Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Cuba instead of New Zealand, you would:
Health
be 32.5% less likely to be obese
In New Zealand, 34.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Cuba, that number is 23.0% of people as of 2024.
have 2.6 times more doctors per person
New Zealand has 36.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Cuba has 95.4 as of 2021.
live 3.8 years less
In New Zealand, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Cuba, that number is 78 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 53.8% less spent on your healthcare
New Zealand spends $5,576 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Cuba spends $2,575 as of 2023.
be 15.7% more likely to die by suicide
New Zealand has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Cuba, it is 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 65.6% less likely to be unemployed
In New Zealand, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Cuba, that number is 1.8% as of 2025.
Life
be 5.0 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 Cuba, 35.0 women do as of 2023.
be 70.0% 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 Cuba, on the other hand, 6.8 children do as of 2024.
have 21.8% fewer children
In New Zealand, there are approximately 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Cuba, there are 8.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 24.6% less likely to have internet access
In New Zealand, approximately 93.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Cuba, about 70.5% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 62.0% more on education
New Zealand spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Cuba spends 8.4% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 75.3% less coastline
New Zealand has a total of 15,134 km of coastline. In Cuba, that number is 3,735 km.
Safety
be 18.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In New Zealand, road accidents kill 6.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Cuba, they kill 5.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 3.1 times more likely to be murdered
New Zealand has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Cuba, that number is 4.5 per 100,000 as of 2019.
Infrastructure
find 91.9% less home broadband
New Zealand has 38.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Cuba has 3.1 as of 2024.
live with 3.0 times more strain on fresh water
New Zealand withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Cuba withdraws 24% as of 2022.
use 81.7% less electricity
New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Cuba uses 1,462 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 68.2% less CO2
New Zealand emits 6.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Cuba emits 1.9 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.6 times more likely to die from air pollution
In New Zealand, air pollution causes 12.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Cuba, it causes 31.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: New Zealand vs. Cuba
Cuba: At a glance
How big is Cuba compared to New Zealand? See an in-depth size comparison.