Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Bulgaria instead of Estonia, you would:

Health

live 2.3 years less

In Estonia, the average life expectancy is 78 years (73 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2022. In Bulgaria, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2022.

be 17.9% more likely to be obese

In Estonia, 21.2% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Bulgaria, that number is 25.0% of people as of 2016.

Economy

pay a 50.0% lower top tax rate

Estonia has a top tax rate of 20.0% as of 2016. In Bulgaria, the top tax rate is 10.0% as of 2016.

make 37.1% less money

Estonia has a GDP per capita of $35,600 as of 2020, while in Bulgaria, the GDP per capita is $22,400 as of 2020.

be 14.6% more likely to be unemployed

In Estonia, 4.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2019. In Bulgaria, that number is 5.7% as of 2019.

Life

be 2.3 times more likely to die during infancy

In Estonia, approximately 3.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Bulgaria, on the other hand, 8.0 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 27.2% less likely to have internet access

In Estonia, approximately 96.1% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Bulgaria, about 70.0% do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 21.2% less on education

Estonia spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. Bulgaria spends 4.1% of total GDP on education as of 2017.

Geography

see 90.7% less coastline

Estonia has a total of 3,794 km of coastline. In Bulgaria, that number is 354 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Estonian Tax and Customs Board, The World Factbook, National Revenue Agency, Bulgaria.

Bulgaria: At a glance

Bulgaria is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 108,489 sq km. The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Northern Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. The country joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
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How big is Bulgaria compared to Estonia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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