Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Bulgaria, you would:
Health
live 8.3 years longer
In Bulgaria, the average life expectancy is 76 years (72 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 71.0% less likely to be obese
In Bulgaria, 20.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 80.7% more spent on your healthcare
Bulgaria spends $2,970 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 13.7% more access to essential health services
Bulgaria scores 73 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.
have 38.8% fewer doctors per person
Bulgaria has 43.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.
be 83.3% more likely to die by suicide
Bulgaria has a suicide rate of 9.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 30.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Bulgaria, 3.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Japan, that number is 2.5% as of 2025.
make 76.9% more money
Bulgaria has a GDP per capita of $20,328 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 50.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Bulgaria, approximately 6.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 60.9% less likely to die during infancy
In Bulgaria, approximately 4.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Japan, on the other hand, 1.8 children do as of 2024.
have 31.3% fewer children
In Bulgaria, there are approximately 8.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 25.8% less on education
Bulgaria spends 4.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 35.6% more on healthcare
Bulgaria spends 7.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 84.0 times more coastline
Bulgaria has a total of 354 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 78.9% less likely to be murdered
Bulgaria has a homicide rate of 1.1 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 67.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In Bulgaria, road accidents kill 8.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
use 40.5% more electricity
Bulgaria uses 5,360 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Japan uses 7,530 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
be 81.0% less likely to die from air pollution
In Bulgaria, air pollution causes 63.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Japan, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 47.6% more CO2
Bulgaria emits 5.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Bulgaria vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Bulgaria? See an in-depth size comparison.