Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Papua New Guinea, you would:
Health
live 17.8 years longer
In Papua New Guinea, the average life expectancy is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 78.9% less likely to be obese
In Papua New Guinea, 28.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 40.3 times more spent on your healthcare
Papua New Guinea spends $133 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 43.4 times more doctors per person
Papua New Guinea has 0.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.
have 2.8 times more access to essential health services
Papua New Guinea scores 30 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.
be 9.6 times more likely to die by suicide
Papua New Guinea has a suicide rate of 1.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 11.9 times more money
Papua New Guinea has a GDP per capita of $3,020 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 98.4% less likely to die during childbirth
In Papua New Guinea, approximately 189.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 94.2% less likely to die during infancy
In Papua New Guinea, approximately 31.3 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.
have 76.5% fewer children
In Papua New Guinea, there are approximately 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 4.9 times more likely to have access to electricity
In Papua New Guinea, approximately 20% of people have electricity access (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 4.5 times more likely to have internet access
In Papua New Guinea, approximately 18.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Japan, about 85.5% do as of 2024.
be 86.1% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Papua New Guinea, approximately 53% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Japan, 99% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 4.3 times more on education
Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 3.7 times more on healthcare
Papua New Guinea spends 2.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 5.8 times more coastline
Papua New Guinea has a total of 5,152 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 81.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In Papua New Guinea, road accidents kill 14.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 168.0 times more home broadband
Papua New Guinea has 0.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
live with 281.8 times more strain on fresh water
Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Japan withdraws 37% as of 2022.
Environment
be 68.4% less likely to die from air pollution
In Papua New Guinea, air pollution causes 38.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Japan, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 15.1 times more CO2
Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Papua New Guinea vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Papua New Guinea? See an in-depth size comparison.