Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Bulgaria instead of Estonia, you would:
Health
have 24.8% more doctors per person
Estonia has 34.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Bulgaria has 43.3 as of 2022.
be 36.3% less likely to die by suicide
Estonia has a suicide rate of 14.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Bulgaria, it is 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 3.5 years less
In Estonia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (75 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Bulgaria, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
see 20.6% less spent on your healthcare
Estonia spends $3,741 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Bulgaria spends $2,970 as of 2023.
Economy
be 57.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Estonia, 8.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Bulgaria, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.
make 40.9% less money
Estonia has a GDP per capita of $34,418 as of 2025, while in Bulgaria, the GDP per capita is $20,328 as of 2025.
Life
have 16.9% more children
In Estonia, there are approximately 7.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Bulgaria, there are 8.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 20.0% more likely to die during childbirth
In Estonia, approximately 5.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Bulgaria, 6.0 women do as of 2023.
be 3.1 times more likely to die during infancy
In Estonia, approximately 1.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Bulgaria, on the other hand, 4.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 10.6% less likely to have internet access
In Estonia, approximately 92.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Bulgaria, about 82.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 13.6% less on education
Estonia spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Bulgaria spends 4.5% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 90.7% less coastline
Estonia has a total of 3,794 km of coastline. In Bulgaria, that number is 354 km.
Safety
be 29.2% less likely to be murdered
Estonia has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Bulgaria, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 14.8% more likely to feel safe walking alone at night
In Estonia, 75% of people feel safe walking alone at night as of 2021. In Bulgaria, that number is 86% as of 2020.
be 90.9% more likely to die in a road accident
In Estonia, road accidents kill 4.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Bulgaria, they kill 8.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 3.1 times more strain on fresh water
Estonia withdraws 13% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Bulgaria withdraws 40% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 31.6% less CO2
Estonia emits 7.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Bulgaria emits 5.3 tonnes as of 2024.
be 4.8 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Estonia, air pollution causes 13.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Bulgaria, it causes 63.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Estonia vs. Bulgaria
Bulgaria: At a glance
How big is Bulgaria compared to Estonia? See an in-depth size comparison.