Life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland
Iceland: Life expectation at birth by sex was 84.51 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
84.51
Change on year
up 0.5%
World rank
32nd
of 236 countries
All-time high
84.51
in 2023
All-time low
19.01
in 1882
Years of data
186
1838–2023
Life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland, 1838–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland is 84.51, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 186 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 1.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland peaked at 84.51 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 19.01, in 1882.
That places Iceland 32nd out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 186 years of available data.
Life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1838 | 34.38 | — |
| 1839 | 29.56 | -14.0% |
| 1840 | 32.78 | +10.9% |
| 1841 | 42.06 | +28.3% |
| 1842 | 45.2 | +7.5% |
| 1843 | 28.35 | -37.3% |
| 1844 | 45.05 | +58.9% |
| 1845 | 43.84 | -2.7% |
| 1846 | 19.19 | -56.2% |
| 1847 | 36.46 | +90.0% |
| 1848 | 44.82 | +22.9% |
| 1849 | 40.33 | -10.0% |
| 1850 | 38.39 | -4.8% |
| 1851 | 32.87 | -14.4% |
| 1852 | 43.78 | +33.2% |
| 1853 | 52.31 | +19.5% |
| 1854 | 47.25 | -9.7% |
| 1855 | 41.25 | -12.7% |
| 1856 | 46.65 | +13.1% |
| 1857 | 43.04 | -7.7% |
| 1858 | 36.7 | -14.7% |
| 1859 | 31.87 | -13.2% |
| 1860 | 21.54 | -32.4% |
| 1861 | 29.36 | +36.3% |
| 1862 | 28.54 | -2.8% |
| 1863 | 39.22 | +37.4% |
| 1864 | 38.87 | -0.9% |
| 1865 | 37.3 | -4.0% |
| 1866 | 28.95 | -22.4% |
| 1867 | 42.89 | +48.2% |
| 1868 | 38.8 | -9.5% |
| 1869 | 30.21 | -22.1% |
| 1870 | 42.66 | +41.2% |
| 1871 | 38.23 | -10.4% |
| 1872 | 26.02 | -31.9% |
| 1873 | 38.6 | +48.3% |
| 1874 | 41.89 | +8.5% |
| 1875 | 40.38 | -3.6% |
| 1876 | 43.17 | +6.9% |
| 1877 | 48.39 | +12.1% |
| 1878 | 44.55 | -7.9% |
| 1879 | 44.7 | +0.3% |
| 1880 | 44.79 | +0.2% |
| 1881 | 37.4 | -16.5% |
| 1882 | 19.01 | -49.2% |
| 1883 | 31.99 | +68.3% |
| 1884 | 45.37 | +41.8% |
| 1885 | 48.91 | +7.8% |
| 1886 | 47.31 | -3.3% |
| 1887 | 44.6 | -5.7% |
| 1888 | 51 | +14.3% |
| 1889 | 54.36 | +6.6% |
| 1890 | 39.06 | -28.1% |
| 1891 | 45.99 | +17.7% |
| 1892 | 55.59 | +20.9% |
| 1893 | 57.13 | +2.8% |
| 1894 | 49.24 | -13.8% |
| 1895 | 54.37 | +10.4% |
| 1896 | 55.89 | +2.8% |
| 1897 | 50.9 | -8.9% |
| 1898 | 47.91 | -5.9% |
| 1899 | 53.45 | +11.6% |
| 1900 | 49.56 | -7.3% |
| 1901 | 56.35 | +13.7% |
| 1902 | 52.4 | -7.0% |
| 1903 | 49.78 | -5.0% |
| 1904 | 54.97 | +10.4% |
| 1905 | 52.89 | -3.8% |
| 1906 | 59.11 | +11.8% |
| 1907 | 52.37 | -11.4% |
| 1908 | 48.83 | -6.8% |
| 1909 | 53.04 | +8.6% |
| 1910 | 54.59 | +2.9% |
| 1911 | 58.08 | +6.4% |
| 1912 | 59.38 | +2.2% |
| 1913 | 61.23 | +3.1% |
| 1914 | 55.51 | -9.3% |
| 1915 | 56.4 | +1.6% |
| 1916 | 58.5 | +3.7% |
| 1917 | 61.52 | +5.2% |
| 1918 | 52.72 | -14.3% |
| 1919 | 60.38 | +14.5% |
| 1920 | 56.43 | -6.5% |
| 1921 | 58.01 | +2.8% |
| 1922 | 60.87 | +4.9% |
| 1923 | 60.73 | -0.2% |
| 1924 | 57.74 | -4.9% |
| 1925 | 59.64 | +3.3% |
| 1926 | 62.89 | +5.4% |
| 1927 | 60.15 | -4.4% |
| 1928 | 62.2 | +3.4% |
| 1929 | 61.15 | -1.7% |
| 1930 | 62.47 | +2.2% |
| 1931 | 62.03 | -0.7% |
| 1932 | 64.12 | +3.4% |
| 1933 | 65.71 | +2.5% |
| 1934 | 64.67 | -1.6% |
| 1935 | 61.6 | -4.7% |
| 1936 | 66.36 | +7.7% |
| 1937 | 65.3 | -1.6% |
| 1938 | 68.23 | +4.5% |
| 1939 | 68.01 | -0.3% |
| 1940 | 68.74 | +1.1% |
| 1941 | 67.06 | -2.4% |
| 1942 | 65.97 | -1.6% |
| 1943 | 66.65 | +1.0% |
| 1944 | 68.95 | +3.5% |
| 1945 | 69.25 | +0.4% |
| 1946 | 71.7 | +3.5% |
| 1947 | 71.32 | -0.5% |
| 1948 | 70.65 | -0.9% |
| 1949 | 73.21 | +3.6% |
| 1950 | 73.52 | +0.4% |
| 1951 | 72.81 | -1.0% |
| 1952 | 74.82 | +2.8% |
| 1953 | 74.33 | -0.7% |
| 1954 | 75.6 | +1.7% |
| 1955 | 75.89 | +0.4% |
| 1956 | 74.27 | -2.1% |
| 1957 | 75.11 | +1.1% |
| 1958 | 75.95 | +1.1% |
| 1959 | 75.63 | -0.4% |
| 1960 | 75.74 | +0.1% |
| 1961 | 76.18 | +0.6% |
| 1962 | 76.06 | -0.2% |
| 1963 | 75.97 | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 76.32 | +0.5% |
| 1965 | 76.41 | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 76.3 | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 76.48 | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 76.41 | -0.1% |
| 1969 | 76.35 | -0.1% |
| 1970 | 77.22 | +1.1% |
| 1971 | 76.46 | -1.0% |
| 1972 | 76.86 | +0.5% |
| 1973 | 77.36 | +0.6% |
| 1974 | 77.71 | +0.5% |
| 1975 | 78.65 | +1.2% |
| 1976 | 79.79 | +1.4% |
| 1977 | 79.22 | -0.7% |
| 1978 | 79.27 | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 79.26 | -0.0% |
| 1980 | 80.06 | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 79.38 | -0.8% |
| 1982 | 79.29 | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 80.14 | +1.1% |
