Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Netherlands instead of Brunei, you would:
Health
live 6.5 years longer
In Brunei, the average life expectancy is 76 years (73 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024. In Netherlands, that number is 82 years (81 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024.
be 60.4% less likely to be obese
In Brunei, 37.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Netherlands, that number is 14.7% of people as of 2024.
see 4.3 times more spent on your healthcare
Brunei spends $1,896 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Netherlands spends $8,195 as of 2024.
have 2.1 times more doctors per person
Brunei has 18.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Netherlands has 38.8 as of 2022.
be 3.8 times more likely to die by suicide
Brunei has a suicide rate of 3.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Netherlands, it is 11.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 26.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Brunei, 5.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Netherlands, that number is 3.9% as of 2025.
make 2.3 times more money
Brunei has a GDP per capita of $32,235 as of 2025, while in Netherlands, the GDP per capita is $73,684 as of 2025.
Life
be 88.9% less likely to die during childbirth
In Brunei, approximately 36.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Netherlands, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
be 60.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Brunei, approximately 8.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Netherlands, on the other hand, 3.4 children do as of 2024.
have 31.0% fewer children
In Brunei, there are approximately 13.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Netherlands, there are 9.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 4.5 times more on healthcare
Brunei spends 2.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Netherlands, that number is 10.0% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 2.8 times more coastline
Brunei has a total of 161 km of coastline. In Netherlands, that number is 451 km.
Infrastructure
find 2.0 times more home broadband
Brunei has 21.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Netherlands has 43.0 as of 2024.
live with 4.8 times more strain on fresh water
Brunei withdraws 3% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Netherlands withdraws 17% as of 2022.
use 40.2% less electricity
Brunei uses 10,674 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Netherlands uses 6,386 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
be 35.0% less likely to die from air pollution
In Brunei, air pollution causes 20.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Netherlands, it causes 13.0 as of 2019.
emit 67.4% less CO2
Brunei emits 20.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Netherlands emits 6.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook, United Nations SDG Indicators (2019). How we calculate this
Compare further: Brunei vs. Netherlands
Netherlands: At a glance
How big is Netherlands compared to Brunei? See an in-depth size comparison.