Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Netherlands instead of Norway, you would:
Health
be 27.2% less likely to be obese
In Norway, 20.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Netherlands, that number is 14.7% of people as of 2024.
be 12.8% less likely to die by suicide
Norway has a suicide rate of 13.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Netherlands, it is 11.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 1.2 years less
In Norway, the average life expectancy is 83 years (82 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Netherlands, that number is 82 years (81 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024.
see 14.0% less spent on your healthcare
Norway spends $9,523 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Netherlands spends $8,195 as of 2024.
have 22.1% fewer doctors per person
Norway has 49.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Netherlands has 38.8 as of 2022.
Economy
be 16.6% less likely to be unemployed
In Norway, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Netherlands, that number is 3.9% as of 2025.
be 18.9% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Norway, 12.2% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Netherlands, however, that number is 14.5% as of 2021.
make 22.1% less money
Norway has a GDP per capita of $94,594 as of 2025, while in Netherlands, the GDP per capita is $73,684 as of 2025.
Life
be 4.0 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Norway, approximately 1.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Netherlands, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
be 70.0% more likely to die during infancy
In Norway, approximately 2.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Netherlands, on the other hand, 3.4 children do as of 2024.
Geography
see 98.2% less coastline
Norway has a total of 25,148 km of coastline. In Netherlands, that number is 451 km.
Safety
be 2.3 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Norway, road accidents kill 1.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Netherlands, they kill 3.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 8.2 times more strain on fresh water
Norway withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Netherlands withdraws 17% as of 2022.
use 73.0% less electricity
Norway uses 23,673 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Netherlands uses 6,386 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
be 62.5% more likely to die from air pollution
In Norway, air pollution causes 8.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Netherlands, it causes 13.0 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: Norway vs. Netherlands
Netherlands: At a glance
How big is Netherlands compared to Norway? See an in-depth size comparison.