What is inland waters — area in World?

Inland waters — area in World was 443,046 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

What is the highest inland waters — area recorded in World?

The highest recorded value was 443,046 1000 ha in 2024.

What is the lowest inland waters — area recorded in World?

The lowest recorded value was 383,643 1000 ha in 1977.

How does World rank for inland waters — area?

World ranks 1st out of 32 groups with data for 2024.

Is inland waters — area rising or falling in World?

Over the last ten years it is up 3.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Where does this World data come from?

The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Inland waters — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Inland waters — Area in World

Name: Inland waters — Area in World
Creator: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)

World: Inland waters — Area was 443,046 1000 ha in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)

443,046 1000 ha

Change on year

up 0.0%

Rank

1st

of 32 groups

All-time high

443,046 1000 ha

in 2024

All-time low

383,643 1000 ha

in 1977

Years of data

1961–2024

Inland waters — Area in World, 1961–2024

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.

Analysis

World recorded 443,046 1000 ha for inland waters — area in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, inland waters — area in World peaked at 443,046 1000 ha in 2024 and was at its lowest, 383,643 1000 ha, in 1977.

World ranks 1st of 32 groups on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.

Inland waters — Area in World, year by year

Annual values for Inland waters — Area in World, 1961 to 2024.
Year	1000 ha	Change
1961	383,690 1000 ha	—
1962	383,692 1000 ha	+0.0%
1963	383,691 1000 ha	-0.0%
1964	383,691 1000 ha	+0.0%
1965	383,692 1000 ha	+0.0%
1966	383,693 1000 ha	+0.0%
1967	383,694 1000 ha	+0.0%
1968	383,695 1000 ha	+0.0%
1969	383,695 1000 ha	+0.0%
1970	383,696 1000 ha	+0.0%
1971	383,697 1000 ha	+0.0%
1972	383,708 1000 ha	+0.0%
1973	383,717 1000 ha	+0.0%
1974	383,765 1000 ha	+0.0%
1975	383,818 1000 ha	+0.0%
1976	383,841 1000 ha	+0.0%
1977	383,643 1000 ha	-0.1%
1978	383,645 1000 ha	+0.0%
1979	383,854 1000 ha	+0.1%
1980	383,882 1000 ha	+0.0%
1981	383,875 1000 ha	-0.0%
1982	383,895 1000 ha	+0.0%
1983	383,903 1000 ha	+0.0%
1984	384,056 1000 ha	+0.0%
1985	384,068 1000 ha	+0.0%
1986	384,059 1000 ha	-0.0%
1987	383,936 1000 ha	-0.0%
1988	383,939 1000 ha	+0.0%
1989	384,038 1000 ha	+0.0%
1990	384,106 1000 ha	+0.0%
1991	384,098 1000 ha	-0.0%
1992	417,885 1000 ha	+8.8%
1993	418,270 1000 ha	+0.1%
1994	418,782 1000 ha	+0.1%
1995	419,078 1000 ha	+0.1%
1996	419,129 1000 ha	+0.0%
1997	419,067 1000 ha	-0.0%
1998	418,944 1000 ha	-0.0%
1999	418,265 1000 ha	-0.2%
2000	418,684 1000 ha	+0.1%
2001	418,842 1000 ha	+0.0%
2002	419,104 1000 ha	+0.1%
2003	418,436 1000 ha	-0.2%
2004	407,133 1000 ha	-2.7%
2005	407,183 1000 ha	+0.0%
2006	407,433 1000 ha	+0.1%
2007	407,468 1000 ha	+0.0%
2008	428,999 1000 ha	+5.3%
2009	428,922 1000 ha	-0.0%
2010	428,705 1000 ha	-0.1%
2011	428,691 1000 ha	-0.0%
2012	428,736 1000 ha	+0.0%
2013	428,928 1000 ha	+0.0%
2014	428,967 1000 ha	+0.0%
2015	429,337 1000 ha	+0.1%
2016	428,345 1000 ha	-0.2%
2017	429,171 1000 ha	+0.2%
2018	429,078 1000 ha	-0.0%
2019	428,155 1000 ha	-0.2%
2020	426,154 1000 ha	-0.5%
2021	442,938 1000 ha	+3.9%
2022	443,040 1000 ha	+0.0%
2023	442,907 1000 ha	-0.0%
2024	443,046 1000 ha	+0.0%

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	383,693 1000 ha	383,690 1000 ha	383,695 1000 ha	9
1970s	383,738 1000 ha	383,643 1000 ha	383,854 1000 ha	10
1980s	383,965 1000 ha	383,875 1000 ha	384,068 1000 ha	10
1990s	411,762 1000 ha	384,098 1000 ha	419,129 1000 ha	10
2000s	416,220 1000 ha	407,133 1000 ha	428,999 1000 ha	10
2010s	428,811 1000 ha	428,155 1000 ha	429,337 1000 ha	10
2020s	439,617 1000 ha	426,154 1000 ha	443,046 1000 ha	5

Countries ranked near World

1 OECD 204,515 1000 ha compare
2 Canada 108,496 1000 ha compare
3 Russian Federation 72,138 1000 ha compare
3 Russia 72,138 1000 ha compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More environment data for World

Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -3.5 Percentage change (2025)
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.99 Percentage change (2025)
Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Standard Deviation 0.208 °C (2025)
Temperature change 1.88 °C (2025)
Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 4.53 % change on previous year (2024)
Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 1.27 % 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 0.2123 % change on previous year (2024)

All data for World →

Frequently asked questions

What is inland waters — area in World?: Inland waters — area in World was 443,046 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest inland waters — area recorded in World?: The highest recorded value was 443,046 1000 ha in 2024.
What is the lowest inland waters — area recorded in World?: The lowest recorded value was 383,643 1000 ha in 1977.
How does World rank for inland waters — area?: World ranks 1st out of 32 groups with data for 2024.
Is inland waters — area rising or falling in World?: Over the last ten years it is up 3.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this World data come from?: The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Inland waters — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Inland waters — Area in World. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 28 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/inland-waters-area/world/

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About this data

Indicator: Inland waters — Area
Unit: 1000 ha
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage: 220 places, 12,677 data points, 1961–2024
Last refreshed: 17 September 2026

The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.