Quality of life comparison
If you lived in New Zealand instead of Malta, you would:
Health
live 0.9 years less
In Malta, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
be 11.1% more likely to be obese
In Malta, 30.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 34.0% of people as of 2024.
have 20.0% fewer doctors per person
Malta has 45.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. New Zealand has 36.1 as of 2022.
be 84.2% more likely to die by suicide
Malta has a suicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In New Zealand, it is 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 75.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Malta, 2.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In New Zealand, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.
Life
be 14.9% 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 New Zealand, on the other hand, 4.0 children do as of 2024.
have 43.2% more children
In Malta, there are approximately 7.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Zealand, there are 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 10.6% more on education
Malta spends 4.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. New Zealand spends 5.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 13.8% more on healthcare
Malta spends 8.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In New Zealand, that number is 10.1% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 76.9 times more coastline
Malta has a total of 197 km of coastline. In New Zealand, that number is 15,134 km.
Safety
be 2.6 times more likely to be murdered
Malta has a homicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In New Zealand, that number is 1.5 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 3.5 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Malta, road accidents kill 1.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In New Zealand, they kill 6.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 88.9% less strain on fresh water
Malta withdraws 73% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. New Zealand withdraws 8% as of 2022.
use 59.4% more electricity
Malta uses 5,013 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh as of 2024.
find 14.5% less home broadband
Malta has 44.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. New Zealand has 38.0 as of 2024.
Environment
be 42.9% less likely to die from air pollution
In Malta, air pollution causes 21.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In New Zealand, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 89.0% more CO2
Malta emits 3.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. New Zealand emits 6.0 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. New Zealand
New Zealand: At a glance
How big is New Zealand compared to Malta? See an in-depth size comparison.