If you lived in Albania instead of Maldives, you would:

Health

live 1.5 years less

In Maldives, the average life expectancy is 81 years (80 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Albania, that number is 80 years (78 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 35.1% more likely to be obese

In Maldives, 17.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Albania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.

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see 36.0% less spent on your healthcare

Maldives spends $2,288 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Albania spends $1,465 as of 2023.

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have 15.9% fewer doctors per person

Maldives has 22.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2019. Albania has 18.8 as of 2020.

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be 87.1% more likely to die by suicide

Maldives has a suicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Albania, it is 2.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 2.4 times more likely to be unemployed

In Maldives, 4.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Albania, that number is 10.9% as of 2025.

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be 3.6 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Maldives, 5.4% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Albania, however, that number is 19.7% as of 2022.

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make 11.1% less money

Maldives has a GDP per capita of $14,615 as of 2025, while in Albania, the GDP per capita is $12,998 as of 2025.

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Life

be 78.1% less likely to die during childbirth

In Maldives, approximately 32.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Albania, 7.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 76.6% more likely to die during infancy

In Maldives, approximately 4.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Albania, on the other hand, 8.3 children do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 40.2% less on education

Maldives spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Albania spends 3.1% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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spend 23.8% less on healthcare

Maldives spends 9.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Albania, that number is 7.0% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 43.8% less coastline

Maldives has a total of 644 km of coastline. In Albania, that number is 362 km.

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Safety

be 8.3 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Maldives, road accidents kill 1.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Albania, they kill 10.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 26.6% more home broadband

Maldives has 19.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Albania has 24.9 as of 2024.

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live with 69.4% less strain on fresh water

Maldives withdraws 16% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Albania withdraws 5% as of 2022.

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Environment

emit 49.9% less CO2

Maldives emits 3.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Albania emits 1.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 2.0 times more likely to die from air pollution

In Maldives, air pollution causes 29.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Albania, it causes 59.0 as of 2019.

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

Albania: At a glance

Albania is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 27,398 sq km. Albania declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912, but was conquered by Italy in 1939, and occupied by Germany in 1943. Communist partisans took over the country in 1944. Albania allied itself first with the USSR (until 1960), and then with China (to 1978). In the early 1990s, Albania ended 46 years of xenophobic communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven challenging as successive governments have tried to deal with high unemployment, widespread corruption, dilapidated infrastructure, powerful organized crime networks, and combative political opponents. Albania has made progress in its democratic development since first holding multiparty elections in 1991, but deficiencies remain. International observers judged elections to be largely free and fair since the restoration of political stability following the collapse of pyramid schemes in 1997; however, each of Albania's post-communist elections have been marred by claims of electoral fraud. The 2009 general elections resulted in a coalition government, the first such in the country's history. In 2013, general elections achieved a peaceful transition of power and a second successive coalition government. Albania joined NATO in April 2009 and is a potential candidate for EU accession. Although Albania's economy continues to grow, it has slowed, and the country is still one of the poorest in Europe. A large informal economy and an inadequate energy and transportation infrastructure remain obstacles.
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