Primary Forest — Area in China, mainland

China, mainland: Primary Forest — Area was 12,953 1000 ha in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
12,953 1000 ha
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
15th
of 182 countries
All-time high
12,953 1000 ha
in 2025
All-time low
11,453 1000 ha
in 2000
Years of data
36
1990–2025

Primary Forest — Area in China, mainland, 1990–2025

05.0k10.0k15.0k1990200720251990: 11.6k 1000 ha1991: 11.6k 1000 ha1992: 11.6k 1000 ha1993: 11.6k 1000 ha1994: 11.6k 1000 ha1995: 11.5k 1000 ha1996: 11.5k 1000 ha1997: 11.5k 1000 ha1998: 11.5k 1000 ha1999: 11.5k 1000 ha2000: 11.5k 1000 ha2001: 11.5k 1000 ha2002: 11.5k 1000 ha2003: 11.5k 1000 ha2004: 11.5k 1000 ha2005: 11.5k 1000 ha2006: 11.5k 1000 ha2007: 11.5k 1000 ha2008: 11.5k 1000 ha2009: 11.5k 1000 ha2010: 11.5k 1000 ha2011: 11.6k 1000 ha2012: 11.7k 1000 ha2013: 11.8k 1000 ha2014: 11.9k 1000 ha2015: 12.0k 1000 ha2016: 12.1k 1000 ha2017: 12.2k 1000 ha2018: 12.3k 1000 ha2019: 12.4k 1000 ha2020: 12.5k 1000 ha2021: 12.6k 1000 ha2022: 12.7k 1000 ha2023: 12.8k 1000 ha2024: 12.9k 1000 ha2025: 13.0k 1000 ha

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

Analysis

China, mainland recorded 12,953 1000 ha for primary forest — area in 2025. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.

The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 8.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, primary forest — area in China, mainland peaked at 12,953 1000 ha in 2025 and was at its lowest, 11,453 1000 ha, in 2000.

China, mainland ranks 15th of 182 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.

Primary Forest — Area in China, mainland, year by year

Annual values for Primary Forest — Area in China, mainland, 1990 to 2025.
Year 1000 ha Change
1990 11,646 1000 ha —
1991 11,627 1000 ha -0.2%
1992 11,607 1000 ha -0.2%
1993 11,588 1000 ha -0.2%
1994 11,569 1000 ha -0.2%
1995 11,550 1000 ha -0.2%
1996 11,530 1000 ha -0.2%
1997 11,511 1000 ha -0.2%
1998 11,492 1000 ha -0.2%
1999 11,472 1000 ha -0.2%
2000 11,453 1000 ha -0.2%
2001 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2002 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2003 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2004 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2005 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2006 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2007 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2008 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2009 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2010 11,453 1000 ha +0.0%
2011 11,553 1000 ha +0.9%
2012 11,653 1000 ha +0.9%
2013 11,753 1000 ha +0.9%
2014 11,853 1000 ha +0.9%
2015 11,953 1000 ha +0.8%
2016 12,053 1000 ha +0.8%
2017 12,153 1000 ha +0.8%
2018 12,253 1000 ha +0.8%
2019 12,353 1000 ha +0.8%
2020 12,453 1000 ha +0.8%
2021 12,553 1000 ha +0.8%
2022 12,653 1000 ha +0.8%
2023 12,753 1000 ha +0.8%
2024 12,853 1000 ha +0.8%
2025 12,953 1000 ha +0.8%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 11,559 1000 ha 11,472 1000 ha 11,646 1000 ha 10
2000s 11,453 1000 ha 11,453 1000 ha 11,453 1000 ha 10
2010s 11,903 1000 ha 11,453 1000 ha 12,353 1000 ha 10
2020s 12,703 1000 ha 12,453 1000 ha 12,953 1000 ha 6

Countries ranked near China, mainland

  1. 12 Papua New Guinea 19,444 1000 ha compare
  2. 13 Australia and New Zealand 17,092 1000 ha compare
  3. 14 Australia 15,092 1000 ha compare
  4. 15 China 12,953 1000 ha compare
  5. 17 Congo 12,931 1000 ha compare
  6. 18 India 11,904 1000 ha compare

See the full ranking of 213 places →

More environment data for China, mainland

All data for China, mainland →

Frequently asked questions

What is primary forest — area in China, mainland?
Primary forest — area in China, mainland was 12,953 1000 ha in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest primary forest — area recorded in China, mainland?
The highest recorded value was 12,953 1000 ha in 2025.
What is the lowest primary forest — area recorded in China, mainland?
The lowest recorded value was 11,453 1000 ha in 2000.
How does China, mainland rank for primary forest — area?
China, mainland ranks 15th out of 182 countries with data for 2025.
Is primary forest — area rising or falling in China, mainland?
Over the last ten years it is up 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this China, mainland data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Primary Forest — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Primary Forest — Area in China, mainland. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 27 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/primary-forest-area/china-mainland/

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About this data

Indicator
Primary Forest — Area
Unit
1000 ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
213 places, 7,478 data points, 1990–2025
Last refreshed

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.