Quality of life comparison
If you lived in China instead of Malta, you would:
Health
be 69.7% less likely to be obese
In Malta, 30.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In China, that number is 9.3% of people as of 2024.
live 4.9 years less
In Malta, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In China, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 73.9% less spent on your healthcare
Malta spends $5,706 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). China spends $1,487 as of 2023.
have 31.0% fewer doctors per person
Malta has 45.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. China has 31.1 as of 2022.
be 38.3% more likely to die by suicide
Malta has a suicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In China, it is 8.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 59.3% more likely to be unemployed
In Malta, 2.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In China, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.
make 71.1% less money
Malta has a GDP per capita of $47,907 as of 2025, while in China, the GDP per capita is $13,862 as of 2025.
Life
be 12.8% less 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 China, on the other hand, 4.1 children do as of 2024.
be 100.0% 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 China, 16.0 women do as of 2023.
have 12.1% fewer children
In Malta, there are approximately 7.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In China, there are 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 17.2% less on education
Malta spends 4.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. China spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 32.8% less on healthcare
Malta spends 8.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In China, that number is 5.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 73.7 times more coastline
Malta has a total of 197 km of coastline. In China, that number is 14,500 km.
Safety
be 10.7% less likely to be murdered
Malta has a homicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In China, that number is 0.5 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 9.2 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Malta, road accidents kill 1.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In China, they kill 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 42.8% less strain on fresh water
Malta withdraws 73% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. China withdraws 42% as of 2022.
use 30.1% more electricity
Malta uses 5,013 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. China uses 6,524 kWh 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 China, it causes 64.0 as of 2019.
emit 2.9 times more CO2
Malta emits 3.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. China emits 9.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Malta vs. China
China: At a glance
How big is China compared to Malta? See an in-depth size comparison.