Share of land area that is protected in Switzerland
Switzerland: Share of land area that is protected was 12.5% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Share of land area that is protected in Switzerland, 2013–2025
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
Switzerland recorded 12.5% for share of land area that is protected in 2025.
That represents a change of up 28.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area that is protected in Switzerland peaked at 24.8% in 2013 and was at its lowest, 9.7%, in 2014.
That places Switzerland 145th out of 213 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.
Share of land area that is protected in Switzerland, year by year
| Year | % of total land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 24.8% | — |
| 2014 | 9.7% | -60.9% |
| 2015 | 9.7% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 9.7% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 9.7% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 9.7% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 10.0% | +3.1% |
| 2020 | 12.0% | +20.0% |
| 2021 | 12.1% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 12.5% | +3.3% |
| 2025 | 12.5% | +0.0% |
Switzerland compared with similar countries
- Switzerland's 12.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 21.5%, 58% of the median. (83 countries reporting)
- Switzerland's 12.5% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 22.1%, 57% of the median. (55 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 11.9% | 9.7% | 24.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 12.2% | 12.0% | 12.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
More reference data data for Switzerland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5507 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2683 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.24 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.24 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.28 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 6.28 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.272 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area that is protected in Switzerland?
- Share of land area that is protected in Switzerland was 12.5% 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 Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 24.8% in 2013.
- What is the lowest share of land area that is protected recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.7% in 2014.
- How does Switzerland rank for share of land area that is protected?
- Switzerland ranks 145th out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of land area that is protected rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 28.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Switzerland 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
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.