Amazon rainforest quick facts
- The Amazon covers about 7 million square kilometres, 29 times the size of the UK.
- It holds about 10% of all known wildlife species.
- Around 400 billion trees grow there, of about 16,000 species.
- Around 47 million people live there, including 2.2 million Indigenous people.
- About 18% of the Amazon has been cleared, and another 17% damaged.
About 400 billion trees grow in the Amazon. That is roughly 50 trees for every person on Earth.
Where the Amazon is
The Amazon rainforest covers about 7 million square kilometres of South America. That is roughly 29 times the size of the United Kingdom, or twice the size of India.
It is also very old. Scientists think the Amazon rainforest formed around 60 million years ago, not long after the dinosaurs died out.
It spreads across eight countries and one overseas territory. Nearly 60% of it is in Brazil. The rest is in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname, plus French Guiana, which belongs to France.
Running through the middle is the Amazon River, fed by thousands of smaller rivers.
Hot and wet all year
There is no cold winter in the Amazon. The average temperature stays at around 24 to 26°C for most of the year, which is like a warm summer’s day in London.
It is also very wet. Rainfall in the Amazon often tops 2 metres a year. If all that rain stayed where it fell, it would be deep enough to cover a grown-up standing up straight.
Heat and rain together are what make the forest so green and so full of life. Plants never have to stop growing for a frosty season.
The biggest river on Earth
No river carries more water than the Amazon. On average, between 215,000 and 230,000 cubic metres of water pour out of it every second.
That is roughly 90 Olympic swimming pools every second. Of all the river water that reaches the world’s oceans, about 15 to 16% comes from the Amazon alone.
The four layers of the rainforest
A rainforest is built in floors, like a very tall block of flats. Each floor gets a different amount of light, so different plants and animals live on each one. In some rainforests it rains more than an inch every day.
| Layer | What it is like |
|---|---|
| Emergent layer | The very tallest trees, poking up above the rest of the forest |
| Canopy | A roof of leaves and branches that touch each other or are tied together by vines. Most rainforest animals live here |
| Understory | Small trees and plants that do not need much light |
| Forest floor | So dark that only a few plants can grow |
The canopy is the busiest floor. It is where most rainforest animals live, from monkeys to tree frogs. Rainforests as a whole are home to more than half of all the world’s animals.
Some rainforest plants are giants. Kapok trees can grow to 200 feet, about 60 metres, which is taller than a 15-storey building. Lianas, which are woody vines, can grow up to 3,000 feet long, almost a kilometre, as they climb up tree trunks towards the light.
Life in the Amazon
The Amazon is home to about 10% of all the wildlife species known to science. It is one of the richest ecosystems on the planet.
| Living thing | How many in the Amazon |
|---|---|
| Trees | About 400 billion, of around 16,000 species |
| Primates | 134 species, about a quarter of the world’s total |
| Frogs | More than 1,000 species |
| All known wildlife | About 10% of every species on Earth |
Famous residents include jaguars, the brown-throated sloth and the pink Amazon River dolphin. There is much more in our guide to the animals of the Amazon rainforest.
About 76% of all the jaguars in the world live in the Amazon. So do at least 17 kinds of macaw and 20 to 30 kinds of piranha.
Around 40,000 kinds of plant grow in the Amazon. And the list keeps getting longer. Scientists find a species new to science there roughly every other day, so there are almost certainly animals living in the Amazon that nobody has ever seen.
The people of the Amazon
The Amazon is not empty. Around 47 million people live there, and people have lived in the forest for around 14,000 years.
Nearly 2.2 million of them are Indigenous people. Between them they speak around 300 different languages. Many of their families have lived in the forest for thousands of years, and they know it better than anyone.
The forest’s best guardians
In 2021, the United Nations food and farming agency, the FAO, looked at more than 300 studies from the last 20 years. It wanted to know who protects forests best.
The answer was Indigenous peoples. Between 2000 and 2012, forests on Indigenous land in the Amazon of Bolivia, Brazil and Colombia lost trees at only a half to a third of the rate of similar forests elsewhere.
Almost half of the untouched forest left in the Amazon, about 45%, is on Indigenous land. Between 2000 and 2016, untouched forest there shrank by 4.9%. Outside Indigenous land, it shrank by 11.2%.
These forests also hold a huge amount of carbon: about a third of all the carbon stored in the forests of Latin America and the Caribbean, and 14% of the carbon in tropical forests worldwide.
The Amazon and the air we share
Trees pull water up from the ground and release it from their leaves. In the Amazon, that adds up to about 20 billion tonnes of water sent into the air every single day.
The forest also stores carbon in its wood and soil: somewhere between 150 and 200 billion tonnes. When trees are burned or cut down, that carbon goes into the air and warms the planet.
Carbon is part of every living thing, including you. When wood burns or rots, its carbon joins with oxygen to make carbon dioxide. That gas acts like a blanket around the Earth and traps heat.
