Iceland Demographics: Median age, Gender, Religion

Median age history and projection chart in
Iceland vs World

Table

Year	Median age
	Iceland	World
1960	25.4	22.5
1961	25.2	22.5
1962	24.9	22.4
1963	24.7	22.2
1964	24.4	22
1965	24.2	21.8
1966	24.1	21.7
1967	24.1	21.6
1968	24.2	21.5
1969	24.3	21.5
1970	24.5	21.4
1971	24.7	21.4
1972	24.8	21.5
1973	24.9	21.5
1974	25.1	21.6
1975	25.4	21.7
1976	25.7	21.9
1977	26	22
1978	26.4	22.2
1979	26.7	22.3
1980	26.9	22.5
1981	27.2	22.6
1982	27.5	22.7
1983	27.7	22.9
1984	28	23
1985	28.4	23.2
1986	28.8	23.3
1987	29.1	23.4
1988	29.3	23.6
1989	29.6	23.8
1990	30	23.9
1991	30.2	24.1
1992	30.5	24.3
1993	30.8	24.5
1994	31.1	24.7
1995	31.5	25
1996	31.8	25.2
1997	32.1	25.4
1998	32.4	25.7
1999	32.6	25.9
2000	32.8	26.1
2001	33	26.3
2002	33.4	26.5
2003	33.7	26.7
2004	34	27
2005	34.2	27.2
2006	34.5	27.4
2007	34.6	27.6
2008	34.5	27.8
2009	34.6	28
2010	34.9	28.2
2011	35.1	28.4
2012	35.4	28.6
2013	35.5	28.9
2014	35.7	29.1
2015	36	29.3
2016	36.2	29.5
2017	36.3	29.8
2018	36.4	30
2019	36.5	30.3
2020	36.6	30.6
2021	36.7	30.8
2022	36.7	31
2023	36.9	31.3
2024	37.1	31.6
2025	37.2	31.9
2026	37.6	32.1
2027	37.9	32.3
2028	38.3	32.6
2029	38.7	32.8
2030	39.1	33
2031	39.5	33.2
2032	40	33.4
2033	40.4	33.6
2034	40.8	33.8
2035	41.3	34
2036	41.7	34.2
2037	42	34.4
2038	42.4	34.6
2039	42.8	34.8
2040	43.1	35
2041	43.5	35.2
2042	43.8	35.4
2043	44.1	35.6
2044	44.4	35.8
2045	44.7	36
2046	44.9	36.2
2047	45.2	36.4
2048	45.4	36.6
2049	45.6	36.8
2050	45.9	37.1

In 1960, the median age in Iceland was 25.4 years compared to the world's average of 22.5 years. As of 2024, the median age had increased to 37.1 years compared to the world's average of 31.6 years. Ranked 46th for median age 64 years ago (old to young), Iceland ranks 65th currently.

According to the United Nations projections, the median age in Iceland is expected to increase to around 45.9 years by 2050. The aging demographics forecast is based on previous years' birth rates and increasing life expectancy.

Iceland demographic pyramid: age and gender distribution

Table

Age range	Share of population
	Iceland
	Male	Female
0-4	3.07%	2.87%
5-9	2.93%	2.74%
10-14	3.14%	3.02%
15-19	3.26%	3.09%
20-24	3.33%	3.27%
25-29	3.94%	3.72%
30-34	4.53%	3.98%
35-39	3.94%	3.4%
40-44	3.69%	3.26%
45-49	3.22%	2.98%
50-54	3.05%	2.85%
55-59	2.82%	2.79%
60-64	2.71%	2.75%
65-69	2.47%	2.47%
70-74	2.02%	2.01%
75-79	1.5%	1.56%
80+	1.6%	2.02%

The chart above is a variation of the population pyramid and represents the age and gender structure. Iceland has low demographic potential with 46.9% of people in the 0-34 age group (ranked 133/196).

