Life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland
Iceland: Life expectancy at birth oecd was 83.2 in 2021. ▲ Rising
Latest (2021)
83.2
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
6th
of 49 countries
All-time high
83.2
in 2019
All-time low
73
in 1963
Years of data
60
1961–2021
Life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland, 1961–2021
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2021, life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland stood at 83.2. That is the highest value across all 60 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland peaked at 83.2 in 2019 and was at its lowest, 73, in 1963.
That places Iceland 6th out of 49 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 60 years of available data.
Life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 73.5 | — |
| 1962 | 73.7 | +0.3% |
| 1963 | 73 | -0.9% |
| 1964 | 73.5 | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 73.8 | +0.4% |
| 1966 | 73.3 | -0.7% |
| 1967 | 73.8 | +0.7% |
| 1968 | 74 | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 73.7 | -0.4% |
| 1970 | 73.8 | +0.1% |
| 1971 | 73.5 | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 74.4 | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 74.4 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 74.4 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 75.5 | +1.5% |
| 1976 | 76.9 | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 76.3 | -0.8% |
| 1978 | 76.6 | +0.4% |
| 1980 | 76.8 | +0.3% |
| 1981 | 76.4 | -0.5% |
| 1982 | 77 | +0.8% |
| 1983 | 76.7 | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 77.6 | +1.2% |
| 1985 | 77.6 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 78 | +0.5% |
| 1987 | 77.3 | -0.9% |
| 1988 | 77.1 | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 78.2 | +1.4% |
| 1990 | 78.1 | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 78 | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 78.8 | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 79 | +0.3% |
| 1994 | 79.3 | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 78 | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 78.8 | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 78.9 | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 79.7 | +1.0% |
| 1999 | 79.4 | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 79.7 | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 80.7 | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 80.6 | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 81 | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 81.1 | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 81.5 | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 81.2 | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 81.5 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 81.6 | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 81.8 | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 81.9 | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 82.4 | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 83 | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 82.1 | -1.1% |
| 2014 | 82.9 | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 82.5 | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 82.2 | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 82.6 | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 82.9 | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 83.2 | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 83.1 | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 83.2 | +0.1% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 83.2 is above the median for high income countries, which is 81.4, 1.0× the median. (39 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 83.2 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 81, 1.0× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 73.59 | 73 | 74 | 9 |
| 1970s | 75.09 | 73.5 | 76.9 | 9 |
| 1980s | 77.27 | 76.4 | 78.2 | 10 |
| 1990s | 78.8 | 78 | 79.7 | 10 |
| 2000s | 81.07 | 79.7 | 81.8 | 10 |
| 2010s | 82.57 | 81.9 | 83.2 | 10 |
| 2020s | 83.15 | 83.1 | 83.2 | 2 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More health data for Iceland
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -100 % change on previous year (2085)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.4982 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 0 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.1533 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0283 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.1097 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0302 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland?
- Life expectancy at birth oecd in Iceland was 83.2 in 2021, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy at birth oecd recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 83.2 in 2019.
- What is the lowest life expectancy at birth oecd recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 73 in 1963.
- How does Iceland rank for life expectancy at birth oecd?
- Iceland ranks 6th out of 49 countries with data for 2021.
- Is life expectancy at birth oecd rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. 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 expectancy at birth oecd. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 60 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).