Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sri Lanka instead of China, you would:
Health
be 20.8% more likely to be obese
In China, 9.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 11.2% of people as of 2024.
see 65.9% less spent on your healthcare
China spends $1,487 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sri Lanka spends $507 as of 2023.
have 63.5% fewer doctors per person
China has 31.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Sri Lanka has 11.4 as of 2023.
have 17.3% less access to essential health services
China scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sri Lanka scores 67 as of 2021.
be 64.7% more likely to die by suicide
China has a suicide rate of 8.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, it is 14.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 13.4% less likely to be unemployed
In China, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sri Lanka, that number is 4.0% as of 2025.
make 63.9% less money
China has a GDP per capita of $13,862 as of 2025, while in Sri Lanka, the GDP per capita is $5,002 as of 2025.
Life
have 49.2% more children
In China, there are approximately 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, there are 10.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 26.8% 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 Sri Lanka, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 40.4% less likely to have internet access
In China, approximately 91.6% of the population has internet access as of 2025. In Sri Lanka, about 54.6% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 53.1% less on education
China spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sri Lanka spends 1.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 38.0% less on healthcare
China spends 5.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sri Lanka, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 90.8% less coastline
China has a total of 14,500 km of coastline. In Sri Lanka, that number is 1,340 km.
Safety
be 33.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In China, road accidents kill 17.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, they kill 11.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 6.6 times more likely to be murdered
China has a homicide rate of 0.5 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Sri Lanka, that number is 3.3 per 100,000 as of 2019.
Infrastructure
find 82.1% less home broadband
China has 47.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Sri Lanka has 8.5 as of 2024.
live with 2.2 times more strain on fresh water
China withdraws 42% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sri Lanka withdraws 91% as of 2022.
use 90.1% less electricity
China uses 6,524 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Sri Lanka uses 644 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 42.2% less likely to die from air pollution
In China, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sri Lanka, it causes 37.0 as of 2019.
emit 88.6% less CO2
China emits 9.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sri Lanka emits 1.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: China vs. Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: At a glance
How big is Sri Lanka compared to China? See an in-depth size comparison.