Soil sealing by country
Countries reporting
46
Highest
467.24 Square metres per capita
Finland
Lowest
104.73 Square metres per capita
Türkiye
Median
256.17 Square metres per capita
Years covered
16
2006–2021
Data points
282
What the numbers show
Soil sealing is currently reported for 46 countries. The highest value is 467.24 Square metres per capita in Finland; the lowest is 104.73 Square metres per capita in Türkiye.
The median across all reporting countries is 256.17 Square metres per capita, and the mean is 261.85 Square metres per capita.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 4.
Over the past decade 28 countries rose and 18 fell. The largest increase was in Bulgaria (up 15.4%), and the largest decrease in Luxembourg (down 15.5%).
Soil sealing: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Finland | 467.24 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 1.7% | flat |
| 2 | Cyprus | 441.37 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 1.4% | falling |
| 3 | Estonia | 401.22 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 3.7% | rising |
| 3 | Estonia | 401.22 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 3.7% | rising |
| 5 | Latvia | 376.76 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 11.9% | rising |
| 5 | Latvia | 376.76 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 11.9% | rising |
| 7 | Iceland | 373.13 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 11.4% | falling |
| 8 | Lithuania | 341.12 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 10.0% | rising |
| 8 | Lithuania | 341.12 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 10.0% | rising |
| 10 | Denmark | 337.9 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 1.5% | flat |
| 11 | Sweden | 318.75 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 5.5% | falling |
| 12 | France | 298.19 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 1.1% | flat |
| 13 | Norway | 298.06 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 3.9% | falling |
| 14 | Austria | 294.89 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 3.7% | flat |
| 15 | Portugal | 285.65 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 3.4% | rising |
| 16 | Hungary | 271 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 17 | Ireland | 268.85 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 5.4% | falling |
| 18 | Bulgaria | 266.16 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 15.4% | rising |
| 19 | Croatia | 264.85 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 13.3% | rising |
| 19 | Croatia | 264.85 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 13.3% | rising |
| 21 | Czechia | 260.33 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 2.3% | flat |
| 22 | Slovenia | 257.11 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 0.4% | flat |
| 22 | Slovenia | 257.11 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 0.4% | flat |
| 24 | Liechtenstein | 255.22 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 6.4% | falling |
| 25 | Luxembourg | 251.54 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 15.5% | falling |
| 26 | Belgium | 248.66 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 1.9% | falling |
| 27 | Germany | 248.51 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 1.4% | flat |
| 28 | Greece | 231.88 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 7.2% | rising |
| 29 | Slovakia | 226.9 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 2.2% | flat |
| 29 | Slovakia | 226.9 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 2.2% | flat |
| 31 | Italy | 222.24 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 3.4% | flat |
| 32 | Poland | 219.84 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 7.6% | rising |
| 32 | Poland | 219.84 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 7.6% | rising |
| 34 | Serbia | 219.19 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 8.5% | rising |
| 35 | Netherlands | 215.19 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 0.8% | flat |
| 35 | Netherlands | 215.19 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 0.8% | flat |
| 37 | Romania | 208.19 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 8.4% | rising |
| 38 | Switzerland | 203.8 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 7.0% | falling |
| 39 | Spain | 201.71 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 0.6% | flat |
| 40 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 170.77 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 14.4% | rising |
| 41 | Montenegro | 155.04 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 3.5% | flat |
| 42 | North Macedonia | 151.05 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 9.2% | rising |
| 43 | Kosovo* | 146.13 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 9.5% | rising |
| 44 | Albania | 126.97 Square metres per capita | 2021 | up 7.1% | rising |
| 45 | Malta | 111.94 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 14.5% | falling |
| 46 | Türkiye | 104.73 Square metres per capita | 2021 | down 3.0% | falling |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- European Union - 27 countries (from 2020) 252.09 Square metres per capita