Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Palau instead of Iraq, you would:
Health
see 2.2 times more spent on your healthcare
Iraq spends $843 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Palau spends $1,857 as of 2023.
have 76.9% more doctors per person
Iraq has 10.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Palau has 18.1 as of 2023.
have 10.2% more access to essential health services
Iraq scores 59 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Palau scores 65 as of 2021.
live 3.0 years less
In Iraq, the average life expectancy is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Palau, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2024.
Economy
make 3.6 times more money
Iraq has a GDP per capita of $5,410 as of 2025, while in Palau, the GDP per capita is $19,532 as of 2025.
Life
be 18.8% more likely to be literate
In Iraq, the literacy rate is 84.1% as of 2021. In Palau, it is 99.8% as of 2020.
be 34.8% more likely to die during childbirth
In Iraq, approximately 66.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Palau, 89.0 women do as of 2023.
have 58.2% fewer children
In Iraq, there are approximately 25.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Palau, there are 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 96.2% more on healthcare
Iraq spends 5.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Palau, that number is 10.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 26.2 times more coastline
Iraq has a total of 58 km of coastline. In Palau, that number is 1,519 km.
Infrastructure
find 58.4% less home broadband
Iraq has 17.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Palau has 7.3 as of 2023.
Environment
emit 16.0 times more CO2
Iraq emits 5.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Palau emits 82.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Iraq vs. Palau
Palau: At a glance
How big is Palau compared to Iraq? See an in-depth size comparison.