Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Belgium instead of Cook Islands, you would:
Health
live 5.2 years longer
In Cook Islands, the average life expectancy is 77 years (74 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2022. In Belgium, that number is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
be 71.2% less likely to be obese
In Cook Islands, 72.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Belgium, that number is 20.9% of people as of 2024.
have 2.7 times more doctors per person
Cook Islands has 13.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2019. Belgium has 35.7 as of 2022.
have 87.0% more access to essential health services
Cook Islands scores 46 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Belgium scores 86 as of 2021.
Life
be 80.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Cook Islands, approximately 15.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Belgium, on the other hand, 3.1 children do as of 2024.
have 24.0% fewer children
In Cook Islands, there are approximately 12.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Belgium, there are 9.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 47.8% more likely to have internet access
In Cook Islands, approximately 64.8% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Belgium, about 95.8% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 36.5% more on education
Cook Islands spends 4.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Belgium spends 6.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 3.4 times more on healthcare
Cook Islands spends 3.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Belgium, that number is 10.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 44.6% less coastline
Cook Islands has a total of 120 km of coastline. In Belgium, that number is 66 km.
Safety
be 73.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In Cook Islands, road accidents kill 17.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Belgium, they kill 4.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.4 times more home broadband
Cook Islands has 18.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Belgium has 44.2 as of 2024.
Sources: The World Factbook (2020–2024), World Bank (2022–2024), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Cook Islands vs. Belgium
Belgium: At a glance
How big is Belgium compared to Cook Islands? See an in-depth size comparison.