Land use in North Korea
North Korea: Land use was 2.55 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Land use in North Korea, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, land use in North Korea stood at 2.55 million hectares.
The figure is down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in North Korea peaked at 2.62 million hectares in 2010 and was at its lowest, 2.18 million hectares, in 1961.
North Korea ranks 81st of 223 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.18 million hectares | 2.18 million hectares | 2.18 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.25 million hectares | 2.18 million hectares | 2.29 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.43 million hectares | 2.39 million hectares | 2.45 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.49 million hectares | 2.45 million hectares | 2.58 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.53 million hectares | 2.48 million hectares | 2.62 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.57 million hectares | 2.54 million hectares | 2.62 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.55 million hectares | 2.55 million hectares | 2.55 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
More environment data for North Korea
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 91.25 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 3.44 t CO2e/capita (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 3.43 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 1.16 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 10.95 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.0937 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 20.12 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.003 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.014 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 4.46 Mt CO2e (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is land use in North Korea?
- Land use in North Korea was 2.55 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 North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 2.62 million hectares in 2010.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.18 million hectares in 1961.
- How does North Korea rank for land use?
- North Korea ranks 81st out of 223 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North Korea 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
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).