Household gross disposable income is estimated to have increased by 7.8% in the first quarter of 2026, compared with last year‘s corresponding quarter. Disposable income per capita amounted to little over 1.6 million ISK in the quarter and is estimated to have increased by 6.4% compared with the first quarter of 2024. Due to inflation rate, the purchasing power of household disposable income per capita in the first quarter of 2024 increased by 1.1% compared with last year’s corresponding quarter, but the consumer price index increased by 5.3% during the same period.
The total income of the household sector is estimated to have increased by 6.5% in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the first quarter of the previous year. The largest increase was in wages and salaries which are estimated to have increased by 6.6% from last year’s corresponding quarter. It is estimated that property income increased by 5% during the same period, but income from interests increased by 3.4%.
Pension income and social transfers increased by 10.1% in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025. The increase was driven primarily by higher social security benefits and pension payments, which rose by 16.5% and 10.2%, respectively.
Total expenditure of the household sector is estimated to have increased by 4.9% in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the first quarter of the previous year. Taxes on income are estimated to have increased by 5.1% and net social contributions increased by 7.4% from last year’s corresponding quarter.
Property expenditure is estimated to have increased by 8.4% in the first quarter of 2025 compared with last year’s corresponding quarter where interest payments increased by 8% during the same period.
These are preliminary figures and thus Statistics Iceland will publish revised figures when exhaustive information is available, e.g. tax returns from corporations and individuals.