Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank in Iceland
Iceland: Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank was 4.7% in 2016. ▼ Falling
Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank in Iceland, 1991–2016
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2016, income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Iceland stood at 4.7%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 14.1% on the previous year and down 21.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Iceland peaked at 8.5% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 3.4%, in 2010.
That places Iceland 108th out of 109 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 6.3% | — |
| 1992 | 6.4% | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 6.2% | -1.9% |
| 1994 | 6.4% | +2.7% |
| 1995 | 6.3% | -1.9% |
| 1996 | 6.3% | +0.2% |
| 1997 | 6.4% | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 6.3% | -2.0% |
| 1999 | 6.2% | -1.1% |
| 2000 | 6.3% | +1.0% |
| 2001 | 7.8% | +23.4% |
| 2002 | 8.5% | +9.7% |
| 2003 | 8.0% | -5.9% |
| 2004 | 6.6% | -18.0% |
| 2005 | 6.3% | -3.3% |
| 2006 | 6.0% | -5.2% |
| 2007 | 8.5% | +40.5% |
| 2008 | 3.8% | -55.4% |
| 2009 | 3.5% | -8.5% |
| 2010 | 3.4% | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 3.6% | +4.1% |
| 2012 | 3.9% | +9.6% |
| 2013 | 5.5% | +39.7% |
| 2014 | 5.1% | -6.1% |
| 2015 | 5.5% | +7.8% |
| 2016 | 4.7% | -14.1% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 4.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 9.1%, 52% of the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 4.7% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 8.9%, 53% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank in Iceland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | -55.4% | 8.5% | 3.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.3% | 6.2% | 6.4% | 9 |
| 2000s | 6.5% | 3.5% | 8.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.5% | 3.4% | 5.5% | 7 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More reference data data for Iceland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0288 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0708 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.1854 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0001 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.1854 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0964 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.062 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2576 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.7664 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0005 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Iceland?
- Income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Iceland was 4.7% in 2016, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 8.5% in 2002.
- What is the lowest income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.4% in 2010.
- How does Iceland rank for income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank?
- Iceland ranks 108th out of 109 countries with data for 2016.
- Is income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 21.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of income received by the richest 1% of the population. Income here is measured after taxes and benefits.