Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Mexico instead of Iceland, you would:

Health

live 11.3 years less

In Iceland, the average life expectancy is 84 years (81 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022. In Mexico, that number is 72 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022.

be 32.0% more likely to be obese

In Iceland, 21.9% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Mexico, that number is 28.9% of people as of 2016.

Economy

pay a 24.4% lower top tax rate

Iceland has a top tax rate of 46.3% as of 2016. In Mexico, the top tax rate is 35.0% as of 2016.

make 65.8% less money

Iceland has a GDP per capita of $52,300 as of 2020, while in Mexico, the GDP per capita is $17,900 as of 2020.

be 4.8 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Iceland, 8.8% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Mexico, however, that number is 41.9% as of 2018.

Life

be 8.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Iceland, approximately 4.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Mexico, 33.0 women do as of 2017.

be 7.2 times more likely to die during infancy

In Iceland, approximately 1.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Mexico, on the other hand, 11.9 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 27.3% less likely to have internet access

In Iceland, approximately 99.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In Mexico, about 72.0% do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 43.4% less on education

Iceland spends 7.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. Mexico spends 4.3% of total GDP on education as of 2018.

spend 37.2% less on healthcare

Iceland spends 8.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Mexico, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2019.

Geography

see 87.7% more coastline

Iceland has a total of 4,970 km of coastline. In Mexico, that number is 9,330 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Servicio de Administración Tributaria, SHCP, Directorate of Internal Revenue.

Mexico: At a glance

Mexico is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 1,943,945 sq km. The site of several advanced Amerindian civilizations - including the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya, and Aztec - Mexico was conquered and colonized by Spain in the early 16th century. Administered as the Viceroyalty of New Spain for three centuries, it achieved its independence early in the 19th century. The global financial crisis beginning in late 2008 caused a massive economic downturn the following year, although growth returned quickly in 2010. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely indigenous population in the impoverished southern states. The elections held in 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that an opposition candidate - Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) - defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was succeeded in 2006 by another PAN candidate Felipe CALDERON, but Enrique PENA NIETO regained the presidency for the PRI in 2012. Since 2007, Mexico's powerful drug-trafficking organizations have engaged in bloody feuding, resulting in tens of thousands of drug-related homicides.
Read more

How big is Mexico compared to Iceland? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Mexico.or Iceland It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.