Iceland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 7.1% in February 2026, its highest level in three months, up from a downwardly revised 6.8% in January. The number of unemployed increased by 0.9 thousand from the previous month to 17.0 thousand, comprising 9.4 thousand men and 7.6 thousand women.
The youth unemployment rate, covering job seekers aged 16 to 24, edged up to 17.0% from 16.6%. At the same time, the employment rate declined to 75.0% from 75.8%, as the number of employed persons fell by 0.6 thousand to 221.1 thousand. The labor force participation rate also decreased, to 80.8% from 81.4%.
On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9% in February from 7.5% in January, reaching its highest level since May 2021.
