Life expectancy at birth, total (years) (Life World Population) in Iceland
Iceland: Life expectancy at birth, total (years) (Life World Population) was 82.81 years in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
82.81 years
Change on year
up 0.4%
World rank
26th
of 218 countries
All-time high
83.17 years
in 2021
All-time low
73.04 years
in 1963
Years of data
65
1960–2024
Life expectancy at birth, total in Iceland, 1960–2024
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for life expectancy at birth, total in Iceland is 82.81 years, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.4% on the previous year and down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy at birth, total in Iceland peaked at 83.17 years in 2021 and was at its lowest, 73.04 years, in 1963.
Iceland ranks 26th of 218 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.
Life expectancy at birth, total (years) (Life World Population) in Iceland, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 74.04 years | — |
| 1961 | 73.5 years | -0.7% |
| 1962 | 73.72 years | +0.3% |
| 1963 | 73.04 years | -0.9% |
| 1964 | 73.54 years | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 73.87 years | +0.4% |
| 1966 | 73.3 years | -0.8% |
| 1967 | 73.78 years | +0.7% |
| 1968 | 74.01 years | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 73.78 years | -0.3% |
| 1970 | 73.93 years | +0.2% |
| 1971 | 73.57 years | -0.5% |
| 1972 | 74.46 years | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 74.45 years | -0.0% |
| 1974 | 74.51 years | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 75.58 years | +1.4% |
| 1976 | 76.97 years | +1.8% |
| 1977 | 76.37 years | -0.8% |
| 1978 | 76.65 years | +0.4% |
| 1979 | 76.77 years | +0.2% |
| 1980 | 76.85 years | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 76.52 years | -0.4% |
| 1982 | 77.04 years | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 76.85 years | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 77.58 years | +1.0% |
| 1985 | 77.6 years | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 77.99 years | +0.5% |
| 1987 | 77.34 years | -0.8% |
| 1988 | 77.08 years | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 78.14 years | +1.4% |
| 1990 | 78.04 years | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 77.99 years | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 78.76 years | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 78.93 years | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 79.25 years | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 77.98 years | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 78.78 years | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 78.89 years | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 79.6 years | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 79.35 years | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 79.65 years | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 80.69 years | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 80.5 years | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 80.96 years | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 81 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 81.5 years | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 81.16 years | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 81.45 years | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 81.61 years | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 81.75 years | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 81.9 years | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 82.36 years | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 82.92 years | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 82.06 years | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 82.86 years | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 82.47 years | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 82.2 years | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 82.66 years | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 82.86 years | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 83.16 years | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 83.06 years | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 83.17 years | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 82.12 years | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 82.46 years | +0.4% |
| 2024 | 82.81 years | +0.4% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 82.81 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 81.36 years, 1.0× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 82.81 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 79.78 years, 1.0× the median. (57 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 73.66 years | 73.04 years | 74.04 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 75.33 years | 73.57 years | 76.97 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 77.3 years | 76.52 years | 78.14 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 78.76 years | 77.98 years | 79.6 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 81.03 years | 79.65 years | 81.75 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 82.55 years | 81.9 years | 83.16 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 82.72 years | 82.12 years | 83.17 years | 5 |
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)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,358 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 0 deaths (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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy at birth, total in Iceland?
- Life expectancy at birth, total in Iceland was 82.81 years in 2024, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest life expectancy at birth, total recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 83.17 years in 2021.
- What is the lowest life expectancy at birth, total recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 73.04 years in 1963.
- How does Iceland rank for life expectancy at birth, total?
- Iceland ranks 26th out of 218 countries with data for 2024.
- Is life expectancy at birth, total rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Life expectancy at birth, total (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.