FAO projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: FAO projections of arable land was 3.64 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
3.64 million hectares
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
69th
of 224 countries
All-time high
3.81 million hectares
in 1999
All-time low
1.17 million hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
FAO projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, fao projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia stood at 3.64 million hectares.
That represents a change of down 2.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fao projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia peaked at 3.81 million hectares in 1999 and was at its lowest, 1.17 million hectares, in 1961.
Saudi Arabia ranks 69th of 224 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
FAO projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.17 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 1.19 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1963 | 1.21 million hectares | +1.8% |
| 1964 | 1.24 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 1965 | 1.26 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1966 | 1.28 million hectares | +1.7% |
| 1967 | 1.30 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1968 | 1.34 million hectares | +2.8% |
| 1969 | 1.38 million hectares | +2.6% |
| 1970 | 1.42 million hectares | +3.3% |
| 1971 | 1.47 million hectares | +3.3% |
| 1972 | 1.52 million hectares | +3.4% |
| 1973 | 1.57 million hectares | +3.5% |
| 1974 | 1.64 million hectares | +4.5% |
| 1975 | 1.68 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 1976 | 1.75 million hectares | +3.9% |
| 1977 | 1.80 million hectares | +3.1% |
| 1978 | 1.86 million hectares | +2.9% |
| 1979 | 1.91 million hectares | +2.9% |
| 1980 | 1.96 million hectares | +2.8% |
| 1981 | 2.01 million hectares | +2.6% |
| 1982 | 2.07 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 1983 | 2.27 million hectares | +9.8% |
| 1984 | 2.42 million hectares | +6.7% |
| 1985 | 2.62 million hectares | +8.3% |
| 1986 | 2.78 million hectares | +5.9% |
| 1987 | 2.98 million hectares | +7.2% |
| 1988 | 3.13 million hectares | +5.0% |
| 1989 | 3.29 million hectares | +5.1% |
| 1990 | 3.48 million hectares | +5.8% |
| 1991 | 3.67 million hectares | +5.5% |
| 1992 | 3.75 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 1993 | 3.79 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 3.78 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 3.77 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 3.81 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 2000 | 3.80 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 3.79 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 3.78 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2006 | 3.78 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 3.77 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 3.77 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 3.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 3.74 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 3.73 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 3.72 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 3.71 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 3.62 million hectares | -2.5% |
| 2015 | 3.61 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 3.61 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 3.61 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 3.61 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 3.62 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 3.64 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 3.64 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 3.64 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 3.64 million hectares | +0.0% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 3.64 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 303,040 hectares, 12.0× the median. (78 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 3.64 million hectares is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 1.45 million hectares, 2.5× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.26 million hectares | 1.17 million hectares | 1.38 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.66 million hectares | 1.42 million hectares | 1.91 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.55 million hectares | 1.96 million hectares | 3.29 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.74 million hectares | 3.48 million hectares | 3.81 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.78 million hectares | 3.76 million hectares | 3.80 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.66 million hectares | 3.61 million hectares | 3.74 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.64 million hectares | 3.64 million hectares | 3.64 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More reference data data for Saudi Arabia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1847 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1771 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6194 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.2207 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.64 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.9641 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fao projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia?
- Fao projections of arable land in Saudi Arabia was 3.64 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fao projections of arable land recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 3.81 million hectares in 1999.
- What is the lowest fao projections of arable land recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.17 million hectares in 1961.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for fao projections of arable land?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 69th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fao projections of arable land rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of FAO projections of arable land. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Land allocated to arable production or permanent crops, measured in hectares. Values from 2030 onwards are FAO's 2018 projections under three different scenarios.