Share of land area that is protected in Norway

Norway: Share of land area that is protected was 17.8% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
17.8%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
101st
of 213 countries
All-time high
30.5%
in 2022
All-time low
16.8%
in 2013
Years of data
13
2013–2025

Share of land area that is protected in Norway, 2013–2025

01020302013201920252013: 16.8 % of total land area2014: 16.9 % of total land area2015: 16.9 % of total land area2016: 17 % of total land area2017: 17.1 % of total land area2018: 17.1 % of total land area2019: 16.8 % of total land area2020: 17.6 % of total land area2021: 29.9 % of total land area2022: 30.5 % of total land area2023: 17.7 % of total land area2024: 17.8 % of total land area2025: 17.8 % of total land area

Source: Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of total land area.

Analysis

Norway recorded 17.8% for share of land area that is protected in 2025.

The figure is up 5.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of land area that is protected in Norway peaked at 30.5% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 16.8%, in 2013.

Norway ranks 101st of 213 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 16.9% 16.8% 17.1% 7
2020s 21.9% 17.6% 30.5% 6

Countries ranked near Norway

  1. 98 Thailand 18.4% compare
  2. 99 Saint Lucia 18.2% compare
  3. 100 Lithuania 18.0% compare
  4. 102 South Korea 17.7% compare
  5. 103 Cape Verde 17.6% compare
  6. 104 Colombia 17.2% compare

See the full ranking of 213 places →

More reference data data for Norway

All data for Norway →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of land area that is protected in Norway?
Share of land area that is protected in Norway was 17.8% in 2025, according to Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of land area that is protected recorded in Norway?
The highest recorded value was 30.5% in 2022.
What is the lowest share of land area that is protected recorded in Norway?
The lowest recorded value was 16.8% in 2013.
How does Norway rank for share of land area that is protected?
Norway ranks 101st out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of land area that is protected rising or falling in Norway?
Over the last ten years it is up 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Norway data come from?
The figures come from Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land area that is protected. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of land area that is protected
Unit
% of total land area
Source
Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
213 places, 2,746 data points, 2013–2025
Last refreshed

Terrestrial protected areas are areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities in order to preserve their ecosystem services and cultural values.