Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in New Caledonia instead of Kuwait, you would:

Health

live 5.7 years less

In Kuwait, the average life expectancy is 85 years (84 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In New Caledonia, that number is 79 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.

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Economy

be 5.1 times more likely to be unemployed

In Kuwait, 2.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In New Caledonia, that number is 11.2% as of 2025.

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Life

have 40.0% more children

In Kuwait, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Caledonia, there are 14.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Geography

see 4.5 times more coastline

Kuwait has a total of 499 km of coastline. In New Caledonia, that number is 2,254 km.

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Infrastructure

find 19.2 times more home broadband

Kuwait has 1.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. New Caledonia has 19.4 as of 2022.

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Environment

emit 27.8% less CO2

Kuwait emits 23.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. New Caledonia emits 17.1 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Compare further: Kuwait vs. New Caledonia

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
New Caledonia is 97.9% more expensive than Kuwait overall
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Size Comparison · See true size
Kuwait is around the same size as New Caledonia.
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Moving from Kuwait to New Caledonia · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
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New Caledonia: At a glance

New Caledonia is a sovereign country in Australia-Oceania, with a total land area of approximately 18,275 sq km. Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island became a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct a referendum between 2014 and 2018 to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence.
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How big is New Caledonia compared to Kuwait? See an in-depth size comparison.

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