The Earth holds around 4.14 billion hectares of forest spread across its land surface, equivalent to 32 percent of total global land area. This is not just an ordinary statistic.
Behind it lies a vital role that supports millions of species, maintains climate balance, prevents disasters, and contributes between 20 to 28 percent of the oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere.
These findings are outlined in the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025 report published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, or FAO.
What is striking is that, out of these billions of hectares, more than half is concentrated in just five countries. This means that a large portion of the world’s “lungs” is held by a small group of nations that are geographically endowed with vast territories.
Top 10 Countries with the Largest Forest Areas
Based on FAO data, here are the ten countries with the largest forest areas in the world:
- Russia — 832,630 hectares
- Brazil — 486,087 hectares
- Canada — 368,819 hectares
- United States — 308,895 hectares
- China — 227,153 hectares
- Democratic Republic of the Congo — 139,189 hectares
- Australia — 133,562 hectares
- Indonesia — 95,969 hectares
- India — 72,739 hectares
- Peru — 67,160 hectares
Russia dominates with nearly twice the forest area of Brazil in second place. The top five countries, namely Russia, Brazil, Canada, the United States, and China, collectively account for 54 percent of the world’s total forest area.
A clear similarity among these five countries is their status as some of the largest nations in the world, meaning their forest area is closely proportional to their overall land size.
On the other end of the spectrum, FAO also records several countries and territories that have no forests at all, including the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Vatican City, Monaco, Nauru, Svalbard and Jan Mayen, as well as Tokelau.
Indonesia: The Only Southeast Asian Representative
Among the ten countries on the list, Indonesia stands as the only nation from Southeast Asia. Ranked eighth with a forest area of 95,969 hectares, Indonesia is not only vast in forest coverage, but also exceptionally diverse.
There are 19 different forest types recorded across the country, ranging from tropical forests, mangroves, and savannas to peat forests and monsoon forests. Indonesia’s tropical rainforest itself is the third largest in the world, after the Amazon and the Congo.
Even more notably, Indonesia’s mangrove forests and peatlands are the largest in the world, two ecosystems that serve as critical buffers in mitigating global climate change.
This diversity is not a coincidence. Indonesia lies along the equator and sits between two continental tectonic plates, the Eurasian Plate and the Australian Plate.
This geographical position creates ideal conditions, with abundant sunlight and rainfall throughout the year, two key components that drive photosynthesis and support massive plant growth.
As a result, Indonesia is home to extraordinary biodiversity. Hundreds of animal species, thousands of tree species, and up to 150,000 insect species thrive within its forests.
It is no surprise that Indonesia is recognized as one of the world’s leading mega biodiversity countries, ranking second only to Brazil.
