Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of Brunei, you would:
Health
live 8.1 years longer
In Brunei, the average life expectancy is 76 years (73 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024. In South Korea, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 77.4% less likely to be obese
In Brunei, 37.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In South Korea, that number is 8.4% of people as of 2024.
see 2.7 times more spent on your healthcare
Brunei spends $1,896 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). South Korea spends $5,081 as of 2024.
have 38.4% more doctors per person
Brunei has 18.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. South Korea has 26.1 as of 2022.
have 14.1% more access to essential health services
Brunei scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. South Korea scores 89 as of 2021.
be 9.0 times more likely to die by suicide
Brunei has a suicide rate of 3.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In South Korea, it is 27.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 49.2% less likely to be unemployed
In Brunei, 5.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In South Korea, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.
make 12.4% more money
Brunei has a GDP per capita of $32,235 as of 2025, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $36,227 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 South Korea, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
be 73.3% 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 South Korea, on the other hand, 2.3 children do as of 2024.
have 64.7% fewer children
In Brunei, there are approximately 13.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Korea, there are 4.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 3.9 times more on healthcare
Brunei spends 2.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In South Korea, that number is 8.7% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 15.0 times more coastline
Brunei has a total of 161 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
Safety
be 91.7% more likely to die in a road accident
In Brunei, road accidents kill 3.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In South Korea, they kill 6.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.3 times more home broadband
Brunei has 21.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. South Korea has 47.8 as of 2024.
live with 24.6 times more strain on fresh water
Brunei withdraws 3% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. South Korea withdraws 85% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 43.9% less CO2
Brunei emits 20.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. South Korea emits 11.4 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Brunei vs. South Korea
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to Brunei? See an in-depth size comparison.