Iceland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 7.3% in January 2026, up from 4.5% in December, reaching its highest level since April 2021. The number of unemployed persons increased by 6,900 over the month, to a total of 17,400.
By gender, the unemployment rate for men climbed to 7.1% from 4.5%, while the rate for women rose to 7.4% from 4.6%. Youth unemployment, covering job seekers aged 16 to 24, jumped to 16.6% from 11.2% in December 2025.
Meanwhile, the employment rate declined to 75.7% from 76.8%, as the number of employed persons fell by 400 to 222,500. The labor force participation rate increased to 81.6%, compared with 80.5% in the previous month.
On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate rose to 8.3% in January, from 4.2% in December 2025.
