The average annual growth rate of rice area, yield per unit area and total yield per unit area increased by 0.67%, 1.65% and 2.33%, respectively, according to the analysis of global rice production from 1961 to 2018. Rice is cultivated in the continents of Asia, Africa, America, Europe and Oceania. Among the rice planting areas in the world, Asia accounts for 87.9%, Africa accounts for 7.7%, America accounts for 4.0%, and Europe and Oceania account for less than 0.5%. Compared with the 1960S, the global rice planting area and the distribution of total rice production in the near 10 years have changed. The harvest area of rice in Africa has increased, and the harvest area of rice in Asia has decreased. Global rice yield growth factor analysis showed that 60% to 70% of the total yield growth was contributed from the increase of yield per unit area. The contribution factors of total rice production growth varied greatly among different continents.