Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Portugal instead of Netherlands, you would:
Health
have 51.0% more doctors per person
Netherlands has 38.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Portugal has 58.5 as of 2022.
be 23.0% more likely to be obese
In Netherlands, 14.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Portugal, that number is 18.1% of people as of 2024.
see 39.9% less spent on your healthcare
Netherlands spends $8,195 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Portugal spends $4,928 as of 2024.
Economy
be 59.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Netherlands, 3.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Portugal, that number is 6.2% as of 2025.
be 13.1% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Netherlands, 14.5% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Portugal, however, that number is 16.4% as of 2021.
make 56.5% less money
Netherlands has a GDP per capita of $73,684 as of 2025, while in Portugal, the GDP per capita is $32,082 as of 2025.
Life
be 20.6% less 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 Portugal, on the other hand, 2.7 children do as of 2024.
be 3.8 times more 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 Portugal, 15.0 women do as of 2023.
have 14.1% fewer children
In Netherlands, there are approximately 9.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Portugal, there are 7.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 12.2% less on education
Netherlands spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Portugal spends 4.5% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 4.0 times more coastline
Netherlands has a total of 451 km of coastline. In Portugal, that number is 1,793 km.
Safety
be 2.1 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Netherlands, road accidents kill 3.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Portugal, they kill 7.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 26.1% less strain on fresh water
Netherlands withdraws 17% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Portugal withdraws 12% as of 2022.
use 17.1% less electricity
Netherlands uses 6,386 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Portugal uses 5,294 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
be 23.1% less likely to die from air pollution
In Netherlands, air pollution causes 13.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Portugal, it causes 10.0 as of 2019.
emit 49.7% less CO2
Netherlands emits 6.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Portugal emits 3.3 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: Netherlands vs. Portugal
Portugal: At a glance
How big is Portugal compared to Netherlands? See an in-depth size comparison.