Annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia
Australia: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 14.92 million hectares in 2026. ▼ Falling
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia, 2012–2026
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2026, annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia stood at 14.92 million hectares. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 58.2% on the previous year and down 34.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia peaked at 65.30 million hectares in 2012 and was at its lowest, 14.92 million hectares, in 2026.
That places Australia 3rd out of 248 countries with data for 2026, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 65.30 million hectares | — |
| 2013 | 26.24 million hectares | -59.8% |
| 2014 | 35.92 million hectares | +36.9% |
| 2015 | 33.97 million hectares | -5.4% |
| 2016 | 22.84 million hectares | -32.8% |
| 2017 | 37.97 million hectares | +66.3% |
| 2018 | 36.70 million hectares | -3.4% |
| 2019 | 36.40 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 18.68 million hectares | -48.7% |
| 2021 | 24.96 million hectares | +33.6% |
| 2022 | 26.34 million hectares | +5.5% |
| 2023 | 54.42 million hectares | +106.6% |
| 2024 | 30.32 million hectares | -44.3% |
| 2025 | 35.69 million hectares | +17.7% |
| 2026 | 14.92 million hectares | -58.2% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 14.92 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 273 hectares, 54661.9× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Australia's 14.92 million hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2,872 hectares, 5195.9× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 36.92 million hectares | 22.84 million hectares | 65.30 million hectares | 8 |
| 2020s | 29.33 million hectares | 14.92 million hectares | 54.42 million hectares | 7 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 1 Democratic Republic of Congo 21.93 million hectares compare
- 2 Angola 16.98 million hectares compare
- 4 Zambia 9.30 million hectares compare
- 5 Russia 7.50 million hectares compare
- 6 South Sudan 7.17 million hectares compare
More reference data data for Australia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 28.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 118.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 170.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 13.9 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires in Australia was 14.92 million hectares in 2026, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 65.30 million hectares in 2012.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.92 million hectares in 2026.
- How does Australia rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
- Australia ranks 3rd out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 34.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia 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. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Area burnt by wildfires in hectares. The 2026 data is incomplete and was last updated 18 September 2026.