Land use in Sweden
Sweden: Land use was 2.53 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
2.53 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
83rd
of 224 countries
All-time high
3.55 million hectares
in 1961
All-time low
2.53 million hectares
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Land use in Sweden, 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 Sweden is 2.53 million hectares, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, land use in Sweden peaked at 3.55 million hectares in 1961 and was at its lowest, 2.53 million hectares, in 2023.
That places Sweden 83rd 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 Sweden, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.55 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 3.49 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 1963 | 3.30 million hectares | -5.5% |
| 1964 | 3.26 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1965 | 3.17 million hectares | -2.9% |
| 1966 | 3.11 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1967 | 3.10 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1968 | 3.03 million hectares | -2.2% |
| 1969 | 3.06 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1970 | 3.05 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1971 | 3.05 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1972 | 3.03 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1973 | 3.02 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1974 | 3.02 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 3.01 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 3.00 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1977 | 2.99 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1978 | 3.00 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 2.98 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 2.98 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 2.96 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 2.95 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 2.94 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1984 | 2.93 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 2.92 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1986 | 2.91 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 2.89 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1988 | 2.87 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1989 | 2.85 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 2.85 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1991 | 2.79 million hectares | -1.9% |
| 1992 | 2.77 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 2.78 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 2.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 2.77 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 2.81 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 2.80 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 2.78 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 2.75 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 2.60 million hectares | -5.3% |
| 2001 | 2.68 million hectares | +3.1% |
| 2002 | 2.66 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 2.64 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 2.65 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 2.69 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 2006 | 2.65 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 2.63 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 2.62 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2009 | 2.63 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 2.62 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 2.61 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 2.60 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 2.59 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 2.58 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 2.58 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 2.57 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 2.56 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 2.55 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2019 | 2.54 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 2.54 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 2.54 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 2.53 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 2.53 million hectares | -0.1% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 2.53 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 303,040 hectares, 8.3× the median. (78 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 2.53 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.39 million hectares, 1.8× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.23 million hectares | 3.03 million hectares | 3.55 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 3.02 million hectares | 2.98 million hectares | 3.05 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.92 million hectares | 2.85 million hectares | 2.98 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.79 million hectares | 2.75 million hectares | 2.85 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.65 million hectares | 2.60 million hectares | 2.69 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.58 million hectares | 2.54 million hectares | 2.62 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.54 million hectares | 2.53 million hectares | 2.54 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More environment data for Sweden
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 1.1 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.12 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.852 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.72 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.27 % 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 -0.0922 % 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 Sweden?
- Land use in Sweden was 2.53 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 Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 3.55 million hectares in 1961.
- What is the lowest land use recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.53 million hectares in 2023.
- How does Sweden rank for land use?
- Sweden ranks 83rd out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is land use rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sweden 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).