hectares per person | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 0.3566 hectares per person | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 0.3402 hectares per person | -4.6% |
| 1999 | 0.3334 hectares per person | -2.0% |
| 2000 | 0.3303 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 2001 | 0.3198 hectares per person | -3.2% |
| 2002 | 0.3116 hectares per person | -2.6% |
| 2003 | 0.3085 hectares per person | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 0.3035 hectares per person | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 0.2958 hectares per person | -2.5% |
| 2006 | 0.2865 hectares per person | -3.1% |
| 2007 | 0.2783 hectares per person | -2.9% |
| 2008 | 0.2717 hectares per person | -2.3% |
| 2009 | 0.2695 hectares per person | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 0.269 hectares per person | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 0.2659 hectares per person | -1.1% |
| 2012 | 0.2687 hectares per person | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 0.2614 hectares per person | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 0.2643 hectares per person | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 0.2645 hectares per person | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 0.2656 hectares per person | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 0.2631 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 2018 | 0.254 hectares per person | -3.5% |
| 2019 | 0.2507 hectares per person | -1.3% |
| 2020 | 0.2458 hectares per person | -2.0% |
| 2021 | 0.2434 hectares per person | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 0.2446 hectares per person | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 0.2378 hectares per person | -2.8% |
Spain compared with similar countries
- Spain's 0.2378 hectares per person is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.0728 hectares per person, 3.3× the median. (77 countries reporting)
- Spain's 0.2378 hectares per person is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.2161 hectares per person, 1.1× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.4991 hectares per person | 0.4739 hectares per person | 0.5285 hectares per person | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.4468 hectares per person | 0.4189 hectares per person | 0.4774 hectares per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.4066 hectares per person | 0.3995 hectares per person | 0.415 hectares per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.3675 hectares per person | 0.3334 hectares per person | 0.3945 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2976 hectares per person | 0.2695 hectares per person | 0.3303 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2627 hectares per person | 0.2507 hectares per person | 0.269 hectares per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.2429 hectares per person | 0.2378 hectares per person | 0.2458 hectares per person | 4 |
Countries ranked near Spain
More environment data for Spain
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -1.67 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -1.4 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.402 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.3 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -0.4277 % 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 -0.5136 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land use per person in Spain?
- Arable land use per person in Spain was 0.2378 hectares per person in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest arable land use per person recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 0.5285 hectares per person in 1961.
- What is the lowest arable land use per person recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.2378 hectares per person in 2023.
- How does Spain rank for arable land use per person?
- Spain ranks 44th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is arable land use per person rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Spain data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Arable land use per person. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Arable land is defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops, temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. It is measured in hectares per person.