School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years) (female) in Iceland
Iceland: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years) (female) was 19.37 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
19.37 years
Change on year
down 4.1%
World rank
12th
of 179 countries
All-time high
20.96 years
in 2014
All-time low
11.23 years
in 1971
Years of data
38
1971–2023
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in Iceland, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
Iceland recorded 19.37 years for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in 2023.
That represents a change of down 4.1% on the previous year and down 7.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in Iceland peaked at 20.96 years in 2014 and was at its lowest, 11.23 years, in 1971.
That places Iceland 12th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 38 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years) (female) in Iceland, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 11.23 years | — |
| 1975 | 11.55 years | +2.9% |
| 1976 | 11.77 years | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 12.11 years | +2.8% |
| 1983 | 13.03 years | +7.6% |
| 1984 | 13.21 years | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 13.51 years | +2.3% |
| 1989 | 13.89 years | +2.9% |
| 1993 | 15.68 years | +12.9% |
| 1994 | 16.02 years | +2.2% |
| 1995 | 16.08 years | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 16.22 years | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 17.25 years | +6.3% |
| 1999 | 17.43 years | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 17.71 years | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 17.79 years | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 18.43 years | +3.7% |
| 2003 | 19.27 years | +4.5% |
| 2004 | 19.01 years | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 19.27 years | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 19.33 years | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 19.34 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 19.35 years | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 19.27 years | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 19.75 years | +2.5% |
| 2011 | 19.9 years | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 20.3 years | +2.1% |
| 2013 | 20.96 years | +3.2% |
| 2014 | 20.96 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 20.52 years | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 20.27 years | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 19.85 years | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 19.62 years | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 19.43 years | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 19.46 years | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 20.5 years | +5.4% |
| 2022 | 20.19 years | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 19.37 years | -4.1% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 19.37 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 16.71 years, 1.2× the median. (67 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 19.37 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 16.68 years, 1.2× the median. (52 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11.66 years | 11.23 years | 12.11 years | 4 |
| 1980s | 13.41 years | 13.03 years | 13.89 years | 4 |
| 1990s | 16.45 years | 15.68 years | 17.43 years | 6 |
| 2000s | 18.88 years | 17.71 years | 19.35 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.15 years | 19.43 years | 20.96 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.88 years | 19.37 years | 20.5 years | 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 school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in Iceland?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in Iceland was 19.37 years in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 20.96 years in 2014.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.23 years in 1971.
- How does Iceland rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female?
- Iceland ranks 12th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.6%. 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 to tertiary, female (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 38 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release