Rural population in Iceland
Iceland: Rural population was 22,689 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population in Iceland, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
In 2025, rural population in Iceland stood at 22,689.
The figure is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 9.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Iceland peaked at 34,497 in 1960 and was at its lowest, 20,667, in 2013.
That places Iceland 191st out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 34,497 | — |
| 1961 | 34,046 | -1.3% |
| 1962 | 33,673 | -1.1% |
| 1963 | 33,371 | -0.9% |
| 1964 | 32,787 | -1.8% |
| 1965 | 32,327 | -1.4% |
| 1966 | 32,193 | -0.4% |
| 1967 | 32,002 | -0.6% |
| 1968 | 31,434 | -1.8% |
| 1969 | 31,007 | -1.4% |
| 1970 | 30,582 | -1.4% |
| 1971 | 30,244 | -1.1% |
| 1972 | 29,811 | -1.4% |
| 1973 | 29,306 | -1.7% |
| 1974 | 29,061 | -0.8% |
| 1975 | 28,643 | -1.4% |
| 1976 | 28,224 | -1.5% |
| 1977 | 27,866 | -1.3% |
| 1978 | 27,561 | -1.1% |
| 1979 | 27,362 | -0.7% |
| 1980 | 27,178 | -0.7% |
| 1981 | 26,900 | -1.0% |
| 1982 | 26,641 | -1.0% |
| 1983 | 26,337 | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 26,053 | -1.1% |
| 1985 | 25,757 | -1.1% |
| 1986 | 25,399 | -1.4% |
| 1987 | 25,009 | -1.5% |
| 1988 | 24,670 | -1.4% |
| 1989 | 24,280 | -1.6% |
| 1990 | 23,939 | -1.4% |
| 1991 | 23,457 | -2.0% |
| 1992 | 23,115 | -1.5% |
| 1993 | 22,954 | -0.7% |
| 1994 | 22,746 | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 22,360 | -1.7% |
| 1996 | 21,943 | -1.9% |
| 1997 | 21,639 | -1.4% |
| 1998 | 22,812 | +5.4% |
| 1999 | 22,712 | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 22,588 | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 22,669 | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 22,521 | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 22,225 | -1.3% |
| 2004 | 22,087 | -0.6% |
| 2005 | 22,619 | +2.4% |
| 2006 | 23,710 | +4.8% |
| 2007 | 23,799 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 22,014 | -7.5% |
| 2009 | 20,880 | -5.2% |
| 2010 | 20,804 | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 21,020 | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 20,799 | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 20,667 | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 20,888 | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 20,749 | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 20,857 | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 21,387 | +2.5% |
| 2018 | 21,683 | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 21,716 | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 21,487 | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 21,566 | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 22,238 | +3.1% |
| 2023 | 22,554 | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 22,487 | -0.3% |
| 2025 | 22,689 | +0.9% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 22,689 is below the median for high income countries, which is 456,529, 5% of the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 22,689 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.49 million, 2% of the median. (57 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 32,734 | 31,007 | 34,497 | 10 |
| 1970s | 28,866 | 27,362 | 30,582 | 10 |
| 1980s | 25,822 | 24,280 | 27,178 | 10 |
| 1990s | 22,768 | 21,639 | 23,939 | 10 |
| 2000s | 22,511 | 20,880 | 23,799 | 10 |
| 2010s | 21,057 | 20,667 | 21,716 | 10 |
| 2020s | 22,170 | 21,487 | 22,689 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 188 Faroe Islands 33,136 compare
- 189 Saint Kitts and Nevis 31,954 compare
- 190 Malta 25,040 compare
- 192 Qatar 19,042 compare
- 193 Dominica 17,136 compare
- 194 British Virgin Islands 16,928 compare
More agriculture & rural data for Iceland
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 19.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0365 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 3,593 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.8983 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.0578 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 3.7% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 3.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Iceland?
- Rural population in Iceland was 22,689 in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 34,497 in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 20,667 in 2013.
- How does Iceland rank for rural population?
- Iceland ranks 191st out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.