Forest area in India
India: Forest area was 72.74 million hectares in 2025. ▲ Rising
Forest area in India, 1990–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for forest area in India is 72.74 million hectares, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
The figure is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in India peaked at 72.74 million hectares in 2025 and was at its lowest, 63.94 million hectares, in 1990.
That places India 9th out of 235 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Forest area in India, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 63.94 million hectares | — |
| 1991 | 64.30 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1992 | 64.67 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 65.03 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 65.40 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 65.76 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1996 | 66.13 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 66.50 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 66.86 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 67.23 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 67.59 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 67.78 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 67.97 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 68.16 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 68.35 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 68.54 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 68.73 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 68.92 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 69.11 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 69.31 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 69.50 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 69.76 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 70.03 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 70.30 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 70.56 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 70.83 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 71.12 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 71.42 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 71.72 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 72.01 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 72.31 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 72.39 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 72.48 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 72.57 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 72.65 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 72.74 million hectares | +0.1% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 72.74 million hectares is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 3.89 million hectares, 18.7× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- India's 72.74 million hectares is above the median for South Asia, which is 2.40 million hectares, 30.3× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 65.58 million hectares | 63.94 million hectares | 67.23 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 68.45 million hectares | 67.59 million hectares | 69.31 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 70.72 million hectares | 69.50 million hectares | 72.01 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 72.52 million hectares | 72.31 million hectares | 72.74 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More environment data for India
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 11.05 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 12.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.254 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.954 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.92 % 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 1.12 % 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 forest area in India?
- Forest area in India was 72.74 million 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 forest area recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 72.74 million hectares in 2025.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 63.94 million hectares in 1990.
- How does India rank for forest area?
- India ranks 9th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is forest area rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India 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 Forest area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Forest area is land under natural or planted stands of trees of at least 5 meters in situ, whether productive or not, and excludes tree stands in agricultural production systems.