Iceland vs Norway: Maternal mortality ratio

Iceland
2.65 deaths per 100,000 live births
in 2020
Norway
1.66 deaths per 100,000 live births
in 2020
Iceland rank
185th
Norway rank
187th

Maternal mortality ratio over time

  • Iceland
  • Norway
050100150195119852020

How they compare

Iceland currently reports 2.65 deaths per 100,000 live births against 1.66 deaths per 100,000 live births in Norway, a difference of 0.99 deaths per 100,000 live births.

That makes Iceland's figure about 1.6 times Norway's.

The two have swapped places 15 times across 55 shared years of data; in 1951 it was Norway ahead.

Iceland ranks 185th and Norway ranks 187th of 189 countries.

Across the 8 decades both report, Iceland averaged higher in 5 and Norway in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade Iceland Norway Difference Ahead
1950s 65.71 deaths per 100,000 live births 65.89 deaths per 100,000 live births 0.1833 deaths per 100,000 live births Norway
1960s 33.79 deaths per 100,000 live births 21.5 deaths per 100,000 live births 12.29 deaths per 100,000 live births Iceland
1970s 30.5 deaths per 100,000 live births 10.05 deaths per 100,000 live births 20.45 deaths per 100,000 live births Iceland
1980s 6.45 deaths per 100,000 live births 6.93 deaths per 100,000 live births 0.4742 deaths per 100,000 live births Norway
1990s 5.99 deaths per 100,000 live births 5.9 deaths per 100,000 live births 0.0945 deaths per 100,000 live births Iceland
2000s 4.06 deaths per 100,000 live births 5.14 deaths per 100,000 live births 1.08 deaths per 100,000 live births Norway
2010s 3.07 deaths per 100,000 live births 2.75 deaths per 100,000 live births 0.3185 deaths per 100,000 live births Iceland
2020s 2.65 deaths per 100,000 live births 1.66 deaths per 100,000 live births 0.9907 deaths per 100,000 live births Iceland

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher maternal mortality ratio, Iceland or Norway?
Iceland, at 2.65 deaths per 100,000 live births against 1.66 deaths per 100,000 live births in Norway as of 2020.
What is the difference in maternal mortality ratio between Iceland and Norway?
0.99 deaths per 100,000 live births, with Iceland ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Iceland and Norway?
55 years are reported by both, from 1951 to 2020.
How do Iceland and Norway rank globally for maternal mortality ratio?
Iceland ranks 185th and Norway ranks 187th of 189 countries.
Where does this data come from?
UN MMEIG (2023) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Maternal mortality ratio. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Maternal mortality ratio
Unit
deaths per 100,000 live births
Source
UN MMEIG (2023) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
189 places, 8,868 data points, 1751–2020
Last refreshed

The estimated number of women who die from maternal conditions per 100,000 live births, based on data from death certificates, large-scale surveys, and statistical modeling.