Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Latvia instead of Finland, you would:
Health
live 5.9 years less
In Finland, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Latvia, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2024.
see 52.8% less spent on your healthcare
Finland spends $6,433 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Latvia spends $3,034 as of 2023.
have 12.8% less access to essential health services
Finland scores 86 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Latvia scores 75 as of 2021.
Economy
be 30.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Finland, 9.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Latvia, that number is 6.6% as of 2025.
be 84.4% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Finland, 12.2% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Latvia, however, that number is 22.5% as of 2022.
make 53.1% less money
Finland has a GDP per capita of $56,149 as of 2025, while in Latvia, the GDP per capita is $26,312 as of 2025.
Life
be 2.4 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Finland, approximately 8.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Latvia, 19.0 women do as of 2023.
be 15.8% more likely to die during infancy
In Finland, approximately 1.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Latvia, on the other hand, 2.2 children do as of 2024.
have 11.5% fewer children
In Finland, there are approximately 7.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Latvia, there are 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 32.3% less on education
Finland spends 6.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Latvia spends 4.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 30.5% less on healthcare
Finland spends 10.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Latvia, that number is 7.3% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 60.2% less coastline
Finland has a total of 1,250 km of coastline. In Latvia, that number is 498 km.
Safety
be 2.6 times more likely to be murdered
Finland has a homicide rate of 1.0 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Latvia, that number is 2.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 12.6% less likely to feel safe walking alone at night
In Finland, 86% of people feel safe walking alone at night as of 2021. In Latvia, that number is 75% as of 2020.
be 2.3 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Finland, road accidents kill 4.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Latvia, they kill 9.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 85.7% less strain on fresh water
Finland withdraws 7% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Latvia withdraws 1% as of 2022.
find 29.4% less home broadband
Finland has 36.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Latvia has 25.8 as of 2024.
use 74.6% less electricity
Finland uses 14,819 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Latvia uses 3,768 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
emit 34.1% less CO2
Finland emits 5.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Latvia emits 3.6 tonnes as of 2024.
be 5.7 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Finland, air pollution causes 7.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Latvia, it causes 40.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Finland vs. Latvia
Latvia: At a glance
How big is Latvia compared to Finland? See an in-depth size comparison.