The structure of the title compound, C(8)H(8)I(2), conforms closely to the mm2 symmetry expected for the free mol-ecule and is the first reported structure of a diiodo-dimethyl-benzene. Repulsion by neighboring I atoms and the neighboring methyl groups opposite to them results in a slight elongation of the mol-ecule along the approximate twofold rotation axis that bis-ects the ring between the two I atoms. In the extended structure, the mol-ecules form inversion-related pairs which are organized in approximately hexa-gonal close-packed layers and the layers then stacked so that mol-ecules in neighboring layers abut head-to-tail in a manner that optimizes dipole-dipole inter-actions.