Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Romania instead of Estonia, you would:
Health
be 35.6% less likely to die by suicide
Estonia has a suicide rate of 14.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Romania, it is 9.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 2.8 years less
In Estonia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (75 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Romania, that number is 76 years (73 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
be 59.5% more likely to be obese
In Estonia, 20.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Romania, that number is 32.4% of people as of 2024.
see 30.1% less spent on your healthcare
Estonia spends $3,741 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Romania spends $2,614 as of 2023.
Economy
be 27.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Estonia, 8.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Romania, that number is 6.0% as of 2025.
be 18.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Estonia, 22.5% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Romania, however, that number is 18.4% as of 2024.
make 34.5% less money
Estonia has a GDP per capita of $34,418 as of 2025, while in Romania, the GDP per capita is $22,538 as of 2025.
Life
be 2.4 times 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 Romania, 12.0 women do as of 2023.
be 4.0 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 Romania, on the other hand, 6.0 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 37.0% less on education
Estonia spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Romania spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 27.2% less on healthcare
Estonia spends 7.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Romania, that number is 5.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 94.1% less coastline
Estonia has a total of 3,794 km of coastline. In Romania, that number is 225 km.
Safety
be 27.9% less likely to be murdered
Estonia has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Romania, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 2.2 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Estonia, road accidents kill 4.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Romania, they kill 9.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 41.5% less strain on fresh water
Estonia withdraws 13% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Romania withdraws 8% as of 2022.
use 51.2% less electricity
Estonia uses 5,298 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Romania uses 2,585 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 52.1% less CO2
Estonia emits 7.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Romania emits 3.7 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.5 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Estonia, air pollution causes 13.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Romania, it causes 46.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Estonia vs. Romania
Romania: At a glance
How big is Romania compared to Estonia? See an in-depth size comparison.