Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Nicaragua, you would:
Health
live 8.9 years longer
In Nicaragua, the average life expectancy is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 83.1% less likely to be obese
In Nicaragua, 34.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 7.8 times more spent on your healthcare
Nicaragua spends $689 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 18.6% more access to essential health services
Nicaragua scores 70 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.
be 4.1 times more likely to die by suicide
Nicaragua has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 51.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Nicaragua, 5.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Japan, that number is 2.5% as of 2025.
be 35.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Nicaragua, 24.9% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Japan, however, that number is 16.1% as of 2013.
make 11.3 times more money
Nicaragua has a GDP per capita of $3,173 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 95.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Nicaragua, approximately 60.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 80.9% less likely to die during infancy
In Nicaragua, approximately 9.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Japan, on the other hand, 1.8 children do as of 2024.
have 70.2% fewer children
In Nicaragua, there are approximately 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.3% more likely to have access to electricity
In Nicaragua, approximately 88% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 39.3% more likely to have internet access
In Nicaragua, approximately 61.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Japan, about 85.5% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 16.4% more on education
Nicaragua spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 29.4% more on healthcare
Nicaragua spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 32.7 times more coastline
Nicaragua has a total of 910 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 98.0% less likely to be murdered
Nicaragua has a homicide rate of 11.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 80.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Nicaragua, road accidents kill 13.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 6.7 times more home broadband
Nicaragua has 5.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
use 11.8 times more electricity
Nicaragua uses 641 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Japan uses 7,530 kWh as of 2024.
live with 16.5 times more strain on fresh water
Nicaragua withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Japan withdraws 37% as of 2022.
Environment
be 68.4% less likely to die from air pollution
In Nicaragua, air pollution causes 38.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Japan, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 9.4 times more CO2
Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2016–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2013), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Nicaragua vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Nicaragua? See an in-depth size comparison.