Age dependency chart

Table

Year	Age dependency ratio
	Iceland			World
	Total	Young	Old	Total	Young	Old
1960	75.3%	61.1%	14.1%	73.5%	64.9%	8.62%
1961	75.8%	61.5%	14.3%	73.8%	65.1%	8.67%
1962	76%	61.5%	14.5%	74.1%	65.4%	8.73%
1963	75.9%	61.3%	14.6%	74.9%	66.1%	8.79%
1964	75.7%	61%	14.7%	75.5%	66.6%	8.85%
1965	75.3%	60.5%	14.8%	75.8%	66.8%	8.93%
1966	74.7%	59.9%	14.8%	75.9%	66.9%	9%
1967	74%	59.2%	14.8%	75.9%	66.8%	9.07%
1968	73%	58.2%	14.8%	75.8%	66.6%	9.14%
1969	71.9%	57%	14.9%	75.7%	66.5%	9.2%
1970	70.7%	55.7%	15%	75.5%	66.2%	9.26%
1971	69.5%	54.4%	15.1%	75.2%	65.9%	9.33%
1972	68.2%	53.2%	15.1%	74.9%	65.6%	9.39%
1973	67.2%	52.1%	15.1%	74.6%	65.1%	9.46%
1974	66%	50.9%	15.1%	74.4%	64.9%	9.54%
1975	64.5%	49.5%	15.1%	74.2%	64.6%	9.64%
1976	63.4%	48.2%	15.2%	74%	64.3%	9.72%
1977	62.4%	47.1%	15.4%	73.5%	63.7%	9.79%
1978	61.3%	45.8%	15.6%	72.4%	62.5%	9.84%
1979	60.4%	44.7%	15.7%	71.3%	61.4%	9.88%
1980	59.7%	43.9%	15.8%	70.4%	60.5%	9.89%
1981	58.9%	43.1%	15.7%	69.5%	59.6%	9.85%
1982	58.2%	42.5%	15.7%	68.7%	58.9%	9.79%
1983	57.8%	42.1%	15.8%	67.9%	58.1%	9.72%
1984	57.5%	41.7%	15.8%	67%	57.3%	9.68%
1985	57.1%	41.2%	15.9%	66.3%	56.6%	9.68%
1986	56.8%	40.6%	16.2%	65.7%	55.9%	9.71%
1987	56.2%	39.9%	16.3%	65.2%	55.4%	9.75%
1988	55.5%	39.2%	16.3%	64.8%	54.9%	9.81%
1989	55.2%	38.9%	16.3%	64.4%	54.5%	9.89%
1990	55.2%	38.7%	16.5%	64.2%	54.3%	9.97%
1991	55.2%	38.5%	16.6%	64%	53.9%	10.1%
1992	55.3%	38.5%	16.8%	63.7%	53.6%	10.2%
1993	55.7%	38.7%	17%	63.5%	53.2%	10.3%
1994	55.6%	38.5%	17.2%	63.1%	52.7%	10.4%
1995	55.4%	38%	17.5%	62.7%	52.2%	10.5%
1996	55.1%	37.4%	17.7%	62.1%	51.5%	10.6%
1997	54.7%	36.9%	17.8%	61.5%	50.8%	10.7%
1998	54.2%	36.4%	17.8%	60.7%	50%	10.7%
1999	53.8%	36%	17.8%	60%	49.2%	10.8%
2000	53.5%	35.7%	17.8%	59.3%	48.4%	10.9%
2001	53.3%	35.5%	17.8%	58.5%	47.6%	11%
2002	53.1%	35.3%	17.9%	57.8%	46.7%	11.1%
2003	52.7%	34.8%	17.9%	57%	45.9%	11.1%
2004	52.1%	34.2%	17.9%	56.3%	45.1%	11.2%
2005	51%	33.3%	17.7%	55.6%	44.3%	11.3%
2006	49.6%	32.2%	17.4%	55%	43.6%	11.4%
2007	48.5%	31.3%	17.1%	54.5%	43.1%	11.4%
2008	48.1%	30.9%	17.1%	54.1%	42.6%	11.5%
2009	48.6%	31.1%	17.5%	53.8%	42.2%	11.6%
2010	49.4%	31.3%	18.1%	53.5%	41.9%	11.6%
2011	49.9%	31.2%	18.7%	53.4%	41.6%	11.8%
2012	50.3%	31.1%	19.2%	53.3%	41.4%	11.9%
2013	50.7%	31%	19.7%	53.4%	41.2%	12.1%
2014	51.1%	30.9%	20.2%	53.5%	41.1%	12.4%
2015	51.2%	30.5%	20.7%	53.6%	40.9%	12.7%
2016	51.1%	30%	21%	53.7%	40.7%	13%
2017	50.6%	29.4%	21.1%	53.9%	40.6%	13.3%
2018	49.9%	28.8%	21.2%	54.1%	40.4%	13.7%
2019	49.6%	28.2%	21.4%	54.2%	40.1%	14%
2020	49.9%	28.1%	21.8%	54.2%	39.8%	14.4%
2021	50.4%	28%	22.4%	54.2%	39.5%	14.7%
2022	50.4%	27.6%	22.7%	54%	39%	15%
2023	50.2%	27.1%	23%	53.9%	38.5%	15.4%
2024	50.2%	26.7%	23.5%	53.7%	38%	15.7%

Age dependency is the ratio of people not in the labor force (children under 15 and adults 64+) to people aged 15 to 64. Age dependency in Iceland decreased from 52.1% to 50.2% between 2004 and 2024 with a decreased share of children and an increased proportion of people aged 65+

