It has a population of approximately 120 people and has been continuously inhabited since the Settlement of Iceland.

The island is connected to the mainland by a ferry service to Árskógssandur, a fifteen-minute sailing.

Historically, the island was used as a base for the fishing industry, first by Norwegians and Swedes, and then by Icelanders.

The northern part of Hrísey, Ystabæjarland, is a privately owned nature reserve and the killing of birds is forbidden on the rest of the island.

Among the forty species of bird on the island are the ptarmigan, Arctic tern, and eider duck.