If you lived in Thailand instead of Kenya, you would:

Health

be 66.7% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Kenya, 3.0% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Thailand, that number is 1.0% of people as of 2024.

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live 12.7 years longer

In Kenya, the average life expectancy is 64 years (62 years for men, 66 years for women) as of 2024. In Thailand, that number is 77 years (72 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 3.9 times more spent on your healthcare

Kenya spends $274 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Thailand spends $1,067 as of 2023.

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have 87.2% more doctors per person

Kenya has 2.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Thailand has 5.4 as of 2021.

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have 54.7% more access to essential health services

Kenya scores 53 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Thailand scores 82 as of 2021.

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be 45.0% more likely to be obese

In Kenya, 11.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Thailand, that number is 16.4% of people as of 2024.

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be 3.6 times more likely to die by suicide

Kenya has a suicide rate of 4.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Thailand, it is 16.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 85.7% less likely to be unemployed

In Kenya, 5.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Thailand, that number is 0.8% as of 2025.

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be 86.4% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Kenya, 39.8% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Thailand, however, that number is 5.4% as of 2022.

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make 3.4 times more money

Kenya has a GDP per capita of $2,363 as of 2025, while in Thailand, the GDP per capita is $8,057 as of 2025.

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Life

be 77.2% less likely to die during childbirth

In Kenya, approximately 149.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Thailand, 34.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 10.3% more likely to be literate

In Kenya, the literacy rate is 82.6% as of 2021. In Thailand, it is 91.1% as of 2022.

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be 77.5% less likely to die during infancy

In Kenya, approximately 34.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Thailand, on the other hand, 7.7 children do as of 2024.

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have 69.9% fewer children

In Kenya, there are approximately 27.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Thailand, there are 8.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 31.2% more likely to have access to electricity

In Kenya, approximately 76% of people have electricity access (96% in urban areas, and 68% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Thailand, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 2.6 times more likely to have internet access

In Kenya, approximately 35.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Thailand, about 90.9% do as of 2024.

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be 52.4% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Kenya, approximately 66% of people have access to drinking water (89% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Thailand, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 37.3% less on education

Kenya spends 4.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Thailand spends 2.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 6.0 times more coastline

Kenya has a total of 536 km of coastline. In Thailand, that number is 3,219 km.

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Infrastructure

find 4.9 times more home broadband

Kenya has 3.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Thailand has 14.9 as of 2024.

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live with 30.8% less strain on fresh water

Kenya withdraws 33% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Thailand withdraws 23% as of 2022.

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use 15.2 times more electricity

Kenya uses 195 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Thailand uses 2,965 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

be 12.1% less likely to die from air pollution

In Kenya, air pollution causes 33.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Thailand, it causes 29.0 as of 2019.

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emit 10.4 times more CO2

Kenya emits 0.4 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Thailand emits 4.0 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

Thailand: At a glance

Thailand is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 510,890 sq km. A unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known as Siam until 1939, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country never to have been taken over by a European power. A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to a constitutional monarchy. In alliance with Japan during World War II, Thailand became a US treaty ally in 1954 after sending troops to Korea and later fighting alongside the United States in Vietnam. Thailand since 2005 has experienced several rounds of political turmoil including a military coup in 2006 that ousted then Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat, followed by large-scale street protests by competing political factions in 2008, 2009, and 2010. THAKSIN's youngest sister, YINGLAK Chinnawat, in 2011 led the Puea Thai Party to an electoral win and assumed control of the government. A blanket amnesty bill for individuals involved in street protests, altered at the last minute to include all political crimes - including all convictions against THAKSIN - triggered months of large-scale anti-government protests in Bangkok beginning in November 2013. In early May 2014 YINGLAK was removed from office and in late May 2014 the Royal Thai Army staged a coup against the caretaker government. Thailand has also experienced violence associated with the ethno-nationalist insurgency in Thailand's southern Malay-Muslim majority provinces. Since January 2004, thousands have been killed and wounded in the insurgency.
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