The record drought of 2024
In 2023 and 2024, the Amazon had two years of severe drought. Rivers that boats depend on shrank to sandbanks.
In October 2024, the Rio Negro at the city of Manaus fell to 12.66 metres. That was its lowest level since records began in 1902. The Rio Negro is one of the Amazon River’s biggest branches.
Cutting down the forest
About 18% of the Amazon has already been cleared, mostly for cattle farms and crops. Logging and mining also eat into the forest. Another 17% has been damaged by fire and logging, even where trees still stand.
Scientists warn about a tipping point. If 22 to 28% of the forest is lost, and the planet keeps warming, parts of the Amazon could dry out and turn into grassland for good.
Think of a tipping point like leaning back on a chair. Lean back a little, and you can still sit up again. Lean back too far, and you fall over. After a tipping point, the forest could not simply grow back on its own.
There is also good news. Brazil measures its forest loss every year with satellites. In the year to July 2025, about 5,800 square kilometres were cleared. That was 11% less than the year before, and the lowest in 11 years.
Three things people get wrong
The Amazon is not an empty wilderness. About 47 million people live there, including nearly 2.2 million Indigenous people.
Losing the forest is not only about chopping trees down. On top of the 18% cleared, another 17% has been damaged by fire and logging.
It is not all getting worse. Brazil’s yearly forest loss has fallen to its lowest level in more than a decade. What happens next depends on choices people make now.
Did you know? Every day, the Amazon’s trees release about 20 billion tonnes of water into the air, pulled up from the soil and breathed out through their leaves.
Try it
Work out how many Amazon trees there are for each person on Earth. Divide 400 billion trees by the world’s population, about 8 billion. You should get around 50 trees each.
Knowledge check
Roughly how many trees grow in the Amazon?
Show answer
About 400 billion, of around 16,000 different species. That is roughly 50 trees for every person on Earth.
How much of the Amazon rainforest is in Brazil?
Show answer
Nearly 60%. The rest is spread across seven other countries and French Guiana, an overseas territory of France.
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Amazon rainforest?
The Amazon rainforest covers about 7 million square kilometres of South America, roughly 29 times the size of the United Kingdom. Nearly 60% of it is in Brazil.
How many species live in the Amazon?
The Amazon is home to about 10% of all wildlife species known to science. It has around 16,000 species of tree, 134 species of primate and more than 1,000 species of frog.
How many people live in the Amazon?
Around 47 million people live in the Amazon, according to WWF. Nearly 2.2 million of them are Indigenous people, who between them speak around 300 languages.
How much of the Amazon has been cut down?
About 18% of the Amazon rainforest has been cleared, and another 17% has been damaged by fire and logging. In Brazil, forest loss in the year to July 2025 was the lowest in 11 years.
What is the Amazon tipping point?
The Amazon tipping point is the level of forest loss at which parts of the rainforest could dry out and turn into grassland for good. Scientists estimate it could be triggered if 22 to 28% of the forest is lost while the planet keeps warming.
What happened in the 2024 Amazon drought?
The Amazon had severe drought in 2023 and 2024. In October 2024, the Rio Negro at Manaus fell to 12.66 metres, its lowest level since records began in 1902.
What are the layers of the rainforest?
A rainforest has four layers. The emergent layer is the tallest trees poking above the rest; the canopy is a roof of touching leaves and branches where most animals live; the understory holds small plants that need little light; and the forest floor is so dark that few plants grow.
How much water does the Amazon River carry?
The Amazon River carries more water than any other river, on average between 215,000 and 230,000 cubic metres every second. That is about 15 to 16% of all the river water reaching the world’s oceans.
Who protects the Amazon rainforest best?
Indigenous peoples. A 2021 United Nations FAO review of more than 300 studies found that between 2000 and 2012, forests on Indigenous land in the Bolivian, Brazilian and Colombian Amazon lost trees at only a half to a third of the rate of similar forests elsewhere.
How old is the Amazon rainforest?
Scientists believe the Amazon rainforest formed around 60 million years ago. People have lived in it for around 14,000 years.
How hot is the Amazon rainforest?
The Amazon is warm all year, with average temperatures of around 24 to 26°C. It is also very wet, with rainfall often over 2 metres a year.
Sources
- WWF UK: the Amazon — size, age, species, jaguars, people, weather, carbon, water and deforestation figures, and the tipping point
- Mongabay (2025): Brazil’s Amazon deforestation rate is falling — Brazil’s PRODES satellite figure for the year to July 2025
- Reuters (2024): river level at Amazon rainforest port hits 122-year low — the Rio Negro at Manaus falling to 12.66 metres on 4 October 2024
- FAO (2021): Indigenous and Tribal Peoples are the best guardians of forests — deforestation rates on Indigenous land, intact forest and carbon
- National Geographic Kids: rainforests — the four layers of the rainforest, Amazon plant species, and the size of kapok trees and lianas
- Amazon Waters: flow and floods — the Amazon River’s discharge and its share of the world’s river water
