Annual area burnt by wildfires in New Zealand
New Zealand: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 17,103 hectares in 2026. ▼ Falling
Annual area burnt by wildfires in New Zealand, 2012–2026
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 17,103 hectares for annual area burnt by wildfires in 2026. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is down 40.8% on the previous year and down 52.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in New Zealand peaked at 50,593 hectares in 2019 and was at its lowest, 17,103 hectares, in 2026.
That places New Zealand 101st out of 248 countries with data for 2026, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Annual area burnt by wildfires in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 39,433 hectares | — |
| 2013 | 45,858 hectares | +16.3% |
| 2014 | 48,595 hectares | +6.0% |
| 2015 | 47,822 hectares | -1.6% |
| 2016 | 36,327 hectares | -24.0% |
| 2017 | 32,815 hectares | -9.7% |
| 2018 | 26,427 hectares | -19.5% |
| 2019 | 50,593 hectares | +91.4% |
| 2020 | 37,965 hectares | -25.0% |
| 2021 | 35,746 hectares | -5.8% |
| 2022 | 32,355 hectares | -9.5% |
| 2023 | 21,784 hectares | -32.7% |
| 2024 | 19,487 hectares | -10.5% |
| 2025 | 28,868 hectares | +48.1% |
| 2026 | 17,103 hectares | -40.8% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 17,103 hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 273 hectares, 62.6× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 17,103 hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2,872 hectares, 6.0× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 40,984 hectares | 26,427 hectares | 50,593 hectares | 8 |
| 2020s | 27,615 hectares | 17,103 hectares | 37,965 hectares | 7 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More reference data data for New Zealand
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.4532 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 9.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0459 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 10.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.52 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 42.17 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 47.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2499 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires in New Zealand?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires in New Zealand was 17,103 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 New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 50,593 hectares in 2019.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 17,103 hectares in 2026.
- How does New Zealand rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
- New Zealand ranks 101st out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 52.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand 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.