Ireland vs Norway

Ireland and Norway compared on 10 key figures from official sources. Each value is the latest one published for that country, so the year is shown with it.

• Ireland and Norway have about the same number of people: 5.5 million and 5.6 million in 2025.
• GDP per person in Ireland ($131,592) is 39% higher than in Norway ($94,594) in 2025.
• The economy grew faster in Ireland (12.3%) than in Norway (1.1%), a difference of 11.2 percentage points in 2025.
• Consumer prices rose faster in Norway (3%) than in Ireland (2.2%), a difference of 0.8 percentage points in 2025.
• The unemployment rate was the same in Ireland (4.6%) and Norway (4.6%) in 2025.
• Life expectancy at birth is about the same in Ireland (83 years) and Norway (83.2 years) in 2024.
• The population of Norway is older: half of its people are over 39.5 years, against 38.4 years in Ireland in 2023.
• A larger share of people used the internet in Norway (99%) than in Ireland (97.2%), a difference of 1.8 percentage points in 2024.
• CO2 emissions per person in Norway (7.2 tonnes) are 20% higher than in Ireland (6 tonnes) in 2024.
• Forest covers a larger share of the land in Norway (33.2%) than in Ireland (12%), a difference of 21.2 percentage points in 2024.