Share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand

New Zealand: Share of land covered by lakes and rivers was 1.23 in 2022. ▲ Rising

Latest (2022)
1.23
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
43rd
of 207 countries
All-time high
1.23
in 2004
All-time low
0.24
in 2000
Years of data
23
2000–2022

Share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand, 2000–2022

0.20.40.60.811.22000201120222000: 0.242001: 0.492002: 0.732003: 0.982004: 1.22005: 1.22006: 1.22007: 1.22008: 1.22009: 1.22010: 1.22011: 1.22012: 1.22013: 1.22014: 1.22015: 1.22016: 1.22017: 1.22018: 1.22019: 1.22020: 1.22021: 1.22022: 1.2

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2022, share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand stood at 1.23. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand peaked at 1.23 in 2004 and was at its lowest, 0.24, in 2000.

That places New Zealand 43rd out of 207 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.

Share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand, year by year

Annual values for Share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand, 2000 to 2022.
Year Value Change
2000 0.24
2001 0.49 +104.2%
2002 0.73 +49.0%
2003 0.98 +34.2%
2004 1.23 +25.5%
2005 1.23 +0.0%
2006 1.23 +0.0%
2007 1.23 +0.0%
2008 1.22 -0.8%
2009 1.22 +0.0%
2010 1.22 +0.0%
2011 1.22 +0.0%
2012 1.22 +0.0%
2013 1.23 +0.8%
2014 1.23 +0.0%
2015 1.23 +0.0%
2016 1.23 +0.0%
2017 1.22 -0.8%
2018 1.22 +0.0%
2019 1.22 +0.0%
2020 1.22 +0.0%
2021 1.23 +0.8%
2022 1.23 +0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 0.98 0.24 1.23 10
2010s 1.22 1.22 1.23 10
2020s 1.23 1.22 1.23 3

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 40 Belize 1.32 compare
  2. 40 Lithuania 1.32 compare
  3. 42 Ireland 1.28 compare
  4. 43 Hungary 1.23 compare
  5. 45 Latvia 1.22 compare
  6. 46 Zambia 1.21 compare

See the full ranking of 207 places →

More reference data data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand?
Share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand was 1.23 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of land covered by lakes and rivers recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 1.23 in 2004.
What is the lowest share of land covered by lakes and rivers recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 0.24 in 2000.
How does New Zealand rank for share of land covered by lakes and rivers?
New Zealand ranks 43rd out of 207 countries with data for 2022.
Is share of land covered by lakes and rivers rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this New Zealand data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land covered by lakes and rivers. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of land covered by lakes and rivers in New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 28 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-land-covered-by-lakes-and-rivers/new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of land covered by lakes and rivers
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
207 places, 4,761 data points, 2000–2022
Last refreshed