ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Iceland

Iceland: ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of was 20.9 % in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
20.9 %
Change on year
up 6.6%
World rank
43rd
of 72 countries
All-time high
22.5 %
in 1996
All-time low
15.4 %
in 2011
Years of data
23
1995–2024

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Iceland, 1995–2024

05101520251995200920241995: 22.2 %1996: 22.5 %1997: 20.6 %1998: 20.9 %1999: 21.3 %2000: 22.2 %2001: 20.3 %2002: 20.2 %2010: 15.6 %2011: 15.4 %2012: 19.5 %2013: 18.9 %2014: 18.2 %2015: 17.6 %2016: 17.9 %2017: 17.4 %2018: 17.3 %2019: 17 %2020: 18.4 %2021: 17.7 %2022: 16.8 %2023: 19.6 %2024: 20.9 %

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.

Analysis

Iceland recorded 20.9 % for ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in 2024.

The figure is up 6.6% on the previous year and up 14.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Iceland peaked at 22.5 % in 1996 and was at its lowest, 15.4 %, in 2011.

That places Iceland 43rd out of 72 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 23 years of available data.

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Iceland, year by year

Annual values for ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value in Iceland, 1995 to 2024.
Year % Change
1995 22.2 %
1996 22.5 % +1.4%
1997 20.6 % -8.4%
1998 20.9 % +1.5%
1999 21.3 % +1.9%
2000 22.2 % +4.2%
2001 20.3 % -8.6%
2002 20.2 % -0.5%
2010 15.6 % -22.8%
2011 15.4 % -1.3%
2012 19.5 % +26.6%
2013 18.9 % -3.1%
2014 18.2 % -3.7%
2015 17.6 % -3.3%
2016 17.9 % +1.7%
2017 17.4 % -2.8%
2018 17.3 % -0.6%
2019 17 % -1.7%
2020 18.4 % +8.2%
2021 17.7 % -3.8%
2022 16.8 % -5.1%
2023 19.6 % +16.7%
2024 20.9 % +6.6%

Iceland compared with similar countries

  • Iceland's 20.9 % is above the median for high income countries, which is 16 %, 1.3× the median. (34 countries reporting)
  • Iceland's 20.9 % is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 15.9 %, 1.3× the median. (33 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of 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.

YearChange FromTo
2012 +26.6% 15.4 % 19.5 %

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 21.5 % 20.6 % 22.5 % 5
2000s 20.9 % 20.2 % 22.2 % 3
2010s 17.48 % 15.4 % 19.5 % 10
2020s 18.68 % 16.8 % 20.9 % 5

Countries ranked near Iceland

  1. 40 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 22.8 % compare
  2. 41 Spain 21.5 % compare
  3. 41 Switzerland 21.5 % compare
  4. 44 Netherlands (Kingdom of the) 19.5 % compare
  5. 45 Ireland 18.2 % compare
  6. 46 Finland 18.1 % compare

See the full ranking of 78 places →

More economy & growth data for Iceland

All data for Iceland →

Frequently asked questions

What is ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Iceland?
Ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of in Iceland was 20.9 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of recorded in Iceland?
The highest recorded value was 22.5 % in 1996.
What is the lowest ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of recorded in Iceland?
The lowest recorded value was 15.4 % in 2011.
How does Iceland rank for ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of?
Iceland ranks 43rd out of 72 countries with data for 2024.
Is ilostat - labour force survey — share of employment by status of rising or falling in Iceland?
Over the last ten years it is up 14.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Iceland data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of in Iceland. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/ilostat-labour-force-survey-share-of-employment-by-status-of-employment-self-employed/iceland/

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About this data

Indicator
ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Share of employment by status of employment, self-employed, rural areas — Value
Unit
%
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
78 places, 1,460 data points, 1987–2025
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT Employment indicators domain focuses on indicators related to employment in agrifood systems and rural areas. The update is performed yearly, using data from the International Labour Organization (ILO) database that contains a rich set of indicators from a wide range of topics related to labour statistics. The indicators published in FAOSTAT are derived from the labour force statistics (LFS) and rural and urban labour markets (RURURB) databases of the ILOSTAT database.