Homicides in Iceland
Iceland: Homicides was 5 homicides in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Homicides in Iceland, 1994–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in homicides.
Analysis
The most recent figure for homicides in Iceland is 5 homicides, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 25.0% on the previous year and up 400.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Iceland peaked at 5 homicides in 2000 and was at its lowest, 0 homicides, in 1994.
That places Iceland 155th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.8333 homicides | 0 homicides | 2 homicides | 6 |
| 2000s | 2 homicides | 0 homicides | 5 homicides | 8 |
| 2010s | 1.9 homicides | 1 homicides | 3 homicides | 10 |
| 2020s | 4 homicides | 2 homicides | 5 homicides | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More social development data for Iceland
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 8,459 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 0 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.807 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.846 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.917 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.807 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.565 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.72 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Iceland?
- Homicides in Iceland was 5 homicides in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 5 homicides in 2000.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 homicides in 1994.
- How does Iceland rank for homicides?
- Iceland ranks 155th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 400.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of intentional homicides.