School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland
Iceland: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes was 14.22 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
14.22 years
Change on year
down 1.7%
World rank
13th
of 213 countries
All-time high
15.38 years
in 2013
All-time low
11.5 years
in 1971
Years of data
50
1971–2023
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland is 14.22 years, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 1.7% on the previous year and down 7.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland peaked at 15.38 years in 2013 and was at its lowest, 11.5 years, in 1971.
Iceland ranks 13th of 213 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 50 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 11.5 years | — |
| 1972 | 11.63 years | +1.2% |
| 1975 | 11.53 years | -0.9% |
| 1976 | 11.66 years | +1.1% |
| 1977 | 11.86 years | +1.7% |
| 1978 | 11.78 years | -0.7% |
| 1979 | 11.87 years | +0.8% |
| 1980 | 11.6 years | -2.2% |
| 1981 | 11.96 years | +3.0% |
| 1982 | 12.04 years | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 12.08 years | +0.4% |
| 1984 | 12.25 years | +1.4% |
| 1985 | 12.46 years | +1.7% |
| 1986 | 12.56 years | +0.7% |
| 1987 | 12.72 years | +1.3% |
| 1988 | 12.7 years | -0.2% |
| 1989 | 12.76 years | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 12.89 years | +1.0% |
| 1991 | 13.98 years | +8.4% |
| 1992 | 14.07 years | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 14.18 years | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 14.12 years | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 14.09 years | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 14.15 years | +0.4% |
| 1998 | 14.78 years | +4.4% |
| 1999 | 14.64 years | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 14.63 years | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 14.63 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 14.8 years | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 15.04 years | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 14.47 years | -3.8% |
| 2005 | 14.54 years | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 14.47 years | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 14.39 years | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 14.35 years | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 14.31 years | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 14.54 years | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 14.56 years | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 14.85 years | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 15.38 years | +3.6% |
| 2014 | 15.23 years | -1.0% |
| 2015 | 15.13 years | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 14.97 years | -1.1% |
| 2017 | 14.84 years | -0.9% |
| 2018 | 14.72 years | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 14.5 years | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 14.38 years | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 14.64 years | +1.8% |
| 2022 | 14.46 years | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 14.22 years | -1.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11.69 years | 11.5 years | 11.87 years | 7 |
| 1980s | 12.31 years | 11.6 years | 12.76 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.1 years | 12.89 years | 14.78 years | 9 |
| 2000s | 14.56 years | 14.31 years | 15.04 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.87 years | 14.5 years | 15.38 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 14.43 years | 14.22 years | 14.64 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 10 Ireland 14.35 years compare
- 11 United States Virgin Islands 14.34 years compare
- 12 Finland 14.22 years compare
- 14 Netherlands 14.12 years compare
- 15 United Kingdom 13.91 years compare
- 16 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 13.87 years compare
More education data for Iceland
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,022 tertiary education (2023)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 3,568 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 66.5% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 17.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in Iceland was 14.22 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 15.38 years in 2013.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.5 years in 1971.
- How does Iceland rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes?
- Iceland ranks 13th out of 213 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release