Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland
Iceland: Social protection spending as share of total government spending was 23.9% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland, 2007–2023
Source: OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of government expenditure.
Analysis
In 2023, social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland stood at 23.9%.
That represents a change of up 2.5% on the previous year and up 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland peaked at 28.3% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 13.9%, in 2008.
That places Iceland 36th out of 37 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 17 years of available data.
Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % of government expenditure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 18.0% | — |
| 2008 | 13.9% | -22.6% |
| 2009 | 20.0% | +43.6% |
| 2010 | 21.2% | +6.3% |
| 2011 | 21.3% | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 21.6% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 21.4% | -0.8% |
| 2014 | 21.4% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 20.9% | -2.0% |
| 2016 | 28.3% | +35.2% |
| 2017 | 21.8% | -23.0% |
| 2018 | 22.4% | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 24.5% | +9.1% |
| 2020 | 27.2% | +11.4% |
| 2021 | 26.6% | -2.4% |
| 2022 | 23.3% | -12.5% |
| 2023 | 23.9% | +2.5% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 23.9% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 37.5%, 64% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 23.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 36.4%, 66% of the median. (36 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Social protection spending as share of total government spending 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | +43.6% | 13.9% | 20.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 17.3% | 13.9% | 20.0% | 3 |
| 2010s | 22.5% | 20.9% | 28.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.3% | 23.3% | 27.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 33 Costa Rica 26.1% compare
- 34 Colombia 25.1% compare
- 35 Hungary 24.9% compare
- 37 United States 20.2% compare
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 social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland?
- Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Iceland was 23.9% in 2023, according to OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest social protection spending as share of total government spending recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 28.3% in 2016.
- What is the lowest social protection spending as share of total government spending recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.9% in 2008.
- How does Iceland rank for social protection spending as share of total government spending?
- Iceland ranks 36th out of 37 countries with data for 2023.
- Is social protection spending as share of total government spending rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Social protection spending as share of total government spending. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
General government expenditure on social protection. This data is divided by total government expenditure, expressed as a percentage.