Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Romania instead of New Zealand, you would:
Health
be 19.3% less likely to die by suicide
New Zealand has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Romania, it is 9.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 5.6 years less
In New Zealand, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Romania, that number is 76 years (73 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
see 53.1% less spent on your healthcare
New Zealand spends $5,576 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Romania spends $2,614 as of 2023.
Economy
be 17.9% more likely to be unemployed
In New Zealand, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Romania, that number is 6.0% as of 2025.
make 54.6% less money
New Zealand has a GDP per capita of $49,591 as of 2025, while in Romania, the GDP per capita is $22,538 as of 2025.
Life
be 71.4% 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 Romania, 12.0 women do as of 2023.
be 50.0% 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 Romania, on the other hand, 6.0 children do as of 2024.
have 32.0% fewer children
In New Zealand, there are approximately 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Romania, there are 7.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 37.0% less on education
New Zealand spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Romania spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 43.2% less on healthcare
New Zealand spends 10.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Romania, that number is 5.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 98.5% less coastline
New Zealand has a total of 15,134 km of coastline. In Romania, that number is 225 km.
Safety
be 24.0% less likely to be murdered
New Zealand has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Romania, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 45.5% more likely to die in a road accident
In New Zealand, road accidents kill 6.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Romania, they kill 9.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
use 67.6% less electricity
New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Romania uses 2,585 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 38.1% less CO2
New Zealand emits 6.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Romania emits 3.7 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.8 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 Romania, it causes 46.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: New Zealand vs. Romania
Romania: At a glance
How big is Romania compared to New Zealand? See an in-depth size comparison.