Iceland vs United Kingdom: Universal right to vote in practice
Iceland
2
in 2025
United Kingdom
2
in 2025
Iceland rank
1st
United Kingdom rank
1st
Universal right to vote in practice over time
- Iceland
- United Kingdom
How they compare
Iceland currently reports 2 against 2 in United Kingdom, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 182 shared years of data; in 1844 it was United Kingdom ahead.
Iceland ranks 1st and United Kingdom ranks 1st of 197 countries.
Iceland has averaged higher in every one of the 19 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Iceland | United Kingdom | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1910s | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.2 | Iceland |
| 1920s | 2 | 1.2 | 0.8 | Iceland |
| 1930s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1940s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1950s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1960s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1970s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher universal right to vote in practice, Iceland or United Kingdom?
- Iceland, at 2 against 2 in United Kingdom as of 2025.
- What is the difference in universal right to vote in practice between Iceland and United Kingdom?
- 0, with Iceland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Iceland and United Kingdom?
- 182 years are reported by both, from 1844 to 2025.
- How do Iceland and United Kingdom rank globally for universal right to vote in practice?
- Iceland ranks 1st and United Kingdom ranks 1st of 197 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Universal right to vote in practice. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Indicates whether virtually all adult citizens have the right to vote in practice (score 2), only men have broad voting rights in practice (score 1), or there are no broad voting rights in practice (score 0).