Annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan
Japan: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 15,417 in 2026. ▲ Rising
Latest (2026)
15,417
Change on year
up 3.3%
World rank
107th
of 248 countries
All-time high
18,456
in 2022
All-time low
4,656
in 2012
Years of data
15
2012–2026
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan, 2012–2026
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2026, annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan stood at 15,417.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.3% on the previous year and up 117.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan peaked at 18,456 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 4,656, in 2012.
Japan ranks 107th of 248 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 4,656 | — |
| 2013 | 8,339 | +79.1% |
| 2014 | 16,322 | +95.7% |
| 2015 | 16,638 | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 7,106 | -57.3% |
| 2017 | 4,702 | -33.8% |
| 2018 | 17,344 | +268.9% |
| 2019 | 12,490 | -28.0% |
| 2020 | 16,543 | +32.4% |
| 2021 | 6,062 | -63.4% |
| 2022 | 18,456 | +204.5% |
| 2023 | 8,550 | -53.7% |
| 2024 | 7,430 | -13.1% |
| 2025 | 14,921 | +100.8% |
| 2026 | 15,417 | +3.3% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 15,417 is above the median for high income countries, which is 273, 56.5× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Japan's 15,417 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 5,676, 2.7× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 10,950 | 4,656 | 17,344 | 8 |
| 2020s | 12,483 | 6,062 | 18,456 | 7 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More reference data data for Japan
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.19 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.981 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3629 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.98 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 4.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.57 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 23.74 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.98 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires in Japan was 15,417 in 2026, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 18,456 in 2022.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 4,656 in 2012.
- How does Japan rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
- Japan ranks 107th out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 117.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from 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).