Land use in Guatemala
Guatemala: Land use was 2.74 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
2.74 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
77th
of 224 countries
All-time high
2.74 million hectares
in 2020
All-time low
1.54 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Land use in Guatemala, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Guatemala recorded 2.74 million hectares for land use in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 13.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in Guatemala peaked at 2.74 million hectares in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.54 million hectares, in 1961.
That places Guatemala 77th out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Land use in Guatemala, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.54 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 1.54 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1963 | 1.54 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 1.54 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1965 | 1.54 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 1.55 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1967 | 1.56 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1968 | 1.56 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1969 | 1.55 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 1.55 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1971 | 1.56 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1972 | 1.58 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 1.61 million hectares | +2.1% |
| 1974 | 1.64 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 1.64 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1976 | 1.67 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 1977 | 1.72 million hectares | +3.2% |
| 1978 | 1.73 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 1.73 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 1.75 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1981 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 1.78 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 1983 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1984 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 1.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1.88 million hectares | +5.3% |
| 1994 | 1.91 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1995 | 1.91 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1.91 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 2.00 million hectares | +4.9% |
| 1998 | 2.10 million hectares | +4.7% |
| 1999 | 2.19 million hectares | +4.5% |
| 2000 | 2.28 million hectares | +4.3% |
| 2001 | 2.38 million hectares | +4.1% |
| 2002 | 2.47 million hectares | +3.9% |
| 2003 | 2.56 million hectares | +3.8% |
| 2004 | 2.37 million hectares | -7.6% |
| 2005 | 2.24 million hectares | -5.4% |
| 2006 | 2.36 million hectares | +5.1% |
| 2007 | 2.51 million hectares | +6.4% |
| 2008 | 2.52 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 2.49 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 2.47 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 2.46 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2012 | 2.44 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 2.41 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 2014 | 2.47 million hectares | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 2.65 million hectares | +7.2% |
| 2016 | 2.67 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 2.69 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 2.70 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 2.72 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 2.74 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 2.74 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 2.74 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2.74 million hectares | +0.0% |
Guatemala compared with similar countries
- Guatemala's 2.74 million hectares is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.58 million hectares, 1.7× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Guatemala's 2.74 million hectares is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 544,348 hectares, 5.0× the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.55 million hectares | 1.54 million hectares | 1.56 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.64 million hectares | 1.55 million hectares | 1.73 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.78 million hectares | 1.75 million hectares | 1.78 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.93 million hectares | 1.78 million hectares | 2.19 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.42 million hectares | 2.24 million hectares | 2.56 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.57 million hectares | 2.41 million hectares | 2.72 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.74 million hectares | 2.74 million hectares | 2.74 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Guatemala
More environment data for Guatemala
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.45 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.02 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.273 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.47 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 1.11 % 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 % 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 land use in Guatemala?
- Land use in Guatemala was 2.74 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest land use recorded in Guatemala?
- The highest recorded value was 2.74 million hectares in 2020.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in Guatemala?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.54 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Guatemala rank for land use?
- Guatemala ranks 77th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in Guatemala?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Guatemala 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 Land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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