| 1984 | 80.06 | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 80.12 | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 80.62 | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 79.41 | -1.5% |
| 1988 | 79.62 | +0.3% |
| 1989 | 79.92 | +0.4% |
| 1990 | 80.38 | +0.6% |
| 1991 | 80.97 | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 80.56 | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 80.68 | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 81.07 | +0.5% |
| 1995 | 79.54 | -1.9% |
| 1996 | 80.97 | +1.8% |
| 1997 | 81.37 | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 81.28 | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 81.19 | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 81.34 | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 82.74 | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 82.23 | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 82.28 | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 82.72 | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 83.05 | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 82.63 | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 82.83 | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 82.87 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 83.43 | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 83.68 | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 83.71 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 83.64 | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 83.24 | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 83.94 | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 83.41 | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 83.6 | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 83.87 | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 84.05 | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 84.44 | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 84.23 | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 84.28 | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 84.11 | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 84.51 | +0.5% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 84.51 is above the median for high income countries, which is 83.13, 1.0× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 84.51 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 82.57, 1.0× the median. (56 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1847 | +90.0% | 19.19 | 36.46 |
| 1883 | +68.3% | 19.01 | 31.99 |
| 1844 | +58.9% | 28.35 | 45.05 |
| 1846 | -56.2% | 43.84 | 19.19 |
| 1882 | -49.2% | 37.4 | 19.01 |
| 1873 | +48.3% | 26.02 | 38.6 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1830s | 31.97 | 29.56 | 34.38 | 2 |
| 1840s | 37.81 | 19.19 | 45.2 | 10 |
| 1850s | 41.41 | 31.87 | 52.31 | 10 |
| 1860s | 33.57 | 21.54 | 42.89 | 10 |
| 1870s | 40.86 | 26.02 | 48.39 | 10 |
| 1880s | 42.47 | 19.01 | 54.36 | 10 |
| 1890s | 50.95 | 39.06 | 57.13 | 10 |
| 1900s | 52.93 | 48.83 | 59.11 | 10 |
| 1910s | 57.83 | 52.72 | 61.52 | 10 |
| 1920s | 59.98 | 56.43 | 62.89 | 10 |
| 1930s | 64.85 | 61.6 | 68.23 | 10 |
| 1940s | 69.35 | 65.97 | 73.21 | 10 |
| 1950s | 74.79 | 72.81 | 75.95 | 10 |
| 1960s | 76.22 | 75.74 | 76.48 | 10 |
| 1970s | 78.18 | 76.46 | 79.79 | 10 |
| 1980s | 79.86 | 79.29 | 80.62 | 10 |
| 1990s | 80.8 | 79.54 | 81.37 | 10 |
| 2000s | 82.61 | 81.34 | 83.43 | 10 |
| 2010s | 83.76 | 83.24 | 84.44 | 10 |
| 2020s | 84.28 | 84.11 | 84.51 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More population data for Iceland
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.4984 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -5.08 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.4984 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.2688 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 408.78 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.4806 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.6617 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate -0.502 (2100)
- Population density 3.6 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 13,661 (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland?
- Life expectation at birth by sex in Iceland was 84.51 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectation at birth by sex recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 84.51 in 2023.
- What is the lowest life expectation at birth by sex recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.01 in 1882.
- How does Iceland rank for life expectation at birth by sex?
- Iceland ranks 32nd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectation at birth by sex rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectation at birth by sex. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 186 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).