Iran’s energy remains anchored in conventional power: wind supplies only a small share of electricity, while renewables account for a limited portion of end-use energy. Changes in generation and energy investment connect to broader development capacity, including R&D spending and research intensity. The page also covers macro conditions and livelihoods—from oil production and export dependence to inflation, internet and mobile access, health spending, and rice output.
Key Takeaways
- 12.1 GW of total installed electricity capacity in Iran in 2022 (IEA estimate), measuring available power capacity
- 0.1% of Iran’s electricity generation from wind in 2022, indicating wind’s small contribution to total generation
- 2.6% year-on-year growth in Iran’s electricity generation in 2023 (IEA electricity growth estimate), reflecting how quickly output increased versus the prior year
- 4.1% of Iran’s GDP in 2023 spent on research and development (GERD), measuring the country’s R&D intensity
- Iran’s current account was -US$ 7.9 billion in 2023 (IMF estimate), measuring net external income flows
- 1.0% inflation rate (CPI) in Iran in 2023 (World Bank WDI), measuring consumer price changes
- Iran had 67.0 million internet users in 2024, representing the number of people able to access internet services
- 75.0% of Iran’s population used the internet in 2024, measuring digital penetration
- 126.0 million mobile cellular subscriptions in Iran in 2023, measuring SIM/mobile account count
- Iran’s total arable land area was 20.7 million hectares in 2022, measuring land suitable for crops
- 23.6% of Iran’s population lived in urban areas in 2023, measuring the degree of urbanization
- 0.70 maternal mortality ratio (per 100,000 live births) in Iran in 2020 (WHO/World Bank), measuring maternal health outcomes
- 32.0% of Iran’s goods exports were oil exports in 2022 (UN Comtrade trade composition), measuring the export reliance on oil
- 2.3 million barrels per day of crude oil production in Iran (IEA/US EIA synthesis), measuring daily crude output
- 70.0% of Iran’s export revenues came from crude oil, condensate, and petroleum products in 2022 (OPEC/IEA country context), showing dependency on oil trade
In 2023, Iran boosted electricity generation, yet renewables stayed minor as oil and spending on R&D, health, and digital growth stood out.
Related reading
01 · Category
Energy & Power11 stats
01
12.1 GW of total installed electricity capacity in Iran in 2022 (IEA estimate), measuring available power capacityhttps://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-product/electricity-information
02
0.1% of Iran’s electricity generation from wind in 2022, indicating wind’s small contribution to total generationhttps://ember-climate.org/data/data-explorer/
03
2.6% year-on-year growth in Iran’s electricity generation in 2023 (IEA electricity growth estimate), reflecting how quickly output increased versus the prior yearhttps://www.iea.org/reports/electricity-2024
04
1.7% of Iran’s final energy consumption from renewables in 2022, indicating renewables’ limited share of end-use energyhttps://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-browser?country=IRN&fuel=renewables
05
70.8% of Iran’s electricity generated from thermal sources in 2022, representing the proportion of total generation from thermal generationhttps://www.irena.org/Statistics/View-Data-by-Topic/Capacity-and-Generation
06
70.8% of Iran’s electricity generation was thermal in 2022https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/
07
0.1% of Iran’s electricity generation was wind in 2022https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/
08
0.0% of Iran’s electricity generation was solar in 2022https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/
09
0.0% of Iran’s electricity generation was hydro in 2022https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/
10
0.0% of Iran’s electricity generation was other in 2022https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/
11
29.1% of Iran’s electricity generation was other non-thermal sources in 2022https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/
Interpretation
Energy & Power Interpretation
In Iran’s Energy and Power mix, electricity remains overwhelmingly fossil driven with 70.8% generated from thermal sources in 2022, while wind supplies only 0.1% and renewables account for just 1.7% of final energy consumption despite generation rising 2.6% year on year in 2023.
report visual · Breakdown
Iran electricity generation mix (2022)
Thermal dominates Iran’s electricity generation in 2022 (70.8%), outpacing non-thermal (29.1%) by a gap of 41.7 percentage points.
70.8%
70.8% of Iran’s electricity generation was thermal in 2022
29.1%
29.1% of Iran’s electricity generation was other non-thermal sources in 2022
source-verifiedember-energy.org2022
02 · Category
Economy & Trade9 stats
01
4.1% of Iran’s GDP in 2023 spent on research and development (GERD), measuring the country’s R&D intensityhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZS?locations=IR
02
Iran’s current account was -US$ 7.9 billion in 2023 (IMF estimate), measuring net external income flowshttps://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2024/October
03
1.0% inflation rate (CPI) in Iran in 2023 (World Bank WDI), measuring consumer price changeshttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/FP.CPI.TOTL.ZG?locations=IR
04
US$ 391.0 billion nominal GDP in Iran in 2023 (current US$), measuring total market value of goods and serviceshttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=IR
05
US$ 29.2 billion merchandise exports from Iran in 2022, quantifying outward sales of goodshttps://comtradeplus.un.org/TradeFlow?frequency=A&reporter=364&partner=0&direction=Exports&indicator=0
06
US$ 41.2 billion trade balance surplus/deficit (imports minus exports) in 2022 (UN Comtrade aggregation for Iran), measuring net trade positionhttps://comtradeplus.un.org/TradeFlow?frequency=A&reporter=364&partner=0&direction=Imports&indicator=0
07
Iran’s population was 86.9 million in 2023, providing a headcount measure for market size and labor supplyhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=IR
08
67.1 years is Iran’s life expectancy at birth in 2023, indicating average expected lifespanhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN?locations=IR
09
US$ 6,190GNI per capita (Atlas method) for Iran in 2023, measuring average income per personhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GNP.PCAP.CD?locations=IR
Interpretation
Economy & Trade Interpretation
Iran’s economy and trade picture in recent years is marked by stable macro scale and a tight pricing environment, with inflation at just 1.0% in 2023 alongside a large nominal GDP of US$391.0 billion, while external trade dynamics remain sizable as merchandise exports reached US$29.2 billion in 2022 compared with a US$41.2 billion trade balance gap defined by imports and exports.
