Fertility rate: births per woman in Iceland
Iceland: Fertility rate: births per woman was 1.54 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Fertility rate: births per woman in Iceland, 1950–2023
Source: Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
Iceland recorded 1.54 live births per woman for fertility rate: births per woman in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of down 3.1% on the previous year and down 20.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate: births per woman in Iceland peaked at 4.26 live births per woman in 1960 and was at its lowest, 1.54 live births per woman, in 2023.
Iceland ranks 160th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.98 live births per woman | 3.72 live births per woman | 4.21 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 3.66 live births per woman | 2.98 live births per woman | 4.26 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.67 live births per woman | 2.32 live births per woman | 3.08 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.18 live births per woman | 1.94 live births per woman | 2.48 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.14 live births per woman | 2 live births per woman | 2.3 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.06 live births per woman | 1.94 live births per woman | 2.23 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.88 live births per woman | 1.71 live births per woman | 2.19 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.67 live births per woman | 1.54 live births per woman | 1.82 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 158 Malaysia 1.55 live births per woman compare
- 159 Isle of Man 1.55 live births per woman compare
- 161 Liechtenstein 1.54 live births per woman compare
- 162 Trinidad and Tobago 1.53 live births per woman compare
- 163 Cayman Islands 1.53 live births per woman compare
More reference data data for Iceland
- Number of child deaths per woman 0.0053 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 1.54 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.54 live births per woman (2023)
- Human Development Index 0.972 (2023)
- Rule of Law - Governance estimate 1.63 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Rule of Law - Governance score 84.98 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance score 81.79 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate 1.42 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance score 86.49 0-100 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance estimate 1.21 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate: births per woman in Iceland?
- Fertility rate: births per woman in Iceland was 1.54 live births per woman in 2023, according to Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fertility rate: births per woman recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 4.26 live births per woman in 1960.
- What is the lowest fertility rate: births per woman recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.54 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does Iceland rank for fertility rate: births per woman?
- Iceland ranks 160th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate: births per woman rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 20.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate: births per woman. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The average number of live births a hypothetical cohort of women would have at the end of their reproductive period if they were subject during their whole lives to the fertility rates of a given period and if they were not subject to mortality.