Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland
Iceland: Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government was 14.8% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland, 2000–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in IMF calculation.
Analysis
The most recent figure for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland is 14.8%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland peaked at 18.7% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 11.9%, in 2008.
Iceland ranks 34th of 123 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland, year by year
| Year | IMF calculation | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 15.5% | — |
| 2001 | 18.2% | +17.0% |
| 2002 | 18.7% | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 18.1% | -3.3% |
| 2004 | 18.6% | +2.7% |
| 2005 | 17.3% | -6.8% |
| 2006 | 17.1% | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 16.6% | -2.9% |
| 2008 | 11.9% | -28.6% |
| 2009 | 14.1% | +19.0% |
| 2010 | 14.7% | +4.1% |
| 2011 | 14.1% | -4.2% |
| 2012 | 14.6% | +3.5% |
| 2013 | 15.5% | +6.5% |
| 2014 | 15.1% | -2.4% |
| 2015 | 15.6% | +3.2% |
| 2016 | 14.4% | -7.8% |
| 2017 | 15.8% | +9.8% |
| 2018 | 16.0% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 16.1% | +0.9% |
| 2020 | 15.9% | -1.6% |
| 2021 | 15.4% | -3.0% |
| 2022 | 14.9% | -3.3% |
| 2023 | 14.8% | -0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 16.6% | 11.9% | 18.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.2% | 14.1% | 16.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.3% | 14.8% | 15.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More education data for Iceland
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 6,661 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 6,167 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 37,056 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 32,314 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.17 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0838 units per person (2023)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland?
- Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Iceland was 14.8% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest expenditure on education as a percentage of total government recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 18.7% in 2002.
- What is the lowest expenditure on education as a percentage of total government recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.9% in 2008.
- How does Iceland rank for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government?
- Iceland ranks 34th out of 123 countries with data for 2023.
- Is expenditure on education as a percentage of total government rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure (%) (IMF calculation). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release