Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in United States
United States: Annual area burnt by wildfires by region was 2.56 million hectares in 2025. ▬ Flat
Latest (2025)
2.56 million hectares
Change on year
down 32.8%
World rank
28th
of 225 countries
All-time high
4.96 million hectares
in 2020
All-time low
2.01 million hectares
in 2023
Years of data
24
2002–2025
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in United States, 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 United States is 2.56 million hectares, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 32.8% on the previous year and down 37.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires by region in United States peaked at 4.96 million hectares in 2020 and was at its lowest, 2.01 million hectares, in 2023.
United States ranks 28th of 225 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in United States, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 2.46 million hectares | — |
| 2003 | 2.81 million hectares | +14.5% |
| 2004 | 3.96 million hectares | +40.7% |
| 2005 | 4.28 million hectares | +7.9% |
| 2006 | 3.76 million hectares | -12.1% |
| 2007 | 4.03 million hectares | +7.2% |
| 2008 | 2.83 million hectares | -29.7% |
| 2009 | 3.08 million hectares | +8.6% |
| 2010 | 2.42 million hectares | -21.2% |
| 2011 | 4.30 million hectares | +77.6% |
| 2012 | 3.69 million hectares | -14.2% |
| 2013 | 2.13 million hectares | -42.3% |
| 2014 | 2.36 million hectares | +10.9% |
| 2015 | 4.09 million hectares | +72.9% |
| 2016 | 2.97 million hectares | -27.4% |
| 2017 | 3.91 million hectares | +31.8% |
| 2018 | 3.70 million hectares | -5.4% |
| 2019 | 2.79 million hectares | -24.5% |
| 2020 | 4.96 million hectares | +77.7% |
| 2021 | 3.85 million hectares | -22.4% |
| 2022 | 3.47 million hectares | -9.9% |
| 2023 | 2.01 million hectares | -42.1% |
| 2024 | 3.81 million hectares | +89.7% |
| 2025 | 2.56 million hectares | -32.8% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 2.56 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 85.86 hectares, 29826.5× the median. (79 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.40 million hectares | 2.46 million hectares | 4.28 million hectares | 8 |
| 2010s | 3.24 million hectares | 2.13 million hectares | 4.30 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.44 million hectares | 2.01 million hectares | 4.96 million hectares | 6 |
Countries ranked near United States
More reference data data for United States
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 19.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 24.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 119.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 20.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 119.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 64.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 52.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 133.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 589.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 112.69 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires by region in United States?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires by region in United States was 2.56 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 United States?
- The highest recorded value was 4.96 million hectares in 2020.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires by region recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.01 million hectares in 2023.
- How does United States rank for annual area burnt by wildfires by region?
- United States ranks 28th out of 225 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires by region rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 37.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this United States 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.