Iceland working age demographic chart

Table

Year	Working age population share
	Iceland	World
1960	57.1%	57.6%
1961	56.9%	57.5%
1962	56.8%	57.4%
1963	56.8%	57.2%
1964	56.9%	57%
1965	57%	56.9%
1966	57.2%	56.8%
1967	57.5%	56.9%
1968	57.8%	56.9%
1969	58.2%	56.9%
1970	58.6%	57%
1971	59%	57.1%
1972	59.4%	57.2%
1973	59.8%	57.3%
1974	60.3%	57.3%
1975	60.8%	57.4%
1976	61.2%	57.5%
1977	61.6%	57.7%
1978	62%	58%
1979	62.3%	58.4%
1980	62.6%	58.7%
1981	62.9%	59%
1982	63.2%	59.3%
1983	63.4%	59.6%
1984	63.5%	59.9%
1985	63.7%	60.1%
1986	63.8%	60.4%
1987	64%	60.5%
1988	64.3%	60.7%
1989	64.4%	60.8%
1990	64.4%	60.9%
1991	64.5%	61%
1992	64.4%	61.1%
1993	64.2%	61.2%
1994	64.2%	61.3%
1995	64.3%	61.5%
1996	64.5%	61.7%
1997	64.6%	61.9%
1998	64.8%	62.2%
1999	65%	62.5%
2000	65.1%	62.8%
2001	65.2%	63.1%
2002	65.3%	63.4%
2003	65.5%	63.7%
2004	65.8%	64%
2005	66.2%	64.3%
2006	66.8%	64.5%
2007	67.4%	64.7%
2008	67.5%	64.9%
2009	67.3%	65%
2010	66.9%	65.1%
2011	66.7%	65.2%
2012	66.5%	65.2%
2013	66.3%	65.2%
2014	66.2%	65.2%
2015	66.1%	65.1%
2016	66.2%	65.1%
2017	66.4%	65%
2018	66.7%	64.9%
2019	66.8%	64.9%
2020	66.7%	64.8%
2021	66.5%	64.9%
2022	66.5%	64.9%
2023	66.6%	65%
2024	66.6%	65.1%
2025	66.5%	65.2%
2026	66.4%	65.3%
2027	66.3%	65.4%
2028	66.1%	65.4%
2029	65.8%	65.4%
2030	65.6%	65.4%
2031	65.4%	65.4%
2032	65.2%	65.4%
2033	65%	65.4%
2034	65%	65.3%
2035	64.9%	65.2%
2036	64.9%	65%
2037	64.9%	64.9%
2038	64.7%	64.7%
2039	64.6%	64.6%
2040	64.5%	64.5%
2041	64.4%	64.4%
2042	64.3%	64.3%
2043	64.1%	64.2%
2044	64%	64.1%
2045	63.7%	63.9%
2046	63.5%	63.8%
2047	63.2%	63.7%
2048	62.9%	63.6%
2049	62.7%	63.4%
2050	62.4%	63.3%

The share of working-age demographics aged 15-64 in Iceland changed from 65.8% to 66.6% between 2004 and 2024.

Share of young population (0-14 years)

Table

Year	Share of population 0-14 years old
	Iceland	World
1960	34.9%	37.4%
1961	35%	37.5%
1962	34.9%	37.6%
1963	34.9%	37.8%
1964	34.7%	38%
1965	34.5%	38%
1966	34.3%	38%
1967	34%	38%
1968	33.6%	37.9%
1969	33.2%	37.8%
1970	32.6%	37.7%
1971	32.1%	37.6%
1972	31.6%	37.5%
1973	31.2%	37.3%
1974	30.7%	37.2%
1975	30.1%	37.1%
1976	29.5%	36.9%
1977	29%	36.7%
1978	28.4%	36.3%
1979	27.9%	35.9%
1980	27.5%	35.5%
1981	27.2%	35.2%
1982	26.9%	34.9%
1983	26.7%	34.6%
1984	26.5%	34.3%
1985	26.2%	34%
1986	25.9%	33.8%
1987	25.6%	33.6%
1988	25.2%	33.4%
1989	25%	33.2%
1990	25%	33%
1991	24.8%	32.9%
1992	24.8%	32.7%
1993	24.8%	32.5%
1994	24.7%	32.3%
1995	24.4%	32.1%
1996	24.1%	31.8%
1997	23.9%	31.5%
1998	23.6%	31.1%
1999	23.4%	30.8%
2000	23.3%	30.4%
2001	23.2%	30%
2002	23%	29.6%
2003	22.8%	29.2%
2004	22.5%	28.8%
2005	22.1%	28.5%
2006	21.5%	28.1%
2007	21.1%	27.9%
2008	20.9%	27.6%
2009	20.9%	27.5%
2010	20.9%	27.3%
2011	20.8%	27.1%
2012	20.7%	27%
2013	20.6%	26.9%
2014	20.4%	26.8%
2015	20.2%	26.6%
2016	19.9%	26.5%
2017	19.6%	26.4%
2018	19.2%	26.2%
2019	18.9%	26%
2020	18.7%	25.8%
2021	18.6%	25.6%
2022	18.4%	25.3%
2023	18.1%	25%
2024	17.8%	24.7%
2025	17.5%	24.4%
2026	17.3%	24.1%
2027	17.1%	23.8%
2028	17%	23.4%
2029	16.8%	23.1%
2030	16.7%	22.8%
2031	16.6%	22.6%
2032	16.5%	22.3%
2033	16.3%	22.1%
2034	16.1%	21.9%
2035	15.9%	21.7%
2036	15.6%	21.6%
2037	15.4%	21.5%
2038	15.2%	21.4%
2039	15%	21.3%
2040	14.8%	21.2%
2041	14.7%	21.1%
2042	14.5%	21%
2043	14.4%	21%
2044	14.2%	20.9%
2045	14.1%	20.8%
2046	14%	20.7%
2047	13.9%	20.7%
2048	13.8%	20.6%
2049	13.7%	20.5%
2050	13.6%	20.4%

