Land use in South Korea
South Korea: Land use was 1.51 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.51 million hectares
Change on year
down 1.0%
World rank
102nd
of 224 countries
All-time high
2.32 million hectares
in 1968
All-time low
1.51 million hectares
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Land use in South 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
The most recent figure for land use in South Korea is 1.51 million hectares, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is down 1.0% on the previous year and down 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in South Korea peaked at 2.32 million hectares in 1968 and was at its lowest, 1.51 million hectares, in 2023.
That places South Korea 102nd out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Land use in South Korea, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2.10 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 2.06 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 1963 | 2.08 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1964 | 2.17 million hectares | +4.4% |
| 1965 | 2.26 million hectares | +3.9% |
| 1966 | 2.29 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1967 | 2.31 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1968 | 2.32 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 2.31 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1970 | 2.30 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1971 | 2.27 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1972 | 2.24 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 1973 | 2.24 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1974 | 2.24 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 2.24 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1976 | 2.24 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1977 | 2.23 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1978 | 2.22 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1979 | 2.21 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1980 | 2.20 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1981 | 2.19 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1982 | 2.18 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1983 | 2.17 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 2.15 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1985 | 2.14 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1986 | 2.14 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1987 | 2.14 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1988 | 2.14 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1989 | 2.13 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1990 | 2.11 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1991 | 2.09 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1992 | 2.07 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 2.06 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1994 | 2.03 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 1995 | 1.99 million hectares | -2.4% |
| 1996 | 1.95 million hectares | -2.0% |
| 1997 | 1.92 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 1998 | 1.91 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 1.90 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 1.92 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 2001 | 1.89 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2002 | 1.86 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 1.85 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 1.84 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 1.82 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 1.80 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2007 | 1.78 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 1.76 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 1.74 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 1.72 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 1.70 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2012 | 1.73 million hectares | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 1.71 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 2014 | 1.69 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 1.68 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 1.64 million hectares | -2.1% |
| 2017 | 1.62 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 1.60 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2019 | 1.58 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 1.56 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2021 | 1.55 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 2022 | 1.53 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 1.51 million hectares | -1.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 1.51 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 303,040 hectares, 5.0× the median. (78 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 1.51 million hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 141,800 hectares, 10.7× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.21 million hectares | 2.06 million hectares | 2.32 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.24 million hectares | 2.21 million hectares | 2.30 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.16 million hectares | 2.13 million hectares | 2.20 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.00 million hectares | 1.90 million hectares | 2.11 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.83 million hectares | 1.74 million hectares | 1.92 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.67 million hectares | 1.58 million hectares | 1.73 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.54 million hectares | 1.51 million hectares | 1.56 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More environment data for South Korea
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -0.2791 % 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 -2.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), annual -0.2415 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per unit of 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) (Mt CO2e) 1.61 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is land use in South Korea?
- Land use in South Korea was 1.51 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 South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 2.32 million hectares in 1968.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.51 million hectares in 2023.
- How does South Korea rank for land use?
- South Korea ranks 102nd out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South 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).