Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world’s oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althingi, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island’s population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Denmark granted limited home rule in 1874 and complete independence in 1944. The second half of the 20th century saw substantial economic growth driven primarily by the fishing industry. The economy diversified greatly after the country joined the European Economic Area in 1994, but Iceland was especially hard hit by the global financial crisis in the years following 2008. The economy is now on an upward trajectory, fueled primarily by a tourism and construction boom. Literacy, longevity, and social cohesion are first rate by world standards.
land: 100,250 sq km
water: 2,750 sq km
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
mean elevation: 557 m
arable land: 1.2% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 17.5% (2018 est.)
forest: 0.3% (2018 est.)
other: 81% (2018 est.)
360,872 (2023 est.)
noun: Icelander(s)
adjective: Icelandic
Icelandic 81.3%, Polish 5.6%, Danish 1%, other 12.1% (2021 est.)
note: data represent population by country of birth
Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland (official) 62.3%, Roman Catholic 4%, Independent Congregation of Reykjavik 2.7%, Independent Congregation of Hafnarfjordur 2%, pagan worship 1.4%, Icelandic Ethical Humanist Association 1.1%, other (includes Zuist and Pentecostal) or unspecified 19%, none 7.6% (2021 est.)
Iceland is one of the most gender-equal countries in the world. Its welfare policies enable both men and women to balance work and family life. Iceland lagged its Nordic neighbors in introducing new childcare policies, and even when they did in the 1990s, parents still faced a childcare gap between the paid parental leave period and the start of pre-school. The female labor participation rate continued to grow from the 1960s to the 2000s, as women’s educational attainment increased. Icelanders are marrying later, if they marry at all, and people are having children later. The interval between births has decreased. Non-marital cohabitation and childbearing outside of marriage are common. Approximately 2 out of 3 children are born out of wedlock, which is among the highest in Europe. Iceland’s total fertility rate (TFR) has been fairly stable, hovering around replacement level (2.1 children per woman), for decades – a rate higher even than its Nordic neighbors.Iceland has fluctuated over time between being a country of net emigration and one of net immigration. Most Icelandic emigrants return to their native country after a few years. From 1960 to 1996, Iceland registered a net outflow, followed by a net inflow until the 2008 banking crisis. During and after the crisis, more Icelanders left the country than immigrated to it. Following the crisis, Iceland returned to being a country of net immigration. In 2017, the country’s foreign-born population accounted for 11% of the population and 17% had an immigrant background. The countries of origin have become more diverse over time, with Polish immigrants composing the largest share in 2017. Foreigners acquiring Icelandic citizenship must have a basic comprehension of the Icelandic language. The requirement that new citizens modify or change their names to be more Icelandic was dropped in 1996. The most popular emigration destination was Sweden, followed by Denmark and Norway in 2021.
0-14 years: 19.98% (male 36,771/female 35,314)
15-64 years: 63.39% (male 115,547/female 113,212)
65 years and over: 16.63% (2023 est.) (male 28,410/female 31,618)
total dependency ratio: 50.5
youth dependency ratio: 28
elderly dependency ratio: 22.5
potential support ratio: 4.5 (2021 est.)
total: 37.8 years (2023 est.)
male: 37.2 years
female: 38.4 years
0.89% (2023 est.)
12.8 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
6.6 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
2.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
Iceland is almost entirely urban with half of the population located in and around the capital of Reykjavik; smaller clusters are primarily found along the coast in the north and west
urban population: 94% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 0.74% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
216,000 REYKJAVIK (capital) (2018)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
28.7 years (2020 est.)
3 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
total: 1.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
male: 1.8 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 1.4 deaths/1,000 live births
total population: 83.8 years (2023 est.)
male: 81.6 years
female: 86.2 years
1.95 children born/woman (2023 est.)
0.95 (2023 est.)
NA
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
9.6% of GDP (2020)
4.14 physicians/1,000 population (2019)
2.8 beds/1,000 population (2019)
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
21.9% (2016)
total: 7.72 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 4.39 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 2.11 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 1.22 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total: 12% (2020 est.)
male: 11.9% (2020 est.)
female: 12% (2020 est.)
NA
45.1% (2023 est.)
7.7% of GDP (2020 est.)
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA
total: 19 years
male: 18 years
female: 21 years (2020)
water pollution from fertilizer runoff
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation
temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers
agricultural land: 18.7% (2018 est.)
arable land: 1.2% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 17.5% (2018 est.)
forest: 0.3% (2018 est.)
other: 81% (2018 est.)
urban population: 94% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 0.74% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
0% of GDP (2018 est.)
