School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Iceland
Iceland: School life expectancy, primary, both sexes was 6.87 years in 2023. β² Rising
School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Iceland, 1971β2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2023, school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Iceland stood at 6.87 years.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 0.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Iceland peaked at 7 years in 1996 and was at its lowest, 5.93 years, in 1971.
That places Iceland 31st out of 212 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.95 years | 5.93 years | 5.99 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 5.97 years | 5.96 years | 5.98 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.86 years | 5.98 years | 7 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.92 years | 6.89 years | 6.95 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.92 years | 6.91 years | 6.93 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.89 years | 6.87 years | 6.9 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More education data for Iceland
- 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)
- Lower secondary school starting age 13 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 98.2% (2023)
- Primary education, teachers 3,568 (2023)
- Fertility rate vs mean years of schooling 1.52 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 98.2% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Iceland?
- School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Iceland was 6.87 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary, both sexes recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 7 years in 1996.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary, both sexes recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.93 years in 1971.
- How does Iceland rank for school life expectancy, primary, both sexes?
- Iceland ranks 31st out of 212 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, primary, both sexes rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.6%. 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, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 53 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release