Unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland
Iceland: Unemployment rates by country of birth was 4.5% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland, 1995–2025
Source: Eurostat. Measured in Percentage.
Analysis
In 2025, unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland stood at 4.5%.
That represents a change of up 25.0% on the previous year and up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland peaked at 7.6% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 1.9%, in 2000.
Iceland ranks 32nd of 47 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
Unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Percentage | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 5.2% | — |
| 1996 | 3.6% | -30.8% |
| 1997 | 3.7% | +2.8% |
| 1998 | 3.1% | -16.2% |
| 1999 | 2.2% | -29.0% |
| 2000 | 1.9% | -13.6% |
| 2001 | 1.9% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 3.0% | +57.9% |
| 2003 | 4.0% | +33.3% |
| 2004 | 4.0% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 2.5% | -37.5% |
| 2006 | 2.8% | +12.0% |
| 2007 | 2.3% | -17.9% |
| 2008 | 2.9% | +26.1% |
| 2009 | 7.2% | +148.3% |
| 2010 | 7.6% | +5.6% |
| 2011 | 7.0% | -7.9% |
| 2012 | 6.0% | -14.3% |
| 2013 | 5.4% | -10.0% |
| 2014 | 4.9% | -9.3% |
| 2015 | 4.0% | -18.4% |
| 2016 | 3.0% | -25.0% |
| 2017 | 2.7% | -10.0% |
| 2018 | 2.7% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 3.5% | +29.6% |
| 2020 | 5.5% | +57.1% |
| 2021 | 6.1% | +10.9% |
| 2022 | 3.8% | -37.7% |
| 2023 | 3.5% | -7.9% |
| 2024 | 3.6% | +2.9% |
| 2025 | 4.5% | +25.0% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 4.5% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 6.0%, 74% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 4.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 5.4%, 83% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment rates by country of birth 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | +148.3% | 2.9% | 7.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.6% | 2.2% | 5.2% | 5 |
| 2000s | 3.2% | 1.9% | 7.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.7% | 2.7% | 7.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.5% | 3.5% | 6.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More work & labour data for Iceland
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.4964 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.4501 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.5492 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.37 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.2312 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 373.77 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 16.3 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 169.5 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 193.08 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 362.58 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland?
- Unemployment rates by country of birth in Iceland was 4.5% in 2025, according to Eurostat.
- What is the highest unemployment rates by country of birth recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 7.6% in 2010.
- What is the lowest unemployment rates by country of birth recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.9% in 2000.
- How does Iceland rank for unemployment rates by country of birth?
- Iceland ranks 32nd out of 47 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rates by country of birth rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Unemployment rates by country of birth. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat).