Iceland Jobless Rate Rises to 7.1% in February

2026-03-26 09:32 By Judith Sib-at 1 min. read

Iceland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 7.1% in February 2026, the highest level in three months, from a downwardly revised 6.8% in January.

The number of unemployed persons increased by 0.9 thousand month-on-month to 17.0 thousand, of which 9.4 thousand were men and 7.6 thousand were women.

The youth unemployment rate, which measures job-seekers between 16 to 24 years old, went up to 17.0% from 16.6%, reaching its highest level since April 2021.

Meanwhile, the employment rate dropped to an over four-and-a-half-year low of 75.0% from 75.8% in January, with the number of employed individuals falling by 0.6 thousand to 221.1 thousand.

The labor force participation rate fell to 80.8% from 81.4%.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate inched up to 7.9% in February from 7.5% in the previous month, marking the highest level since May 2021.



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Iceland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 7.1% in February 2026, the highest level in three months, from a downwardly revised 6.8% in January. The number of unemployed persons increased by 0.9 thousand month-on-month to 17.0 thousand, of which 9.4 thousand were men and 7.6 thousand were women. The youth unemployment rate, which measures job-seekers between 16 to 24 years old, went up to 17.0% from 16.6%, reaching its highest level since April 2021. Meanwhile, the employment rate dropped to an over four-and-a-half-year low of 75.0% from 75.8% in January, with the number of employed individuals falling by 0.6 thousand to 221.1 thousand. The labor force participation rate fell to 80.8% from 81.4%. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate inched up to 7.9% in February from 7.5% in the previous month, marking the highest level since May 2021.
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