Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Colombia instead of New Zealand, you would:
Health
be 26.8% less likely to be obese
In New Zealand, 34.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Colombia, that number is 24.9% of people as of 2024.
be 58.4% less likely to die by suicide
New Zealand has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Colombia, it is 5.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 4.1 years less
In New Zealand, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Colombia, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 68.5% less spent on your healthcare
New Zealand spends $5,576 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Colombia spends $1,758 as of 2024.
have 29.8% fewer doctors per person
New Zealand has 36.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Colombia has 25.4 as of 2023.
Economy
be 63.2% more likely to be unemployed
In New Zealand, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Colombia, that number is 8.3% as of 2025.
make 82.7% less money
New Zealand has a GDP per capita of $49,591 as of 2025, while in Colombia, the GDP per capita is $8,562 as of 2025.
Life
have 20.1% more children
In New Zealand, there are approximately 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Colombia, there are 13.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 8.4 times more likely to die during childbirth
In New Zealand, approximately 7.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Colombia, 59.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.6 times more likely to die during infancy
In New Zealand, approximately 4.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Colombia, on the other hand, 10.5 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 15.2% less likely to have internet access
In New Zealand, approximately 93.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Colombia, about 79.3% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 19.1% less on healthcare
New Zealand spends 10.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Colombia, that number is 8.1% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 78.8% less coastline
New Zealand has a total of 15,134 km of coastline. In Colombia, that number is 3,208 km.
Safety
be 17.1 times more likely to be murdered
New Zealand has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Colombia, that number is 24.9 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 2.5 times more likely to die in a road accident
In New Zealand, road accidents kill 6.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Colombia, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 54.9% less strain on fresh water
New Zealand withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Colombia withdraws 4% as of 2022.
find 54.7% less home broadband
New Zealand has 38.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Colombia has 17.2 as of 2024.
use 80.6% less electricity
New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Colombia uses 1,551 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
emit 70.0% less CO2
New Zealand emits 6.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Colombia emits 1.8 tonnes as of 2024.
be 100.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In New Zealand, air pollution causes 12.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Colombia, it causes 24.0 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: New Zealand vs. Colombia
Colombia: At a glance
How big is Colombia compared to New Zealand? See an in-depth size comparison.