# Iceland and Norway compared Iceland and Norway side by side: 41 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 2 events their chronicles record of each other. Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/isl-vs-nor Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates) Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation. ## Formation - Iceland: c. 930 — The first Alþingi convenes at Þingvellir - Norway: 872 (traditional) — Harald Fairhair wins at Hafrsfjord and becomes king over the whole country ## Economy | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | GDP | $33 B | 2024 | $484 B | 2024 | | GDP per capita | $86,041 | 2024 | $86,785 | 2024 | | GDP growth | -1.0% | 2024 | 2.1% | 2024 | | Inflation | 5.9% | 2024 | 3.1% | 2024 | | Trade openness | 86.0% | 2024 | 81.4% | 2024 | ## Society | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population | 387,000 | 2024 | 5.6 m | 2024 | | Life expectancy | 82.8 yrs | 2024 | 83.2 yrs | 2024 | | Urban population | 94.2% | 2024 | 83.3% | 2024 | | Fertility rate | 1.6 | 2024 | 1.4 | 2024 | ## Governance | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Voice & accountability | 81.8 | 2024 | 90.6 | 2024 | | Political stability | 86.5 | 2024 | 81.3 | 2024 | | Government effectiveness | 83.3 | 2024 | 87.2 | 2024 | | Regulatory quality | 75.8 | 2024 | 81.2 | 2024 | | Rule of law | 85.0 | 2024 | 90.5 | 2024 | | Control of corruption | 84.9 | 2024 | 87.5 | 2024 | ## Health | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Health spending | 9.0% | 2024 | 9.4% | 2023 | | Physicians | 4.37 | 2023 | 4.97 | 2023 | | Under-5 mortality | 2.8 | 2024 | 2.5 | 2024 | | Measles immunisation | 97.0% | 2024 | 96.0% | 2024 | | Safe drinking water | 100.0% | 2024 | 99.1% | 2024 | ## Education | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Education spending | 7.3% | 2022 | 5.4% | 2022 | | Primary enrolment | 98.2% | 2023 | 98.5% | 2024 | | Secondary enrolment | 108.9% | 2023 | 116.3% | 2024 | | Tertiary enrolment | 76.5% | 2023 | 95.5% | 2024 | ## Technology | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | R&D spending | 2.6% | 2023 | 1.9% | 2023 | | Researchers (per million) | 5,953 | 2023 | 7,451 | 2023 | | Internet users | 98.2% | 2024 | 99.0% | 2024 | | Mobile subscriptions | 121 | 2024 | 109 | 2024 | | High-tech exports | 54.0% | 2024 | 25.4% | 2024 | ## Geography | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Land area | 100,830 km² | 2023 | 364,270 km² | 2023 | | Forest area | 0.5% | 2023 | 33.5% | 2023 | | Agricultural land | 16.2% | 2023 | 2.7% | 2023 | | CO₂ per capita (t) | 8.5 | 2024 | 7.2 | 2024 | | Renewable energy | 82.4% | 2021 | 61.4% | 2021 | ## Resources | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Resource rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 10.0% | 2021 | | Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 6.1% | 2021 | | Mineral rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 | | Forest rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 | | Electricity access | 100.0% | 2023 | 100.0% | 2023 | ## Military | Metric | Iceland | Observed | Norway | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Defense spending | $0 | 2024 | $10 B | 2024 | | Armed forces | 0 | 2020 | 25,000 | 2020 | | Military burden | — | — | 2.1% | 2024 | Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/ISL.md and https://terralore.co/country/NOR.md. ## Entangled histories (2 events) Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources. - c. 874: **Ingólfr Arnarson settles Reykjavík** — By tradition the first permanent settler, Ingólfr Arnarson, came from Norway around 874 and established his homestead at the site he named Reykjavík, opening the age of settlement, the Landnám. (from the Iceland chronicle; sources: Ingólfur Arnarson; The Discovery and Settlement of Iceland; Iceland: History) - 1262–1264: **The Old Covenant (Gamli sáttmáli)** — Worn down by civil strife and pressed by King Haakon IV, the Icelandic chieftains swore allegiance to the Norwegian crown, ending the independent Commonwealth and beginning centuries of foreign rule. (from the Iceland chronicle; sources: The Age of the Sturlungs; Iceland: History) ## Sources - World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org - Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators - Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho - Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org - R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org - ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics - Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/ISL/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/NOR/chronicle.md. Citation template: Terralore, "Iceland and Norway compared", terralore.co/compare/isl-vs-nor, retrieved .