0% of GDP (2018 est.)
particulate matter emissions: 5.79 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
carbon dioxide emissions: 2.06 megatons (2016 est.)
methane emissions: 0.59 megatons (2020 est.)
municipal solid waste generated annually: 525,000 tons (2015 est.)
municipal solid waste recycled annually: 293,003 tons (2013 est.)
percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 55.8% (2013 est.)
municipal: 80 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
industrial: 200 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
agricultural: 300,000 cubic meters (2017 est.)
170 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
high-income European economy; frozen EU accession application but Schengen Area member; major tourism, fishing, and aluminum industries; complex regulatory environment; large FDI recipient; highly educated workforce
$19.962 billion (2021 est.)
$19.12 billion (2020 est.)
$20.524 billion (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
4.4% (2021 est.)
-6.84% (2020 est.)
2.42% (2019 est.)
$53,600 (2021 est.)
$52,200 (2020 est.)
$56,900 (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
$24.614 billion (2019 est.)
4.44% (2021 est.)
2.85% (2020 est.)
3.01% (2019 est.)
Fitch rating: A (2017)
Moody’s rating: A2 (2019)
Standard & Poors rating: A (2017)
note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
agriculture: 5.8% (2017 est.)
industry: 19.7% (2017 est.)
services: 74.6% (2017 est.)comparison rankings:
household consumption: 50.4% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 23.3% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 22.1% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 0% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 47% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -42.8% (2017 est.)
milk, mutton, poultry, potatoes, barley, pork, eggs, beef, other meat, sheep skins
tourism, fish processing; aluminum smelting; geothermal power, hydropower; medical/pharmaceutical products
5.65% (2021 est.)
200,300 (2021 est.)
5.4% (2021 est.)
5.48% (2020 est.)
3.51% (2019 est.)
total: 13.4% (2021 est.)
male: 13%
female: 13.7%
8.8% (2017 est.)
26.1 (2017 est.)
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA
revenues: $11.776 billion (2018 est.)
expenditures: $11.536 billion (2018 est.)
1.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
100.02% of GDP (2020 est.)
89.59% of GDP (2019 est.)
81.95% of GDP (2018 est.)
22.33% (of GDP) (2020 est.)
calendar year
-$409.262 million (2021 est.)
$407.806 million (2020 est.)
$1.612 billion (2019 est.)
$9.775 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$7.501 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$11.005 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Netherlands 24%, Spain 10%, Germany 10%, United Kingdom 9%, United States 7% (2021)
aluminum and aluminum products, fish fillets, salmon, iron alloys, animal meal (2021)
$10.234 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$7.616 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$9.891 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Norway 11%, Denmark 10%, Netherlands 9%, Germany 9%, China 7% (2021)
refined petroleum, aluminum oxide, carbon/graphite electronics, cars, packaged medicines (2019)
$7.079 billion (31 December 2021 est.)
$6.419 billion (31 December 2020 est.)
$6.782 billion (31 December 2019 est.)
$19.422 billion (2019 est.)
$22.055 billion (2018 est.)
Icelandic kronur (ISK) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
126.989 (2021 est.)
135.422 (2020 est.)
122.607 (2019 est.)
108.3 (2018 est.)
106.84 (2017 est.)
electrification - total population: 100% (2021)
installed generating capacity: 2.967 million kW (2020 est.)
consumption: 17,912,066,000 kWh (2020 est.)
exports: 0 kWh (2020 est.)
imports: 0 kWh (2020 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 519 million kWh (2020 est.)comparison rankings:
fossil fuels: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
solar: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
wind: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
hydroelectricity: 67.6% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
geothermal: 32.3% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
production: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
consumption: 142,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
exports: 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
imports: 136,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 0 metric tons (2019 est.)
total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
refined petroleum consumption: 19,700 bbl/day (2019 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate imports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)
0 bbl/day (2017 est.)
2,530 bbl/day (2017 est.)
20,220 bbl/day (2017 est.)
production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
3.337 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from coal and metallurgical coke: 459,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids: 2.879 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
number of registered air carriers: 6 (2020)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 63
annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 7,819,740 (2018)
annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 163.65 million (2018) mt-km
TF
96 (2021)
7
note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
89
note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control
total: 12,898 km (2012)
paved/oiled gravel: 5,647 km (2012) (excludes urban roads)
unpaved: 7,251 km (2012)
total: 40 (2022)
by type: general cargo 5, oil tanker 2, other 33
major seaport(s): Grundartangi, Hafnarfjordur, Reykjavik
manyapis