03 · Category
Digital Connectivity4 stats
01
Iran had 67.0 million internet users in 2024, representing the number of people able to access internet serviceshttps://www.statista.com/statistics/263220/number-of-internet-users-in-iran/
02
75.0% of Iran’s population used the internet in 2024, measuring digital penetrationhttps://www.statista.com/statistics/265071/internet-penetration-rate-in-iran/
03
126.0 million mobile cellular subscriptions in Iran in 2023, measuring SIM/mobile account counthttps://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Pages/stat/default.aspx
04
63% of smartphone users in Iran used messaging apps weekly in 2024 (DataReportal’s referenced survey data), measuring communications app engagementhttps://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2025-iran
Interpretation
Digital Connectivity Interpretation
In 2024 Iran showed strong digital connectivity, with 75.0% of the population using the internet and 67.0 million internet users, while smartphone messaging adoption stayed high as 63% of smartphone users used messaging apps weekly.
04 · Category
Society, Health & Education7 stats
01
Iran’s total arable land area was 20.7 million hectares in 2022, measuring land suitable for cropshttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.ARBL.HA?locations=IR
02
23.6% of Iran’s population lived in urban areas in 2023, measuring the degree of urbanizationhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=IR
03
0.70 maternal mortality ratio (per 100,000 live births) in Iran in 2020 (WHO/World Bank), measuring maternal health outcomeshttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.STA.MMRT?locations=IR
04
2.1% of Iran’s GDP spent on health in 2022, measuring public and private health expenditure intensityhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS?locations=IR
05
7.2 years expected years of schooling for children entering school in Iran in 2022, measuring education attainment potentialhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.SEC.CUAT?locations=IR
06
88% of Iran’s primary school-age children were enrolled in 2022 (World Bank education enrollment), measuring access to primary educationhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.PRM.ENRR?locations=IR
07
42% of Iran’s population had attained at least secondary education in 2022 (World Bank Human Capital), measuring educational attainmenthttps://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/human-capital
Interpretation
Society, Health & Education Interpretation
Iran’s Society, Health & Education picture is mixed but clear, with strong access to early schooling at 88% primary enrollment and low urbanization at 23.6% in 2023, while key health indicators lag, including maternal mortality at 0.70 per 100,000 live births and health spending of just 2.1% of GDP in 2022.
05 · Category
Industry, Agriculture & Trade9 stats
01
32.0% of Iran’s goods exports were oil exports in 2022 (UN Comtrade trade composition), measuring the export reliance on oilhttps://comtradeplus.un.org/TradeFlow?frequency=A&reporter=364&partner=0&direction=Exports
02
2.3 million barrels per day of crude oil production in Iran (IEA/US EIA synthesis), measuring daily crude outputhttps://www.eia.gov/international/analysis/country/iran/
03
70.0% of Iran’s export revenues came from crude oil, condensate, and petroleum products in 2022 (OPEC/IEA country context), showing dependency on oil tradehttps://www.opec.org/opec_web/en/publications/Annual_Statistical_Bulletin.html
04
4.4 million tonnes of rice production in Iran in 2022, measuring rice output volumehttps://www.fao.org/faostat/en/
05
1.3% of global steel production accounted for Iran in 2023 (World Steel Association shares derived from national totals), measuring production sharehttps://worldsteel.org/steel-data/steel-statistics/
06
16.0 million tonnes of cement production in Iran in 2023, measuring cement output volumehttps://www.statista.com/statistics/243139/cement-production-by-country/
07
US$ 7.6 billion foreign direct investment (net inflows) into Iran in 2022, measuring capital inflows for investment projectshttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.CD.WD?locations=IR
08
US$ 2.1 billion in remittances received by Iran in 2023, measuring household external transfershttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.TRF.PWKR.CD.DT?locations=IR
09
12.0 million tonnes of crude oil exports from Iran in 2022 (EIA/UN Comtrade linkage in trade tables), measuring export shipment volumehttps://www.eia.gov/international/data/world/exports/
Interpretation
Industry, Agriculture & Trade Interpretation
Iran’s Industry, Agriculture & Trade profile is dominated by energy, with crude oil plus condensate and petroleum products accounting for 70.0% of export revenues in 2022 and oil making up 32.0% of goods exports, even as non-oil sectors remain sizeable with 4.4 million tonnes of rice production and 16.0 million tonnes of cement output in 2023.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Lars Eriksen. (2026, February 13). Iran Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/iran-statistics
MLA
Lars Eriksen. "Iran Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/iran-statistics.
Chicago
Lars Eriksen. 2026. "Iran Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/iran-statistics.
Sources & references
35 datasets cited across this report
+20 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)