Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in New Zealand instead of Cook Islands, you would:

Health

live 4.9 years longer

In Cook Islands, the average life expectancy is 77 years (74 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2022. In New Zealand, that number is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 53.0% less likely to be obese

In Cook Islands, 72.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 34.0% of people as of 2024.

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have 2.7 times more doctors per person

Cook Islands has 13.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2019. New Zealand has 36.1 as of 2022.

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have 84.8% more access to essential health services

Cook Islands scores 46 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. New Zealand scores 85 as of 2021.

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Life

be 74.9% 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 New Zealand, on the other hand, 4.0 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 44.3% more likely to have internet access

In Cook Islands, approximately 64.8% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In New Zealand, about 93.5% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 13.3% more on education

Cook Islands spends 4.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. New Zealand spends 5.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 126.1 times more coastline

Cook Islands has a total of 120 km of coastline. In New Zealand, that number is 15,134 km.

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Safety

be 62.5% less likely to die in a road accident

In Cook Islands, road accidents kill 17.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In New Zealand, they kill 6.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 2.1 times more home broadband

Cook Islands has 18.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. New Zealand has 38.0 as of 2024.

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

Compare further: Cook Islands vs. New Zealand

Cost of Living Comparison · 5 categories - 2026 data
New Zealand is 29.3% more expensive than Cook Islands overall
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Size Comparison · See true size
Cook Islands is about 1,139 times smaller than New Zealand.
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Moving from Cook Islands to New Zealand · UN DESA 2020
12,309 people born in Cook Islands live in New Zealand.
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New Zealand: At a glance

New Zealand (sometimes abbreviated NZ) is a sovereign country in Australia-Oceania, with a total land area of approximately 264,537 sq km. The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. That same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both world wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.
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How big is New Zealand compared to Cook Islands? See an in-depth size comparison.

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