Iceland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 5.6% in May 2026, unchanged from April and matching its lowest level since December 2025. The number of unemployed persons was stable at 13,100.
By gender, the unemployment rate for men increased to 6.2% from 5.7% in the previous month, while the rate for women declined to 4.9% from 5.5%. The youth unemployment rate, covering job seekers aged 16 to 24, inched up to 13.0% from 12.9% in April.
At the same time, the employment rate rose to 76.5% from 75.5%, as the number of employed persons increased by 1,800 to 222,300, the highest level in five months. The labor force participation rate also moved higher, to 81.1% from 80.0%.
On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, however, the unemployment rate climbed to 8.3% in May from 6.6% in April, reaching its highest level in more than five years.
