Total expenditure on research and development (R&D) in 2023 amounted to nearly 114.6 billion ISK, which corresponds to 2.65% of gross domestic product (GDP), almost the same proportion as the previous year.
In 2021, R&D expenditure stood at just over 91 billion ISK, while estimated expenditure for 2022 was 101 billion ISK. This represents an increase of over 13% year-on-year. Adjusted for inflation, the real increase is 5.3%. The relative increase is highest among companies, at 18%, compared with 3% among universities and public institutions. The share of companies in total R&D expenditure has never been higher since Statistics Iceland took over responsibility for this data in 2014, now accounting for 75% of the total.
Thirteen percent of the participating companies accounted for 80% of the total expenditure. This is a decrease compared with the previous year, when 18% of companies accounted for 80% of total expenditure.
Data on R&D expenditure as a percentage of GDP within the European Economic Area (including the United Kingdom) has been updated through 2023. Iceland ranks seventh in 2023, a position similar to recent years.
The data collected by Statistics Iceland covers companies, non-profit institutions, universities, and other public institutions. Expenditure by companies and non-profit institutions was 85.8 billion ISK, expenditure by universities 26 billion ISK and the total expenditure by other public institutions was just over 2.7 billion ISK.
About the Data
The data are collected annually from universities and other public institutions. Data collection from companies and non-profit institutions takes place every other year. The questions in the survey address the expenditure of the previous year and the estimated expenditure for the year the survey is conducted. Data for 2023 were collected in the second quarter of 2024.
The figures for total expenditure as a percentage of GDP are subject to changes in GDP calculations. Additionally, figures for previous years may be updated following subsequent data collections.