Arable land — Share in Agricultural land in Iceland
Iceland: Arable land — Share in Agricultural land was 7.39 % in 2024. ▲ Rising
Arable land — Share in Agricultural land in Iceland, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for arable land — share in agricultural land in Iceland is 7.39 %, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 14.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land — share in agricultural land in Iceland peaked at 7.39 % in 2023 and was at its lowest, 5.66 %, in 1961.
That places Iceland 224th out of 248 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Arable land — Share in Agricultural land in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 5.66 % | — |
| 1962 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 5.66 % | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 6.05 % | +6.9% |
| 1971 | 6.13 % | +1.3% |
| 1972 | 6.21 % | +1.3% |
| 1973 | 6.29 % | +1.3% |
| 1974 | 6.38 % | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 6.46 % | +1.3% |
| 1976 | 6.55 % | +1.4% |
| 1977 | 6.68 % | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 6.77 % | +1.3% |
| 1979 | 6.86 % | +1.3% |
| 1980 | 7 % | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 7 % | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 7.05 % | +0.7% |
| 1983 | 7.05 % | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 7.05 % | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 7.05 % | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 7.11 % | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 7.11 % | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 7.11 % | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 7.11 % | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 7.15 % | +0.6% |
| 1991 | 7.15 % | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 7.15 % | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 7.11 % | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 7.11 % | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 7.11 % | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7.06 % | -0.7% |
| 1997 | 7.02 % | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 6.87 % | -2.1% |
| 1999 | 6.83 % | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 6.83 % | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6.83 % | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 6.84 % | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 6.84 % | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 6.85 % | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 6.85 % | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 6.86 % | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 6.79 % | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 6.71 % | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 6.64 % | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 6.56 % | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 6.52 % | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 6.47 % | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 6.47 % | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 6.47 % | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 6.46 % | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 6.46 % | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 7.39 % | +14.4% |
| 2024 | 7.39 % | +0.0% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 7.39 % is below the median for high income countries, which is 46.14 %, 16% of the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 7.39 % is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 52.34 %, 14% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5.66 % | 5.66 % | 5.66 % | 9 |
| 1970s | 6.44 % | 6.05 % | 6.86 % | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.06 % | 7 % | 7.11 % | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.06 % | 6.83 % | 7.15 % | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.8 % | 6.64 % | 6.86 % | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.48 % | 6.46 % | 6.56 % | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.83 % | 6.46 % | 7.39 % | 5 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 221 Australia and New Zealand 8.52 % compare
- 222 South Sudan 8.48 % compare
- 223 Cayman Islands 7.41 % compare
- 225 Madagascar 7.33 % compare
- 226 Colombia 7.26 % compare
- 227 Palau 6.98 % compare
More environment data for Iceland
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 3.89 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.587 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.47 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.8549 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -1.93 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land — share in agricultural land in Iceland?
- Arable land — share in agricultural land in Iceland was 7.39 % in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest arable land — share in agricultural land recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 7.39 % in 2023.
- What is the lowest arable land — share in agricultural land recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.66 % in 1961.
- How does Iceland rank for arable land — share in agricultural land?
- Iceland ranks 224th out of 248 countries with data for 2024.
- Is arable land — share in agricultural land rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Arable land — Share in Agricultural land. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.