Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Maryland instead of Bhutan, you would:
Health
be 2.6 times more likely to be obese
In Bhutan, 13.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Maryland, that number is 33.4% of people as of 2022.
Economy
be 27.4% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Bhutan, 12.4% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Maryland, however, that number is 9.0% as of 2023.
make 15.4 times more money
Bhutan has a GDP per capita of $4,493 as of 2025, while in Maryland, the GDP per capita is $69,127 as of 2024.
be 14.6% more likely to be unemployed
In Bhutan, 3.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Maryland, that number is 3.7% as of 2025.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), World Health Organization (2024), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024). How we calculate this
