Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Burma, you would:
Health
live 17.0 years longer
In Burma, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 70 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 27.4% less likely to be obese
In Burma, 8.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 18.9 times more spent on your healthcare
Burma spends $283 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 3.5 times more doctors per person
Burma has 7.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2019. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.
have 59.6% more access to essential health services
Burma scores 52 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.
be 6.0 times more likely to die by suicide
Burma has a suicide rate of 2.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 19.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Burma, 3.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Japan, that number is 2.5% as of 2025.
make 24.1 times more money
Burma has a GDP per capita of $1,489 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 98.4% less likely to die during childbirth
In Burma, approximately 185.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 94.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Burma, approximately 32.8 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 65.4% fewer children
In Burma, there are approximately 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 30.2% more likely to have access to electricity
In Burma, approximately 77% of people have electricity access (95% in urban areas, and 69% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 94.4% more likely to have internet access
In Burma, approximately 44.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Japan, about 85.5% do as of 2024.
be 15.7% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Burma, approximately 86% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Japan, 99% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 67.0% more on education
Burma spends 2.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2019. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 2.4 times more on healthcare
Burma spends 4.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 15.4 times more coastline
Burma has a total of 1,930 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 91.1% less likely to be murdered
Burma has a homicide rate of 2.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 86.0% less likely to die in a road accident
In Burma, road accidents kill 19.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 13.5 times more home broadband
Burma has 2.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
use 20.4 times more electricity
Burma uses 368 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Japan uses 7,530 kWh as of 2024.
live with 6.3 times more strain on fresh water
Burma withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Japan withdraws 37% as of 2022.
Environment
be 83.1% less likely to die from air pollution
In Burma, air pollution causes 71.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Japan, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 13.5 times more CO2
Burma emits 0.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Burma vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Burma? See an in-depth size comparison.