School-age population (pre-primary level) in Iceland
Iceland: School-age population (pre-primary level) was 14,594 in 2025. ▲ Rising
School-age population in Iceland, 1970–2025
Source: UNICEF.
Analysis
Iceland recorded 14,594 for school-age population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.4% on the previous year and up 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school-age population in Iceland peaked at 14,594 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 3,874, in 1977.
Iceland ranks 67th of 72 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School-age population (pre-primary level) in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 4,698 | — |
| 1971 | 4,605 | -2.0% |
| 1972 | 4,558 | -1.0% |
| 1973 | 4,536 | -0.5% |
| 1974 | 4,234 | -6.7% |
| 1975 | 4,086 | -3.5% |
| 1976 | 4,120 | +0.8% |
| 1977 | 3,874 | -6.0% |
| 1978 | 4,099 | +5.8% |
| 1979 | 4,475 | +9.2% |
| 1980 | 4,375 | -2.2% |
| 1981 | 4,026 | -8.0% |
| 1982 | 4,143 | +2.9% |
| 1983 | 4,154 | +0.3% |
| 1984 | 3,886 | -6.5% |
| 1985 | 4,053 | +4.3% |
| 1986 | 4,445 | +9.7% |
| 1987 | 4,490 | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 4,312 | -4.0% |
| 1989 | 4,358 | +1.1% |
| 1990 | 4,279 | -1.8% |
| 1991 | 11,826 | +176.4% |
| 1992 | 12,628 | +6.8% |
| 1993 | 13,298 | +5.3% |
| 1994 | 13,921 | +4.7% |
| 1995 | 13,801 | -0.9% |
| 1996 | 13,816 | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 13,582 | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 13,505 | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 13,281 | -1.7% |
| 2000 | 13,133 | -1.1% |
| 2001 | 12,979 | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 12,945 | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 12,652 | -2.3% |
| 2004 | 12,772 | +0.9% |
| 2005 | 12,615 | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 12,559 | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 12,464 | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 12,755 | +2.3% |
| 2009 | 13,112 | +2.8% |
| 2010 | 13,257 | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 13,351 | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 13,686 | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 14,101 | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 14,489 | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 14,270 | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 13,885 | -2.7% |
| 2017 | 13,455 | -3.1% |
| 2018 | 13,440 | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 13,174 | -2.0% |
| 2020 | 12,942 | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 12,781 | -1.2% |
| 2022 | 12,881 | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 13,362 | +3.7% |
| 2024 | 13,852 | +3.7% |
| 2025 | 14,594 | +5.4% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 14,594 is below the median for high income countries, which is 182,828, 8% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 14,594 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 217,062, 7% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where School-age population (pre-primary level) 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | +176.4% | 4,279 | 11,826 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4,328 | 3,874 | 4,698 | 10 |
| 1980s | 4,224 | 3,886 | 4,490 | 10 |
| 1990s | 12,394 | 4,279 | 13,921 | 10 |
| 2000s | 12,799 | 12,464 | 13,133 | 10 |
| 2010s | 13,711 | 13,174 | 14,489 | 10 |
| 2020s | 13,402 | 12,781 | 14,594 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More education data for Iceland
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.24 (2023)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 98.18 (2023)
- 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school-age population in Iceland?
- School-age population in Iceland was 14,594 in 2025, according to UNICEF.
- What is the highest school-age population recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 14,594 in 2025.
- What is the lowest school-age population recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 3,874 in 1977.
- How does Iceland rank for school-age population?
- Iceland ranks 67th out of 72 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school-age population rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of School-age population (pre-primary level). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required).