Iceland vs South Africa: Alcohol consumption
Alcohol consumption over time
- Iceland
- South Africa
How they compare
Iceland currently reports 7.6 Litres per person against 7.3 Litres per person in South Africa, a difference of 0.3 Litres per person.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 62 shared years of data; in 1961 it was South Africa ahead.
Iceland ranks 21st and South Africa ranks 24th of 41 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Iceland averaged higher in 2 and South Africa in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Iceland | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.76 Litres per person | 6.73 Litres per person | 2.98 Litres per person | South Africa |
| 1970s | 4.96 Litres per person | 7.86 Litres per person | 2.9 Litres per person | South Africa |
| 1980s | 5.28 Litres per person | 8.8 Litres per person | 3.52 Litres per person | South Africa |
| 1990s | 4.97 Litres per person | 9.73 Litres per person | 4.76 Litres per person | South Africa |
| 2000s | 6.88 Litres per person | 7.05 Litres per person | 0.17 Litres per person | South Africa |
| 2010s | 7.4 Litres per person | 7.08 Litres per person | 0.32 Litres per person | Iceland |
| 2020s | 8.1 Litres per person | 6.5 Litres per person | 1.6 Litres per person | Iceland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher alcohol consumption, Iceland or South Africa?
- Iceland, at 7.6 Litres per person against 7.3 Litres per person in South Africa as of 2024.
- What is the difference in alcohol consumption between Iceland and South Africa?
- 0.3 Litres per person, with Iceland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Iceland and South Africa?
- 62 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2022.
- How do Iceland and South Africa rank globally for alcohol consumption?
- Iceland ranks 21st and South Africa ranks 24th of 41 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as Alcohol consumption. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Unhealthy lifestyles and poor environments cause millions of people to die prematurely. Smoking, harmful alcohol use, physical inactivity and obesity are the root cause of many chronic conditions. This dataset presents the latest data for alcohol consumption. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.