Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Romania instead of Bulgaria, you would:
Health
be 59.5% more likely to be obese
In Bulgaria, 20.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Romania, that number is 32.4% of people as of 2024.
see 12.0% less spent on your healthcare
Bulgaria spends $2,970 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Romania spends $2,614 as of 2023.
have 16.2% fewer doctors per person
Bulgaria has 43.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Romania has 36.2 as of 2022.
Economy
be 13.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Bulgaria, 21.2% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Romania, however, that number is 18.4% as of 2024.
make 10.9% more money
Bulgaria has a GDP per capita of $20,328 as of 2025, while in Romania, the GDP per capita is $22,538 as of 2025.
be 69.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Bulgaria, 3.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Romania, that number is 6.0% as of 2025.
Life
be 100.0% more 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 Romania, 12.0 women do as of 2023.
be 30.4% more 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 Romania, on the other hand, 6.0 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 10.7% more likely to have internet access
In Bulgaria, approximately 82.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Romania, about 91.3% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 27.1% less on education
Bulgaria spends 4.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Romania spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 27.9% less on healthcare
Bulgaria spends 7.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Romania, that number is 5.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 36.4% less coastline
Bulgaria has a total of 354 km of coastline. In Romania, that number is 225 km.
Safety
be 14.3% more likely to die in a road accident
In Bulgaria, road accidents kill 8.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Romania, they kill 9.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 81.0% less strain on fresh water
Bulgaria withdraws 40% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Romania withdraws 8% as of 2022.
use 51.8% less electricity
Bulgaria uses 5,360 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Romania uses 2,585 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 27.0% less likely to die from air pollution
In Bulgaria, air pollution causes 63.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Romania, it causes 46.0 as of 2019.
emit 29.9% less CO2
Bulgaria emits 5.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Romania emits 3.7 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Bulgaria vs. Romania
Romania: At a glance
How big is Romania compared to Bulgaria? See an in-depth size comparison.