Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Croatia instead of Netherlands, you would:
Health
live 3.0 years less
In Netherlands, the average life expectancy is 82 years (81 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Croatia, that number is 79 years (76 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2024.
be 2.1 times more likely to be obese
In Netherlands, 14.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Croatia, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.
see 60.6% less spent on your healthcare
Netherlands spends $8,195 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Croatia spends $3,229 as of 2023.
be 36.3% more likely to die by suicide
Netherlands has a suicide rate of 11.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Croatia, it is 15.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 29.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Netherlands, 3.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Croatia, that number is 5.0% as of 2025.
be 40.0% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Netherlands, 14.5% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Croatia, however, that number is 20.3% as of 2024.
make 63.2% less money
Netherlands has a GDP per capita of $73,684 as of 2025, while in Croatia, the GDP per capita is $27,104 as of 2025.
Life
be 25.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Netherlands, approximately 4.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Croatia, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 20.6% more likely to die during infancy
In Netherlands, approximately 3.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Croatia, on the other hand, 4.1 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.8% less likely to have internet access
In Netherlands, approximately 97.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Croatia, about 83.6% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 21.0% less on education
Netherlands spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Croatia spends 4.1% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 28.6% less on healthcare
Netherlands spends 10.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Croatia, that number is 7.2% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 12.9 times more coastline
Netherlands has a total of 451 km of coastline. In Croatia, that number is 5,835 km.
Safety
be 2.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Netherlands, road accidents kill 3.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Croatia, they kill 8.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 90.9% less strain on fresh water
Netherlands withdraws 17% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Croatia withdraws 2% as of 2022.
find 31.1% less home broadband
Netherlands has 43.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Croatia has 29.6 as of 2024.
use 29.8% less electricity
Netherlands uses 6,386 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Croatia uses 4,484 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 26.8% less CO2
Netherlands emits 6.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Croatia emits 4.8 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.4 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Netherlands, air pollution causes 13.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Croatia, it causes 31.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Netherlands vs. Croatia
Croatia: At a glance
How big is Croatia compared to Netherlands? See an in-depth size comparison.