the sale price of farmland in Corsica

Updated April 8, 2026: Find the most recent data on our Land Price Observatory (DVF data 2020-2025) which presents average and median prices and transaction ranges for your region and each department.

Agricultural land prices in Corsica: what the DVF data reveals

Corsica occupies a unique place in the French agricultural landscape. With a Utilized Agricultural Area of approximately 160,000 hectares, the island concentrates very varied productions: mountain sheep and goat farming, arboriculture (clementine, kiwi, chestnut), olive growing, lowland market gardening and, of course, viticulture. Important clarification: the statistics presented in this article focus exclusively on agricultural land excluding vineyards (arable land, meadows, rangelands). The Corsican vineyard, although emblematic of the island's agricultural identity, is excluded from the scope of analysis. This precision is all the more necessary as Corsica has a strong viticultural component that follows market logics very different from traditional agricultural land.

We rely here on statistics that we have built from DVF (Demandes de Valeurs Foncières) data, published in open data by the Directorate General of Public Finances. They cover the period July 2020 – June 2025, it being understood that the 2025 figures only cover the 1st half of the year and must therefore be interpreted with great caution. The year 2024 remains our robust reference for any structural analysis.

Land prices in Corsica

Ma-propriete.fr statistics (DVF source)

In Corsica, over the 1st half of 2025, the average price of agricultural land excluding vineyards stood at €4,291/ha, for a median price of €3,501/ha (partial data for the 1st half of 2025, to be interpreted with caution). This apparent decline compared to 2024 should be read carefully: only 8 transactions were recorded over the half-year, a volume insufficient to draw a reliable trend. The strong dependence of averages on a few atypical operations is, as we will see, one of the structural characteristics of the island market.

The year 2024, which constitutes our consolidated reference, gives a more stable image of the market: €6,260/ha on average, €5,366/ha median, across 29 transactions. The gap between the average and median (nearly €900/ha) reflects the presence of some high-value sales that pull the average upwards. To understand the difference: the average adds all prices and divides them by the number of sales, making it sensitive to extreme values; the median corresponds to the price that divides the sample in two and therefore offers a more representative view of the "current market."

The dispersion measured by the ratio between the 10th percentile (P10 = €1,923/ha in 2024) and the 90th percentile (P90 = €12,904/ha) confirms this heterogeneity: on the island, one finds both high-altitude rangeland plots sold for less than €2,000/ha and coastal plain land exceeding €13,000/ha. The P90/P10 ratio of 6.7 is significantly higher than the national average (close to 4.3), reflecting a market segmented between several distinct land realities.

* 1st half of 2025 — partial data. Source: DVF, processing by ma-propriete.fr.

Chart 1 — Average and median agricultural land prices in Corsica, 2020-2025*. Source: DVF, processing by ma-propriete.fr.

Over the 2020-2024 sequence, the average price increased by +25.5%, which places Corsica among the top French regions for upward dynamics. But this figure is misleading: it is largely explained by the very low number of transactions, which makes each operation potentially decisive for the annual average. The spectacular peak in 2021 (€9,111/ha for only 18 sales) is the most striking illustration.

Ministry of Agriculture statistics (SAFER source)

To put these figures into perspective, it is useful to compare them with SAFER data, which has been the professional reference for several decades. The observation is immediate: Corsica is the great absentee from recent SAFER statistics. For unrented land and meadows, regional data stops in 2020. For rented land, the mention "lack of data" appears for the entire period. This absence is itself an insight: it confirms that the island's agricultural land market is too narrow to produce reliable statistical series according to the SAFER methodology, which requires a minimum volume of transactions per stratum.

Source: SAFER / Agreste — Indicative scale of the market value of agricultural land.

Chart 2 — Prices of unrented land and meadows: Corsica vs mainland France, 2012-2020. Source: SAFER / Agreste.

Over the period where both series exist (2012-2020), SAFER reported a Corsican price oscillating between €4,630 and €6,785/ha, a level globally comparable to the French average. As for rented land, the total absence of SAFER data for Corsica is explained by the low prevalence of classic farm leases on the island, where informal provision methods (precarious agreements, loans for use, family agreements) remains frequent.

Land prices by department

Corsica has two departments with complementary agricultural profiles. Given the low volumes, departmental statistics should be read as orders of magnitude rather than absolute references.

Selling price of agricultural land in Corse-du-Sud (2A)

In Corse-du-Sud, the 2024 market shows an average price of €4,977/ha and a median price of €4,563/ha, on only 10 transactions. The narrow gap between the average and median suggests a more homogeneous market than that of Haute-Corse. Over the 1st half of 2025, only two sales were recorded, at an average price of €8,085/ha (partial data for the 1st half of 2025, to be interpreted with caution: with two transactions, no statistical conclusions can be drawn).

