Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Bulgaria instead of Malta, you would:
Health
be 33.6% less likely to be obese
In Malta, 30.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Bulgaria, that number is 20.3% of people as of 2024.
live 7.2 years less
In Malta, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Bulgaria, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
see 48.0% less spent on your healthcare
Malta spends $5,706 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Bulgaria spends $2,970 as of 2023.
have 14.1% less access to essential health services
Malta scores 85 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Bulgaria scores 73 as of 2021.
be 47.0% more likely to die by suicide
Malta has a suicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Bulgaria, it is 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 22.1% more likely to be unemployed
In Malta, 2.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Bulgaria, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.
be 26.9% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Malta, 16.7% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Bulgaria, however, that number is 21.2% as of 2024.
make 57.6% less money
Malta has a GDP per capita of $47,907 as of 2025, while in Bulgaria, the GDP per capita is $20,328 as of 2025.
Life
be 25.0% less 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 Bulgaria, 6.0 women do as of 2023.
Basic Needs
be 12.2% less likely to have internet access
In Malta, approximately 93.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Bulgaria, about 82.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 10.4% less on healthcare
Malta spends 8.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Bulgaria, that number is 7.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 79.9% more coastline
Malta has a total of 197 km of coastline. In Bulgaria, that number is 354 km.
Safety
be 94.6% more likely to be murdered
Malta has a homicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Bulgaria, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 4.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Malta, road accidents kill 1.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Bulgaria, they kill 8.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 44.6% less strain on fresh water
Malta withdraws 73% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Bulgaria withdraws 40% as of 2022.
find 16.8% less home broadband
Malta has 44.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Bulgaria has 37.0 as of 2023.
Environment
be 3.0 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Malta, air pollution causes 21.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Bulgaria, it causes 63.0 as of 2019.
emit 67.0% more CO2
Malta emits 3.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Bulgaria emits 5.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Malta vs. Bulgaria
Bulgaria: At a glance
How big is Bulgaria compared to Malta? See an in-depth size comparison.