Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Japan instead of Palau, you would:

Health

live 14.7 years longer

In Palau, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 85.4% less likely to be obese

In Palau, 40.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.

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see 2.9 times more spent on your healthcare

Palau spends $1,857 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.

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have 46.5% more doctors per person

Palau has 18.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.

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have 27.7% more access to essential health services

Palau scores 65 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.

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Economy

make 84.1% more money

Palau has a GDP per capita of $19,532 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.

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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 Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 90.3% 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 Japan, on the other hand, 1.8 children do as of 2024.

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have 46.7% fewer children

In Palau, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Geography

see 19.6 times more coastline

Palau has a total of 1,519 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.

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Safety

be 87.8% less likely to die in a road accident

In Palau, road accidents kill 22.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 5.3 times more home broadband

Palau has 7.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 90.5% less CO2

Palau emits 82.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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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. Japan

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
Japan is 33.2% cheaper than Palau overall
→
Size Comparison · See true size
Palau is about 823 times smaller than Japan.
→
Moving from Palau to Japan · OECD 2023
49 people moved from Palau to Japan.
→

Japan: At a glance

Japan is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 364,485 sq km. In 1603, after decades of civil warfare, the Tokugawa shogunate (a military-led, dynastic government) ushered in a long period of relative political stability and isolation from foreign influence. For more than two centuries this policy enabled Japan to enjoy a flowering of its indigenous culture. Japan opened its ports after signing the Treaty of Kanagawa with the US in 1854 and began to intensively modernize and industrialize. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Japan became a regional power that was able to defeat the forces of both China and Russia. It occupied Korea, Formosa (Taiwan), and southern Sakhalin Island. In 1931-32 Japan occupied Manchuria, and in 1937 it launched a full-scale invasion of China. Japan attacked US forces in 1941 - triggering America's entry into World War II - and soon occupied much of East and Southeast Asia. After its defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become an economic power and an ally of the US. While the emperor retains his throne as a symbol of national unity, elected politicians hold actual decision-making power. Following three decades of unprecedented growth, Japan's economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s, but the country remains a major economic power. In March 2011, Japan's strongest-ever earthquake, and an accompanying tsunami, devastated the northeast part of Honshu island, killing thousands and damaging several nuclear power plants. The catastrophe hobbled the country's economy and its energy infrastructure, and tested its ability to deal with humanitarian disasters.
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