Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil
Brazil: Annual deforestation as a share of forest area was 0.6% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil, 1990–2020
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil stood at 0.6%.
The figure is up 77.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil peaked at 1.0% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 2010.
Brazil ranks 24th of 105 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1.0% | — |
| 2000 | 0.9% | -13.9% |
| 2010 | 0.4% | -59.3% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | +39.8% |
| 2020 | 0.6% | +27.1% |
Brazil compared with similar countries
- Brazil's 0.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.2%, 4.1× the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Brazil's 0.6% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 0.2%, 4.2× the median. (21 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| 2010s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 2 |
| 2020s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Brazil
More environment data for Brazil
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -6.93 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -8.24 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.221 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.36 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.155 % 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 -2.73 % 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 annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil?
- Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in Brazil was 0.6% in 2020, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual deforestation as a share of forest area recorded in Brazil?
- The highest recorded value was 1.0% in 1990.
- What is the lowest annual deforestation as a share of forest area recorded in Brazil?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 2010.
- How does Brazil rank for annual deforestation as a share of forest area?
- Brazil ranks 24th out of 105 countries with data for 2020.
- Is annual deforestation as a share of forest area rising or falling in Brazil?
- Over the last ten years it is up 77.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Brazil 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 deforestation as a share of forest area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual deforestation as share of forest area represents the yearly percentage of forest area lost due to deforestation relative to the total forest area.