The agricultural specificities of the department stem from the duality between the southern coastal plains (Sartenais, Valinco), where fruit, olive, and vegetable crops are found, and the inland mountain areas dedicated mainly to extensive livestock farming (sheep, goat, Nustrale breed pigs). The department also hosts part of the Corsican vineyard — notably Ajaccio AOP and Sartène — which, as a reminder, is excluded from our scope of analysis.

* 1st half of 2025 — not significant. Source: DVF, processing by ma-propriete.fr.

Chart 3 — Prices of agricultural land in Corse-du-Sud (2A), 2021-2025*. Source: DVF, processing by ma-propriete.fr.

Selling price of agricultural land in Haute-Corse (2B)

Haute-Corse represents the bulk of the island's agricultural land market as measured by DVF. In 2024, there were 19 transactions for an average price of €6,936/ha and a median price of €5,366/ha. The department benefits from greater agronomic diversity: the eastern plain (Casinca, Costa Verde, Aléria Plain) is home to the majority of Corsican arboriculture — clementine, kiwi, citrus fruits — while the foothills and Castagniccia host chestnut groves and livestock farming. This concentration of high-value-added production partly explains the price differential with Corse-du-Sud.

The marked gap between the average and median price (nearly €1,600/ha) indicates a split market: a few high-value coastal plain transactions pull the average, while the bulk of operations are at a more accessible level. The P90 reached €13,011/ha in 2024, confirming the existence of a dynamic upper segment, undoubtedly fueled by peri-urban land pressure and competition from non-strictly agricultural uses.

Over the 1st half of 2025, the displayed average price of €3,026/ha (6 sales) marks a sharp drop (partial data for the 1st half of 2025, to be interpreted with caution). Here again, caution is required: the average surface area of transactions for the half-year exceeds 18 ha, suggesting that the recorded sales concern large livestock rangeland plots, which are naturally valued lower per hectare. It will be necessary to wait for the second-half consolidation to confirm or refute this trend.

* 1st half of 2025 — partial data. Source: DVF, processing by ma-propriete.fr.

Chart 4 — Prices of agricultural land in Haute-Corse (2B), 2020-2025*. Source: DVF, processing by ma-propriete.fr.

Analysis methods and statistical limits

DVF transaction analysis method used

DVF (Demandes de Valeurs Foncières) data records all transfers for consideration registered by the tax administration. To build our statistics, we apply rigorous filtering: only transactions relating exclusively to agricultural land are retained, excluding associated built properties and — an essential point for Corsica — completely excluding plots classified as vineyards. Our analysis therefore covers arable land, permanent and temporary meadows, and rangelands, but says nothing about the wine market, which follows its own rules and is the subject of dedicated publications.

For each year and each geographical level, we calculate the number of sales, the average price, the median price, the P10 and P90 boundaries (which define the range in which 80% of transactions are located), as well as the average surface area. This set of indicators allows the informed user to appreciate not only the price level but also its robustness and dispersion.

Limits of DVF data

DVF data has several limits that must be understood to interpret the figures correctly. First, Alsace-Moselle (Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, Moselle) is excluded from the system due to local land publicity law — this limit does not affect Corsica but must be recalled for national comparisons. Secondly, so-called "mixed" properties, combining buildings and agricultural land, are discarded to avoid polluting the calculation of the price per hectare. Finally, the 2025 data only covers the 1st half-year and is therefore structurally less robust than that of 2024.

In the specific case of Corsica, an additional limit is striking: the low volumes. With fewer than 30 transactions per year at the regional level, each atypical sale weighs heavily on the averages. This is why we insist on reading the average and median prices together, and on the importance of reasoning over several years rather than just one.

Differences with SAFER statistics

SAFER statistics, published each year in the Indicative Scale of the average market value of agricultural land, are based on a different system: they rely on sale notifications received by SAFER under their right of pre-emption and only retain plots larger than 70 ares. They benefit from a precious historical perspective (since the 1990s), but are published with a delay and require a minimum volume per geographical stratum — hence the absence of Corsica in recent series. DVF data, exhaustive and published more quickly, are complementary: they allow for a finer level of granularity and the measurement of the current year, at the cost of greater sensitivity to sample effects in territories with low volume like Corsica.

Conclusion

The Corsican agricultural land market confirms its status as a niche market: very low volumes, high price dispersion, and difficulty in identifying a robust long-term trend. The year 2024, with an average price of €6,260/ha and a median of €5,366/ha, provides the most reliable image of the market to date. The apparent decline in the 1st half of 2025 must be verified upon annual consolidation. For project holders — installation, expansion, diversification — the main lesson is that unlike large crop regions, the value of a plot in Corsica is built on a case-by-case basis: soil type, location, accessibility, agronomic potential, and competition for uses weigh more than the regional average. To go further, our Land Price Observatory allows you to explore data by municipality and cross-reference indicators interactively.