Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in North Korea instead of China, you would:

Health

live 4.3 years less

In China, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In North Korea, that number is 74 years (72 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 28.6% more likely to be obese

In China, 9.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In North Korea, that number is 11.9% of people as of 2024.

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have 16.0% less access to essential health services

China scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. North Korea scores 68 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 23.4% less likely to be unemployed

In China, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In North Korea, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.

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Life

have 90.0% more children

In China, there are approximately 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In North Korea, there are 12.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 4.2 times more 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 North Korea, 67.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 3.2 times more 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 North Korea, on the other hand, 13.3 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 42.5% less likely to have access to electricity

In China, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In North Korea, that number is 58% of people on average (36% in urban areas, and 11% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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Geography

see 82.8% less coastline

China has a total of 14,500 km of coastline. In North Korea, that number is 2,495 km.

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Infrastructure

live with 33.2% less strain on fresh water

China withdraws 42% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. North Korea withdraws 28% as of 2022.

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use 87.9% less electricity

China uses 6,524 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. North Korea uses 789 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 73.2% less CO2

China emits 9.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. North Korea emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 34.4% more likely to die from air pollution

In China, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In North Korea, it causes 86.0 as of 2019.

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Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Compare further: China vs. North Korea

Cost of Living Comparison · 4 categories - 2026 data
North Korea is 27.1% cheaper than China overall
→
Size Comparison · See true size
China is about 80 times bigger than North Korea.
→
Moving from China to North Korea · UN DESA 2020
29,248 people born in China live in North Korea.
→

North Korea: At a glance

North Korea (sometimes abbreviated DPRK) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 120,408 sq km. An independent kingdom for much of its long history, Korea was occupied by Japan beginning in 1905 following the Russo-Japanese War. Five years later, Japan formally annexed the entire peninsula. Following World War II, Korea was split with the northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored communist control. After failing in the Korean War (1950-53) to conquer the US-backed Republic of Korea (ROK) in the southern portion by force, North Korea (DPRK), under its founder President KIM Il Sung, adopted a policy of ostensible diplomatic and economic "self-reliance" as a check against outside influence. The DPRK demonized the US as the ultimate threat to its social system through state-funded propaganda, and molded political, economic, and military policies around the core ideological objective of eventual unification of Korea under Pyongyang's control. KIM Il Sung's son, KIM Jong Il, was officially designated as his father's successor in 1980, assuming a growing political and managerial role until the elder KIM's death in 1994. KIM Jong Un was publicly unveiled as his father's successor in September 2010. Following KIM Jong Il's death in December 2011, the regime began to take actions to transfer power to KIM Jong Un and KIM has now assumed many his father's former titles and duties. After decades of economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the DPRK since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid to feed its population. The DPRK began to ease restrictions to allow semi-private markets, starting in 2002, but then sought to roll back the scale of economic reforms in 2005 and 2009. North Korea's history of regional military provocations; proliferation of military-related items; long-range missile development; WMD programs including tests of nuclear devices in 2006, 2009, and 2013; and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. The regime in 2013 announced a new policy calling for the simultaneous development of the North's nuclear weapons program and its economy.
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