Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of Kenya, you would:
Health
live 13.3 years longer
In Kenya, the average life expectancy is 70 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022. In South Korea, that number is 83 years (80 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022.
be 33.8% less likely to be obese
In Kenya, 7.1% of adults are obese as of 2016. In South Korea, that number is 4.7% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 10.1 times more money
Kenya has a GDP per capita of $4,200 as of 2020, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $42,300 as of 2020.
be 90.6% less likely to be unemployed
In Kenya, 40.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2013. In South Korea, that number is 3.8% as of 2019.
be 60.1% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Kenya, 36.1% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In South Korea, however, that number is 14.4% as of 2016.
pay a 26.7% higher top tax rate
Kenya has a top tax rate of 30.0% as of 2016. In South Korea, the top tax rate is 38.0% as of 2016.
Life
be 96.8% less likely to die during childbirth
In Kenya, approximately 342.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In South Korea, 11.0 women do as of 2017.
be 20.2% more likely to be literate
In Kenya, the literacy rate is 81.5% as of 2018. In South Korea, it is 98.0% as of 2019.
be 89.7% less likely to die during infancy
In Kenya, approximately 27.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In South Korea, on the other hand, 2.9 children do as of 2022.
have 73.8% fewer children
In Kenya, there are approximately 26.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In South Korea, there are 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 17.6% more likely to have access to electricity
In Kenya, approximately 85% of the population has electricity access as of 2019. In South Korea, 100% of the population do as of 2020.
be 5.4 times more likely to have internet access
In Kenya, approximately 17.8% of the population has internet access as of 2018. In South Korea, about 97.0% do as of 2020.
be 40.3% more likely to have access to improved drinking water
In Kenya, approximately 71% of people have improved drinking water access as of 2020. In South Korea, 100% of people do as of 2020.
Expenditures
spend 11.8% less on education
Kenya spends 5.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. South Korea spends 4.5% of total GDP on education as of 2018.
spend 78.3% more on healthcare
Kenya spends 4.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In South Korea, that number is 8.2% of GDP as of 2019.
Geography
see 4.5 times more coastline
Kenya has a total of 536 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Revenue Authority, The World Factbook, National Tax Service, South Korea.
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to Kenya? See an in-depth size comparison.