Quality of life comparison
If you lived in China instead of Palau, you would:
Health
live 8.6 years longer
In Palau, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2024. In China, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
be 77.1% less likely to be obese
In Palau, 40.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In China, that number is 9.3% of people as of 2024.
have 72.1% more doctors per person
Palau has 18.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. China has 31.1 as of 2022.
have 24.6% more access to essential health services
Palau scores 65 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. China scores 81 as of 2021.
see 19.9% less spent on your healthcare
Palau spends $1,857 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). China spends $1,487 as of 2023.
Economy
make 29.0% less money
Palau has a GDP per capita of $19,532 as of 2025, while in China, the GDP per capita is $13,862 as of 2025.
Life
be 82.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Palau, approximately 89.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In China, 16.0 women do as of 2023.
be 78.0% less likely to die during infancy
In Palau, approximately 18.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In China, on the other hand, 4.1 children do as of 2024.
have 36.7% fewer children
In Palau, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In China, there are 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 45.3% less on healthcare
Palau spends 10.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In China, that number is 5.9% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 13.4% more on education
Palau spends 3.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. China spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 9.5 times more coastline
Palau has a total of 1,519 km of coastline. In China, that number is 14,500 km.
Safety
be 95.5% less likely to be murdered
Palau has a homicide rate of 11.2 per 100,000 people as of 2018. In China, that number is 0.5 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 21.6% less likely to die in a road accident
In Palau, road accidents kill 22.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In China, they kill 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 6.4 times more home broadband
Palau has 7.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. China has 47.2 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 88.7% less CO2
Palau emits 82.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. China emits 9.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2018–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Palau vs. China
China: At a glance
How big is China compared to Palau? See an in-depth size comparison.