---
title: "Iceland vs United Kingdom — area, population, currency"
description: "Iceland is 103,000 km² with 392,404 people; United Kingdom is 243,610 km² with 69,487,000. Area, density, currency, languages and time zones side by side."
url: https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/iceland-vs-united-kingdom/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Iceland vs United Kingdom

**Iceland vs United Kingdom: United Kingdom is larger; United Kingdom has more people**

103,000 km² vs 243,610 km² · 392,404 vs 69,487,000

United Kingdom is 2.4 times larger than Iceland — 243,610 against 103,000 km². United Kingdom is 177 times more populous than Iceland — 69,487,000 against 392,404 people.

## Side by side

|  | Iceland | United Kingdom |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Capital | Reykjavík | London |
| Area | 103,000 km² | 243,610 km² |
| Population | 392,404 (2025) | 69,487,000 (2025) |
| Density | 3.8 /km² | 285.2 /km² |
| Currency | Icelandic króna (ISK) | British pound (GBP) |
| Official languages | Icelandic | English |
| Time zones | UTC+00:00 | UTC+00:00 |
| Calling code | +354 | +44 |
| Drives on the | right | left |
| Continent | Europe | Europe |
| ISO codes | IS / ISL | GB / GBR |

## Population density

United Kingdom is 75 times more densely populated than Iceland — 285 against 4 people per km². Density is where area and population interact, and it often reverses the impression the headline figures give — a large country with a small population can feel emptier than a small crowded one by an enormous margin.

## Practical differences

- They drive on opposite sides — Iceland on the right, United Kingdom on the left.
- Different currencies: the Icelandic króna and the British pound.

## Iceland

Iceland sits astride the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, so the North American and Eurasian plates pull apart across the country at about 2 cm a year. Roughly eleven percent of it is under glacier, Vatnajökull alone covering some 7,900 km². Almost all its electricity and heating come from hydro and geothermal sources.

## United Kingdom

Made up of Great Britain, the north-east of Ireland and around 6,000 smaller islands. No point in the UK is more than about 113 km from the sea. Ben Nevis, the highest point, is 1,345 m, which is modest — but the country has around 31,000 km of coastline once every inlet is counted.

> Neutral facts only. Nothing here addresses politics, government, economics or which country is preferable in any respect — population is the one figure that dates, and it carries its year.

## Common questions

### Is Iceland bigger than United Kingdom?

United Kingdom is larger — 243,610 km² against 103,000 km².

### Which has more people, Iceland or United Kingdom?

United Kingdom, with 69,487,000 against 392,404.

### What is the time difference between Iceland and United Kingdom?

Iceland is UTC+00:00 and United Kingdom is UTC+00:00. Daylight saving shifts the gap during the year in places that observe it.

## Related pages

- [Iceland](https://atoneplace.net/country/iceland/)
- [United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/country/united-kingdom/)
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- [China vs United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/china-vs-united-kingdom/)
- [China vs Iceland](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/china-vs-iceland/)
- [United Kingdom vs United States](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/united-kingdom-vs-united-states/)
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- [United Kingdom vs Vatican City](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/united-kingdom-vs-vatican-city/)
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- [Japan vs United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/japan-vs-united-kingdom/)
- [Canada vs United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/canada-vs-united-kingdom/)
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- [Australia vs United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/australia-vs-united-kingdom/)
- [Australia vs Iceland](https://atoneplace.net/country-vs/australia-vs-iceland/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]
- World Bank Open Data — The World Bank (https://data.worldbank.org/) [CC BY 4.0]