Forest area in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Forest area was 2.12 million hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
2.12 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.2%
World rank
107th
of 235 countries
All-time high
2.37 million hectares
in 1990
All-time low
2.10 million hectares
in 2015
Years of data
36
1990–2025
Forest area in Sri Lanka, 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 Sri Lanka is 2.12 million hectares, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.2% on the previous year and up 1.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, forest area in Sri Lanka peaked at 2.37 million hectares in 1990 and was at its lowest, 2.10 million hectares, in 2015.
Sri Lanka ranks 107th of 235 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Forest area in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 2.37 million hectares | — |
| 1991 | 2.36 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1992 | 2.34 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1993 | 2.33 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 2.31 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 2.30 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 2.29 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 2.27 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 2.26 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 2.25 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 2.23 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 2.22 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 2.22 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 2.21 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 2.20 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 2.19 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 2.19 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 2.18 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 2.17 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 2.16 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 2.16 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 2.14 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 2.13 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 2.12 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 2.11 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 2.10 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 2.11 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 2.12 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 2.13 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 2.14 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 2.15 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 2.14 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 2.14 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 2.13 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 2.13 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 2.12 million hectares | -0.2% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 2.12 million hectares is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 2.29 million hectares, 92% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 2.12 million hectares is below the median for South Asia, which is 2.40 million hectares, 88% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.31 million hectares | 2.25 million hectares | 2.37 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.20 million hectares | 2.16 million hectares | 2.23 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.12 million hectares | 2.10 million hectares | 2.16 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.13 million hectares | 2.12 million hectares | 2.15 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
- 104 Dominican Republic 2.26 million hectares compare
- 105 Lithuania 2.22 million hectares compare
- 106 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2.16 million hectares compare
- 108 Guinea-Bissau 2.10 million hectares compare
- 109 Hungary 2.09 million hectares compare
- 110 Malawi 2.03 million hectares compare
More environment data for Sri Lanka
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.24 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 5.49 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.207 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.849 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 5.63 % 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 1.22 % 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 Sri Lanka?
- Forest area in Sri Lanka was 2.12 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 Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 2.37 million hectares in 1990.
- What is the lowest forest area recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.10 million hectares in 2015.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for forest area?
- Sri Lanka ranks 107th out of 235 countries with data for 2025.
- Is forest area rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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.