Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Kiribati instead of Palau, you would:
Health
live 2.8 years less
In Palau, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 67 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
be 12.5% more likely to be obese
In Palau, 40.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 45.6% of people as of 2024.
see 78.4% less spent on your healthcare
Palau spends $1,857 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kiribati spends $401 as of 2023.
have 26.2% less access to essential health services
Palau scores 65 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Kiribati scores 48 as of 2021.
Economy
make 86.9% less money
Palau has a GDP per capita of $19,532 as of 2025, while in Kiribati, the GDP per capita is $2,559 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.4 times more children
In Palau, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Kiribati, there are 25.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 2.1 times more 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 Kiribati, on the other hand, 38.8 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 20.6% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Palau, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 79% of people on average (90% in urban areas, and 64% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 4.8 times more on education
Palau spends 3.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Kiribati spends 16.4% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 24.8% less coastline
Palau has a total of 1,519 km of coastline. In Kiribati, that number is 1,143 km.
Safety
be 72.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Palau, road accidents kill 22.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Kiribati, they kill 6.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 99.6% less home broadband
Palau has 7.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Kiribati has 0.0 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 99.3% less CO2
Palau emits 82.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kiribati emits 0.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2023–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Palau vs. Kiribati
Kiribati: At a glance
How big is Kiribati compared to Palau? See an in-depth size comparison.