Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in United States instead of Belgium, you would:

Health

live 1.1 years less

In Belgium, the average life expectancy is 81 years (79 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2020. In United States, that number is 80 years (78 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2020.

be 63.8% more likely to be obese

In Belgium, 22.1% of adults are obese as of 2016. In United States, that number is 36.2% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 28.3% more money

Belgium has a GDP per capita of $46,600 as of 2017, while in United States, the GDP per capita is $59,800 as of 2017.

be 38.0% less likely to be unemployed

In Belgium, 7.1% of adults are unemployed as of 2017. In United States, that number is 4.4% as of 2017.

pay a 26.3% lower top tax rate

Belgium has a top tax rate of 53.7% as of 2016. In United States, the top tax rate is 39.6% as of 2016.

Life

have 11.7% more children

In Belgium, there are approximately 11.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2020. In United States, there are 12.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2020.

be 3.8 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Belgium, approximately 5.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In United States, 19.0 women do as of 2017.

be 60.6% more likely to die during infancy

In Belgium, approximately 3.3 children die before they reach the age of one as of 2020. In United States, on the other hand, 5.3 children do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 23.1% less on education

Belgium spends 6.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2016. United States spends 5.0% of total GDP on education as of 2014.

Geography

see 299.6 times more coastline

Belgium has a total of 66 km of coastline. In United States, that number is 19,924 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Service Public Fédéral Finances, The World Factbook, Internal Revenue Service.

United States: At a glance

United States (sometimes abbreviated US or USA) is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 9,147,593 sq km. Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65), in which a northern Union of states defeated a secessionist Confederacy of 11 southern slave states, and the Great Depression of the 1930s, an economic downturn during which about a quarter of the labor force lost its jobs. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. Since the end of World War II, the economy has achieved relatively steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.
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How big is United States compared to Belgium? See an in-depth size comparison.

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