Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China
China: Annual area burnt by wildfires by region was 2.62 million hectares in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
2.62 million hectares
Change on year
down 31.5%
World rank
25th
of 225 countries
All-time high
5.42 million hectares
in 2014
All-time low
1.51 million hectares
in 2016
Years of data
24
2002–2025
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China, 2002–2025
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China is 2.62 million hectares, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 31.5% on the previous year and down 34.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China peaked at 5.42 million hectares in 2014 and was at its lowest, 1.51 million hectares, in 2016.
That places China 25th out of 225 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 1.55 million hectares | — |
| 2003 | 3.40 million hectares | +119.2% |
| 2004 | 2.25 million hectares | -33.8% |
| 2005 | 3.09 million hectares | +37.1% |
| 2006 | 3.98 million hectares | +29.1% |
| 2007 | 3.85 million hectares | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 3.31 million hectares | -13.9% |
| 2009 | 3.21 million hectares | -3.2% |
| 2010 | 4.06 million hectares | +26.8% |
| 2011 | 3.11 million hectares | -23.5% |
| 2012 | 4.76 million hectares | +52.9% |
| 2013 | 3.38 million hectares | -28.9% |
| 2014 | 5.42 million hectares | +60.2% |
| 2015 | 3.98 million hectares | -26.5% |
| 2016 | 1.51 million hectares | -62.2% |
| 2017 | 4.11 million hectares | +172.9% |
| 2018 | 1.52 million hectares | -63.1% |
| 2019 | 2.52 million hectares | +66.5% |
| 2020 | 2.40 million hectares | -4.9% |
| 2021 | 2.55 million hectares | +6.1% |
| 2022 | 2.72 million hectares | +6.8% |
| 2023 | 2.44 million hectares | -10.3% |
| 2024 | 3.83 million hectares | +57.0% |
| 2025 | 2.62 million hectares | -31.5% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 2.62 million hectares is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 23,022 hectares, 113.9× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- China's 2.62 million hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 665.44 hectares, 3941.8× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.08 million hectares | 1.55 million hectares | 3.98 million hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 3.44 million hectares | 1.51 million hectares | 5.42 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.76 million hectares | 2.40 million hectares | 3.83 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near China
- 22 Madagascar 3.17 million hectares compare
- 23 Venezuela 2.92 million hectares compare
- 24 Ghana 2.74 million hectares compare
- 26 Botswana 2.59 million hectares compare
- 27 South Africa 2.59 million hectares compare
- 28 United States 2.56 million hectares compare
More reference data data for China
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 49.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 75.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 303.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 18.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 303.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 165.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 206.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 350.74 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,480 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 102.37 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in China was 2.62 million hectares in 2025, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 5.42 million hectares in 2014.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.51 million hectares in 2016.
- How does China rank for annual area burnt by wildfires by region?
- China ranks 25th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires by region rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 34.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual area burnt by wildfires by region. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total land area burnt by wildfires each year, in hectares, across all land cover types.