In 2023, the percentage of individuals experiencing material deprivation was 3.7%. %. In the previous year, 2022, the material deprivation rate was 1.8%, which is the lowest it has been in the years 2008-2023. During that period, material deprivation has often been found to be more common among women than men. However, in the last three years, 2021-2023, the difference between the ratio of women and men was insignificant. In 2023, the material deprivation rate was 3.8% among women compared to 3.5% among men.
Individuals with basic education are more likely to experience material deprivation than those who have completed secondary, vocational or tertiary education. In 2023, 5.3% of individuals who had completed basic education experienced material deprivation, compared with 2.4% of those who had completed secondary or vocational education, and 2.2% of those who had completed tertiary education.
Material deprivation more common among renters
During the years measured by Statistics Iceland, material deprivation has been considerably more common among households living in rented housing compared with households living in their own housing. In 2023, the material deprivation rate was 12.2% among households in rented housing, and 2.1% among households in their own housing.
In 2023, material deprivation rate was higher among homes within the Capital region than among households in other regions, or 4.5% compared with 2.9%.
About the data
Material deprivation is a measure of poor living standards developed by Eurostat. Those who are considered to have experienced material deprivation live in a household where at least three of the following apply:
- Have defaulted on mortgages or other loans due to lack of funds in the last twelve months.
- Can't afford to go on a week-long family vacation every year.
- Can't afford meat, fish or a similar vegetarian meal at least every other day.
- Unable to meet unexpected expenses.
- Can't afford a landline or mobile phone.
- Can't afford a TV set.
- Can't afford a washing machine.
- Can't afford a car.
- Can't afford to keep the house warm enough.
The results are based on the Statistics Iceland's standard of living survey (EU-SILC). The research sample is obtained by randomly selecting individuals from the national register and thus the household to which they belong. A person who is included in the sample provides information about the circumstances of the household, his own and all other household members.
When interpreting the results, it should be kept in mind that this is a sample study, so uncertainty is expected. By considering a confidence interval, it is possible to estimate how accurately the sample value represents the true value in the population. The confidence intervals can be found in the corresponding tables on the Statistics Iceland’s website.
The values for the years 2021-2023 are provisional figures.