Wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland
Iceland: Wealth share of the richest 1% was 19.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland, 1980–2024
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland stood at 19.2%.
The figure is down 1.0% on the previous year and down 6.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland peaked at 26.7% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 18.2%, in 1980.
Iceland ranks 211th of 215 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 18.2% | — |
| 1981 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 18.2% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 18.2% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 18.2% | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 18.6% | +1.8% |
| 1999 | 18.5% | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 18.5% | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 18.3% | -1.0% |
| 2002 | 18.6% | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 18.8% | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 18.8% | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 19.4% | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 21.3% | +9.7% |
| 2007 | 23.6% | +10.9% |
| 2008 | 26.7% | +13.0% |
| 2009 | 24.5% | -8.4% |
| 2010 | 24.5% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 22.2% | -9.3% |
| 2012 | 21.4% | -3.7% |
| 2013 | 20.9% | -2.2% |
| 2014 | 20.5% | -2.1% |
| 2015 | 21.3% | +3.7% |
| 2016 | 20.9% | -1.8% |
| 2017 | 20.2% | -3.4% |
| 2018 | 19.7% | -2.1% |
| 2019 | 19.6% | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 19.6% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 20.3% | +3.3% |
| 2022 | 20.1% | -0.7% |
| 2023 | 19.4% | -3.8% |
| 2024 | 19.2% | -1.0% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 19.2% is below the median for high income countries, which is 27.5%, 70% of the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 19.2% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 24.1%, 79% of the median. (55 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 18.2% | 18.2% | 18.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 18.3% | 18.2% | 18.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 20.9% | 18.3% | 26.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 21.1% | 19.6% | 24.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.7% | 19.2% | 20.3% | 5 |
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 wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland?
- Wealth share of the richest 1% in Iceland was 19.2% in 2024, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 26.7% in 2008.
- What is the lowest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.2% in 1980.
- How does Iceland rank for wealth share of the richest 1%?
- Iceland ranks 211th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is wealth share of the richest 1% rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 Wealth share of the richest 1%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of wealth owned by the richest 1% of the population. Wealth is defined as the total value of non-financial and financial assets (housing, land, deposits, bonds, equities, etc.) held by households, minus their debts.