Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Ireland instead of Germany, you would:
Health
live 2.2 years longer
In Germany, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.
be 33.7% less likely to die by suicide
Germany has a suicide rate of 12.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Ireland, it is 8.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 35.1% more likely to be obese
In Germany, 20.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 27.9% of people as of 2024.
have 14.5% fewer doctors per person
Germany has 45.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Ireland has 38.8 as of 2023.
Economy
make 2.2 times more money
Germany has a GDP per capita of $60,496 as of 2025, while in Ireland, the GDP per capita is $131,592 as of 2025.
be 24.8% more likely to be unemployed
In Germany, 3.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Ireland, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.
Life
have 23.5% more children
In Germany, there are approximately 8.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ireland, there are 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 44.7% less on education
Germany spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Ireland spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 44.2% less on healthcare
Germany spends 12.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 6.8% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 39.4% less coastline
Germany has a total of 2,389 km of coastline. In Ireland, that number is 1,448 km.
Safety
be 28.6% less likely to be murdered
Germany has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Ireland, that number is 0.7 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 15.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Germany, road accidents kill 3.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Ireland, they kill 2.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 77.2% less strain on fresh water
Germany withdraws 35% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Ireland withdraws 8% as of 2022.
find 29.2% less home broadband
Germany has 45.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Ireland has 32.3 as of 2024.
Environment
be 13.3% less likely to die from air pollution
In Germany, air pollution causes 15.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Ireland, it causes 13.0 as of 2019.
emit 13.0% less CO2
Germany emits 6.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ireland emits 6.0 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Germany vs. Ireland
Ireland: At a glance
How big is Ireland compared to Germany? See an in-depth size comparison.