Drivers of deforestation in Brazil
Brazil: Drivers of deforestation was 1.15 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Drivers of deforestation in Brazil, 2001–2023
Source: Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Brazil recorded 1.15 million hectares for drivers of deforestation in 2023.
That represents a change of down 33.2% on the previous year and up 45.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drivers of deforestation in Brazil peaked at 2.40 million hectares in 2004 and was at its lowest, 788,766 hectares, in 2013.
Brazil ranks 1st of 166 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.
Drivers of deforestation in Brazil, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 1.35 million hectares | — |
| 2002 | 2.07 million hectares | +52.7% |
| 2003 | 1.90 million hectares | -8.3% |
| 2004 | 2.40 million hectares | +26.4% |
| 2005 | 2.23 million hectares | -6.9% |
| 2006 | 1.79 million hectares | -19.8% |
| 2007 | 1.47 million hectares | -17.6% |
| 2008 | 1.30 million hectares | -11.6% |
| 2009 | 901,100 hectares | -30.8% |
| 2010 | 1.36 million hectares | +50.7% |
| 2011 | 899,554 hectares | -33.8% |
| 2012 | 1.24 million hectares | +37.5% |
| 2013 | 788,766 hectares | -36.2% |
| 2014 | 1.15 million hectares | +45.9% |
| 2015 | 1.04 million hectares | -9.7% |
| 2016 | 1.72 million hectares | +65.8% |
| 2017 | 1.54 million hectares | -10.5% |
| 2018 | 1.22 million hectares | -20.6% |
| 2019 | 1.35 million hectares | +10.0% |
| 2020 | 1.48 million hectares | +10.3% |
| 2021 | 1.55 million hectares | +4.4% |
| 2022 | 1.72 million hectares | +10.7% |
| 2023 | 1.15 million hectares | -33.2% |
Brazil compared with similar countries
- Brazil's 1.15 million hectares is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 74.69 hectares, 15334.2× the median. (50 countries reporting)
- Brazil's 1.15 million hectares is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 220.38 hectares, 5197.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.71 million hectares | 901,100 hectares | 2.40 million hectares | 9 |
| 2010s | 1.23 million hectares | 788,766 hectares | 1.72 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.47 million hectares | 1.15 million hectares | 1.72 million hectares | 4 |
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 drivers of deforestation in Brazil?
- Drivers of deforestation in Brazil was 1.15 million hectares in 2023, according to Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest drivers of deforestation recorded in Brazil?
- The highest recorded value was 2.40 million hectares in 2004.
- What is the lowest drivers of deforestation recorded in Brazil?
- The lowest recorded value was 788,766 hectares in 2013.
- How does Brazil rank for drivers of deforestation?
- Brazil ranks 1st out of 166 countries with data for 2023.
- Is drivers of deforestation rising or falling in Brazil?
- Over the last ten years it is up 45.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Brazil data come from?
- The figures come from Singh et al. (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Drivers of deforestation. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimates of commodity-driven deforestation, measured in hectares per year. This includes deforestation caused by the production of agricultural products and forestry, which account for approximately 90% of the world's deforestation.