Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of China, you would:
Health
live 6.0 years longer
In China, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 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 36.5% less likely to be obese
In China, 9.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 3.6 times more spent on your healthcare
China spends $1,487 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 14.9% fewer doctors per person
China has 31.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.
be 94.7% more likely to die by suicide
China has a suicide rate of 8.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 47.0% less likely to be unemployed
In China, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Japan, that number is 2.5% as of 2025.
make 2.6 times more money
China has a GDP per capita of $13,862 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 81.2% less likely to die during childbirth
In China, approximately 16.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 56.1% less likely to die during infancy
In China, approximately 4.1 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 15.8% fewer children
In China, there are approximately 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 14.4% less on education
China spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 80.8% more on healthcare
China spends 5.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 2.1 times more coastline
China has a total of 14,500 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 54.0% less likely to be murdered
China has a homicide rate of 0.5 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Japan, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 84.5% less likely to die in a road accident
In China, road accidents kill 17.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 11.8% less strain on fresh water
China withdraws 42% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Japan withdraws 37% as of 2022.
use 15.4% more electricity
China uses 6,524 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Japan uses 7,530 kWh as of 2024.
find 18.1% less home broadband
China has 47.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
Environment
be 81.2% less likely to die from air pollution
In China, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Japan, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 15.9% less CO2
China emits 9.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: China vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to China? See an in-depth size comparison.