Number of cattle in Iceland
Iceland: Number of cattle was 76,902 animals in 2024. ▲ Rising
Number of cattle in Iceland, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in animals.
Analysis
In 2024, number of cattle in Iceland stood at 76,902 animals.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.3% on the previous year and up 3.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of cattle in Iceland peaked at 81,385 animals in 2018 and was at its lowest, 52,274 animals, in 1969.
That places Iceland 156th out of 196 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 55,624 animals | 52,274 animals | 59,751 animals | 9 |
| 1970s | 61,292 animals | 53,294 animals | 67,338 animals | 10 |
| 1980s | 67,559 animals | 57,172 animals | 72,889 animals | 10 |
| 1990s | 74,728 animals | 71,923 animals | 77,681 animals | 10 |
| 2000s | 69,102 animals | 64,639 animals | 73,498 animals | 10 |
| 2010s | 76,223 animals | 68,014 animals | 81,385 animals | 10 |
| 2020s | 79,229 animals | 76,902 animals | 80,643 animals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 153 Cyprus 82,680 animals compare
- 154 Fiji 80,720 animals compare
- 155 New Caledonia 77,281 animals compare
- 157 Guadeloupe 75,830 animals compare
- 158 Lebanon 75,538 animals compare
- 159 Montenegro 67,496 animals compare
More agriculture & rural data for Iceland
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.41 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 3.7% (2025)
- Rural population 22,689 (2025)
- Rural population growth 0.9% (2025)
- Rural population 5.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 3.7% (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 3.7% (2025)
- Land under cereal production 3,160 hectares (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of cattle in Iceland?
- Number of cattle in Iceland was 76,902 animals in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of cattle recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 81,385 animals in 2018.
- What is the lowest number of cattle recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 52,274 animals in 1969.
- How does Iceland rank for number of cattle?
- Iceland ranks 156th out of 196 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of cattle rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of cattle. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).