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Iceland: cities by population

By James Burfield, SEO consultant, Bath · Page updated · UN World Population Prospects

Iceland has a population of 402,329 (UN estimate, 2026), with Reykjavik as its capital. The 50 largest of its 50 recorded towns and cities, ranked.

+43%
since 2000 (281,280)
+8%
projected by 2050 (432,993)
4
people per km²
19501975200020252050 143k 433k
UN estimates to 2026; the dashed line is the medium-variant projection to 2050, a forecast rather than a measurement. Source: World Population Prospects 2024.
Full UN series, 1950 to 2050
YearPopulation
1950142,667
1975218,028
2000281,280
2005296,834
2010318,158
2015330,952
2020366,614
2025398,266
2026402,329
2030 projected414,348
2050 projected432,993

Medium variant. Figures from 2026 onward are projections, not measurements.

Figures are the latest available in GeoNames (CC BY 4.0), which draws on national censuses of varying dates — treat them as recent, not same-year. Country totals are UN World Population Prospects 2024 (medium variant) where the UN lists the country separately; the handful it reports under a parent state keep a GeoNames figure and are marked as such. Sources & method.

Largest cities in Iceland

#PlaceRegionPopulation
1ReykjavíkCapital Region118,918
2KópavogurCapital Region40,040
3HafnarfjörðurCapital Region31,525
4ReykjanesbærSouthern Peninsula19,724
5AkureyriNortheast19,219
6KeflavíkSouthern Peninsula15,930
7MosfellsbærCapital Region13,715
8GarðabærCapital Region11,421
9SelfossSouth9,000
10AkranesWest7,411
11SeltjarnarnesCapital Region4,726
12VestmannaeyjarSouth4,639
13NorðurþingNortheast3,234
14GrindavíkSouthern Peninsula2,856
15ÍsafjörðurWestfjords2,736
16HveragerðiSouth2,657
17SauðárkrókurNorthwest2,614
18EgilsstaðirEast2,572
19ÁlftanesCapital Region2,484
20ÞorlákshöfnSouth2,037
21BorgarnesWest1,875
22BorgarnesWest1,875
23HöfnEast1,690
24SandgerðiSouthern Peninsula1,609
25NeskaupstaðurEast1,481
26GarðurSouthern Peninsula1,409
27ReyðarfjörðurEast1,368
28DalvíkNortheast1,359
29StykkishólmurWest1,200
30SiglufjörðurNortheast1,164
31HvolsvöllurSouth1,108
32EskifjörðurEast1,043
33VogarSouthern Peninsula1,029
34ÓlafsvíkWest1,010
35LaugarNortheast1,001
36BolungarvíkWestfjords955
37BlönduósNorthwest895
38GrundarfjörðurWest872
39HellaSouth865
40FlúðirSouth818
41ÓlafsfjörðurNortheast785
42Vík í MýrdalSouth750
43PatreksfjörðurWestfjords720
44VopnafjörðurEast695
45SeyðisfjörðurEast676
46FáskrúðsfjörðurEast654
47HvammstangiNorthwest546
48HellissandurWest544
49EyrarbakkiSouth531
50GrundarhverfiCapital Region528

Twenty years earlier: Iceland in the 2005 World Gazetteer — population then 294,947.

Common questions

What is the population of Iceland?
Iceland has a population of 402,329, the UN World Population Prospects estimate for 2026. The UN's medium-variant projection for 2050 is 432,993 — a forecast, not a measurement.
What is the capital of Iceland?
Reykjavik. The largest place we record there is Reykjavík, with 118,918 people.

Go deeper

Reykjavík
The largest place we record in Iceland: 118,918 people
Iceland in 2005
The World Gazetteer's archive edition: 294,947 then
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