The share of children aged 0-14 in Iceland decreased from 22.5% to 17.8% between 2004 and 2024 due to changes in birth rates.

Share of old population (65+)

Table

Year	Share of population 65+ years old
	Iceland	World
1960	8.06%	4.97%
1961	8.16%	4.99%
1962	8.24%	5.01%
1963	8.31%	5.02%
1964	8.37%	5.04%
1965	8.44%	5.08%
1966	8.48%	5.12%
1967	8.49%	5.16%
1968	8.55%	5.2%
1969	8.67%	5.24%
1970	8.8%	5.28%
1971	8.91%	5.32%
1972	8.97%	5.37%
1973	9.01%	5.42%
1974	9.08%	5.47%
1975	9.16%	5.53%
1976	9.3%	5.59%
1977	9.47%	5.65%
1978	9.64%	5.71%
1979	9.78%	5.77%
1980	9.87%	5.81%
1981	9.91%	5.81%
1982	9.93%	5.8%
1983	9.98%	5.79%
1984	10%	5.8%
1985	10.1%	5.82%
1986	10.3%	5.86%
1987	10.4%	5.91%
1988	10.5%	5.95%
1989	10.5%	6.01%
1990	10.6%	6.07%
1991	10.7%	6.14%
1992	10.8%	6.21%
1993	10.9%	6.29%
1994	11%	6.37%
1995	11.2%	6.45%
1996	11.4%	6.53%
1997	11.5%	6.61%
1998	11.6%	6.68%
1999	11.6%	6.76%
2000	11.6%	6.84%
2001	11.6%	6.92%
2002	11.7%	7.01%
2003	11.7%	7.1%
2004	11.8%	7.18%
2005	11.7%	7.26%
2006	11.6%	7.34%
2007	11.5%	7.41%
2008	11.6%	7.47%
2009	11.8%	7.52%
2010	12.1%	7.58%
2011	12.5%	7.66%
2012	12.8%	7.78%
2013	13.1%	7.92%
2014	13.4%	8.08%
2015	13.7%	8.26%
2016	13.9%	8.45%
2017	14%	8.65%
2018	14.1%	8.88%
2019	14.3%	9.1%
2020	14.6%	9.33%
2021	14.9%	9.53%
2022	15.1%	9.74%
2023	15.3%	9.98%
2024	15.6%	10.2%
2025	16%	10.4%
2026	16.3%	10.6%
2027	16.6%	10.8%
2028	17%	11.1%
2029	17.3%	11.5%
2030	17.7%	11.7%
2031	18%	12%
2032	18.4%	12.3%
2033	18.6%	12.6%
2034	18.9%	12.8%
2035	19.2%	13.1%
2036	19.4%	13.4%
2037	19.7%	13.7%
2038	20.1%	13.9%
2039	20.4%	14.1%
2040	20.7%	14.3%
2041	21%	14.5%
2042	21.2%	14.7%
2043	21.5%	14.9%
2044	21.8%	15%
2045	22.2%	15.2%
2046	22.5%	15.4%
2047	22.9%	15.7%
2048	23.3%	15.9%
2049	23.6%	16.1%
2050	23.9%	16.3%

The share of older people aged 65 and over in Iceland increased from 11.8% to 15.6% between 2004 and 2024 due to changes in life expectancy.