The title complex, [IrCl(C8H12)2], was synthesized directly from the reaction of IrCl3·3H2O with a large excess of cod (cod = cycloocta-1,5-diene) in alcoholic solvent. Large yellow needles were obtained by the slow cooling of a hot solution. Based on the positions of the chloride ligand and the mid-points of the four C=C bonds, the molecule adopts a five-coordinate geometry that is midway between square pyramidal and trigonal bipyramidal. The material crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Pbca with one molecule per asymmetric unit in a general position and shows no significant intermolecular interactions. Individual molecules are aligned along [010], and these rows form a pseudo-hexagonal packing arrangement.