Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Bhutan instead of Malta, you would:
Health
be 57.3% less likely to be obese
In Malta, 30.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Bhutan, that number is 13.1% of people as of 2024.
be 24.3% less likely to die by suicide
Malta has a suicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Bhutan, it is 4.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 9.7 years less
In Malta, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Bhutan, that number is 73 years (72 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2024.
see 88.1% less spent on your healthcare
Malta spends $5,706 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Bhutan spends $677 as of 2023.
have 87.7% fewer doctors per person
Malta has 45.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Bhutan has 5.5 as of 2022.
have 29.4% less access to essential health services
Malta scores 85 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Bhutan scores 60 as of 2021.
Economy
be 25.7% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Malta, 16.7% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Bhutan, however, that number is 12.4% as of 2022.
be 11.4% more likely to be unemployed
In Malta, 2.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Bhutan, that number is 3.2% as of 2025.
make 90.6% less money
Malta has a GDP per capita of $47,907 as of 2025, while in Bhutan, the GDP per capita is $4,493 as of 2025.
Life
have 62.7% more children
In Malta, there are approximately 7.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Bhutan, there are 12.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 5.9 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Malta, approximately 8.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Bhutan, 47.0 women do as of 2023.
be 31.6% less likely to be literate
In Malta, the literacy rate is 94.9% as of 2021. In Bhutan, it is 64.9% as of 2022.
be 2.9 times more likely to die during infancy
In Malta, approximately 4.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Bhutan, on the other hand, 13.7 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 50.0% less on healthcare
Malta spends 8.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Bhutan, that number is 4.4% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 24.2% more on education
Malta spends 4.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Bhutan spends 5.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Safety
be 4.4 times more likely to be murdered
Malta has a homicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Bhutan, that number is 2.5 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 6.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Malta, road accidents kill 1.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Bhutan, they kill 12.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 98.1% less strain on fresh water
Malta withdraws 73% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Bhutan withdraws 1% as of 2022.
find 93.4% less home broadband
Malta has 44.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Bhutan has 2.9 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 36.8% less CO2
Malta emits 3.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Bhutan emits 2.0 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.7 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Malta, air pollution causes 21.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Bhutan, it causes 57.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Malta vs. Bhutan
Bhutan: At a glance
How big is Bhutan compared to Malta? See an in-depth size comparison.