Annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden
Sweden: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 345 in 2026. ◆ Volatile
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden, 2012–2026
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2026, annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden stood at 345. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is down 45.6% on the previous year and down 82.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden peaked at 33,875 in 2018 and was at its lowest, 345, in 2026.
Sweden ranks 158th of 248 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 1,962 | — |
| 2013 | 2,832 | +44.3% |
| 2014 | 20,664 | +629.7% |
| 2015 | 2,926 | -85.8% |
| 2016 | 1,939 | -33.7% |
| 2017 | 1,809 | -6.7% |
| 2018 | 33,875 | +1772.6% |
| 2019 | 2,555 | -92.5% |
| 2020 | 16,117 | +530.8% |
| 2021 | 1,828 | -88.7% |
| 2022 | 1,485 | -18.8% |
| 2023 | 1,087 | -26.8% |
| 2024 | 790 | -27.3% |
| 2025 | 634 | -19.7% |
| 2026 | 345 | -45.6% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 345 is above the median for high income countries, which is 273, 1.3× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 345 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 3,249, 11% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | +1772.6% | 1,809 | 33,875 |
| 2014 | +629.7% | 2,832 | 20,664 |
| 2020 | +530.8% | 2,555 | 16,117 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 8,570 | 1,809 | 33,875 | 8 |
| 2020s | 3,184 | 345 | 16,117 | 7 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More reference data data for Sweden
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.4328 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2237 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.68 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2063 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.68 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.9766 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 8.03 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.12 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires in Sweden was 345 in 2026, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 33,875 in 2018.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 345 in 2026.
- How does Sweden rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
- Sweden ranks 158th out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 82.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sweden 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).