Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Iceland instead of Palau, you would:
Health
live 13.4 years longer
In Palau, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
be 45.2% less likely to be obese
In Palau, 40.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.
see 3.7 times more spent on your healthcare
Palau spends $1,857 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Iceland spends $6,927 as of 2024.
have 2.4 times more doctors per person
Palau has 18.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Iceland has 43.7 as of 2023.
have 36.9% more access to essential health services
Palau scores 65 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Iceland scores 89 as of 2021.
Economy
make 5.0 times more money
Palau has a GDP per capita of $19,532 as of 2025, while in Iceland, the GDP per capita is $98,323 as of 2025.
Life
be 96.6% 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 Iceland, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 88.7% 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 Iceland, on the other hand, 2.1 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 17.0% more likely to have internet access
In Palau, approximately 83.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Iceland, about 98.2% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 17.2% less on healthcare
Palau spends 10.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Iceland, that number is 9.0% of GDP as of 2024.
spend 2.1 times more on education
Palau spends 3.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Iceland spends 7.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 3.3 times more coastline
Palau has a total of 1,519 km of coastline. In Iceland, that number is 4,970 km.
Safety
be 89.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Palau, road accidents kill 22.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Iceland, they kill 2.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 5.1 times more home broadband
Palau has 7.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Iceland has 37.5 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 89.7% less CO2
Palau emits 82.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Iceland emits 8.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Palau vs. Iceland
Iceland: At a glance
How big is Iceland compared to Palau? See an in-depth size comparison.