Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Singapore instead of China, you would:
Health
live 5.3 years longer
In China, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Singapore, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2024.
see 4.4 times more spent on your healthcare
China spends $1,487 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Singapore spends $6,551 as of 2023.
be 82.9% more likely to be obese
In China, 9.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Singapore, that number is 17.0% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 39.0% less likely to be unemployed
In China, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Singapore, that number is 2.8% as of 2025.
make 7.1 times more money
China has a GDP per capita of $13,862 as of 2025, while in Singapore, the GDP per capita is $98,814 as of 2025.
Life
be 62.5% 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 Singapore, 6.0 women do as of 2023.
be 46.3% 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 Singapore, on the other hand, 2.2 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 43.8% less on education
China spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Singapore spends 2.2% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 24.4% less on healthcare
China spends 5.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Singapore, that number is 4.5% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 98.7% less coastline
China has a total of 14,500 km of coastline. In Singapore, that number is 193 km.
Safety
be 86.0% less likely to be murdered
China has a homicide rate of 0.5 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Singapore, that number is 0.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 89.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In China, road accidents kill 17.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Singapore, they kill 1.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 19.9% less strain on fresh water
China withdraws 42% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Singapore withdraws 33% as of 2022.
use 49.5% more electricity
China uses 6,524 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Singapore uses 9,750 kWh as of 2023.
find 41.1% less home broadband
China has 47.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Singapore has 27.8 as of 2024.
Environment
be 64.1% less likely to die from air pollution
In China, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Singapore, it causes 23.0 as of 2019.
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. Singapore
Singapore: At a glance
How big is Singapore compared to China? See an in-depth size comparison.