Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sri Lanka instead of New Zealand, you would:
Health
be 67.0% less likely to be obese
In New Zealand, 34.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 11.2% of people as of 2024.
live 4.3 years less
In New Zealand, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 78 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 90.9% less spent on your healthcare
New Zealand spends $5,576 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sri Lanka spends $507 as of 2023.
have 68.5% fewer doctors per person
New Zealand has 36.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Sri Lanka has 11.4 as of 2023.
have 21.2% less access to essential health services
New Zealand scores 85 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sri Lanka scores 67 as of 2021.
be 23.7% more likely to die by suicide
New Zealand has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, it is 14.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 21.3% less likely to be unemployed
In New Zealand, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sri Lanka, that number is 4.0% as of 2025.
make 89.9% less money
New Zealand has a GDP per capita of $49,591 as of 2025, while in Sri Lanka, the GDP per capita is $5,002 as of 2025.
Life
be 2.6 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 Sri Lanka, 18.0 women do as of 2023.
be 30.0% 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 Sri Lanka, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 41.6% less likely to have internet access
In New Zealand, approximately 93.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, about 54.6% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 64.9% less on education
New Zealand spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sri Lanka spends 1.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 63.4% less on healthcare
New Zealand spends 10.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 91.1% less coastline
New Zealand has a total of 15,134 km of coastline. In Sri Lanka, that number is 1,340 km.
Safety
be 2.3 times more likely to be murdered
New Zealand has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Sri Lanka, that number is 3.3 per 100,000 as of 2019.
be 74.2% more likely to die in a road accident
In New Zealand, road accidents kill 6.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, they kill 11.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 77.7% less home broadband
New Zealand has 38.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Sri Lanka has 8.5 as of 2024.
live with 11.3 times more strain on fresh water
New Zealand withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sri Lanka withdraws 91% as of 2022.
use 91.9% less electricity
New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Sri Lanka uses 644 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 82.4% less CO2
New Zealand emits 6.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sri Lanka emits 1.1 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.1 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 Sri Lanka, it causes 37.0 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. Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: At a glance
How big is Sri Lanka compared to New Zealand? See an in-depth size comparison.