If you lived in Moldova instead of Romania, you would:

Health

be 31.2% less likely to be obese

In Romania, 32.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Moldova, that number is 22.3% of people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

have 10.8% more doctors per person

Romania has 36.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Moldova has 40.2 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

live 5.1 years less

In Romania, the average life expectancy is 76 years (73 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024. In Moldova, that number is 71 years (67 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

see 54.8% less spent on your healthcare

Romania spends $2,614 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Moldova spends $1,181 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 47.0% more likely to die by suicide

Romania has a suicide rate of 9.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Moldova, it is 14.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

Economy

be 75.0% less likely to be unemployed

In Romania, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Moldova, that number is 1.5% as of 2025.

View global rankings →

be 82.6% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Romania, 18.4% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Moldova, however, that number is 33.6% as of 2024.

View global rankings →

make 61.7% less money

Romania has a GDP per capita of $22,538 as of 2025, while in Moldova, the GDP per capita is $8,622 as of 2025.

View global rankings →

Life

have 41.2% more children

In Romania, there are approximately 7.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Moldova, there are 10.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

be 58.3% more likely to die during childbirth

In Romania, approximately 12.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Moldova, 19.0 women do as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 2.5 times more likely to die during infancy

In Romania, approximately 6.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Moldova, on the other hand, 15.1 children do as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Basic Needs

be 15.2% less likely to have internet access

In Romania, approximately 91.3% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Moldova, about 77.4% do as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Expenditures

spend 100.0% more on education

Romania spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Moldova spends 6.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

View global rankings →

spend 18.0% more on healthcare

Romania spends 5.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Moldova, that number is 6.7% of GDP as of 2023.

View global rankings →

Safety

be 2.3 times more likely to be murdered

Romania has a homicide rate of 1.1 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Moldova, that number is 2.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

Infrastructure

find 17.2% less home broadband

Romania has 35.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Moldova has 29.6 as of 2024.

View global rankings →

live with 64.6% more strain on fresh water

Romania withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Moldova withdraws 13% as of 2022.

View global rankings →

Environment

be 26.1% more likely to die from air pollution

In Romania, air pollution causes 46.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Moldova, it causes 58.0 as of 2019.

View global rankings →


Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), World Health Organization (2024), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019). How we calculate this

Moldova: At a glance

Moldova is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 32,891 sq km. Part of Romania during the interwar period, Moldova was incorporated into the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although the country has been independent from the USSR since 1991, Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Nistru River supporting the separatist region of Transnistria, composed of a Slavic majority population (mostly Ukrainians and Russians), but with a sizeable ethnic Moldovan minority. One of the poorest nations in Europe, Moldova became the first former Soviet state to elect a communist, Vladimir VORONIN, as its president in 2001. VORONIN served as Moldova's president until he resigned in September 2009, following the opposition's gain of a narrow majority in July parliamentary elections and the Communist Party's (PCRM) subsequent inability to attract the three-fifths of parliamentary votes required to elect a president and, by doing so, put into place a permanent government. Four Moldovan opposition parties formed a new coalition, the Alliance for European Integration (AEI), iterations of which have acted as Moldova's governing coalitions since. Moldova experienced significant political uncertainty between 2009 and early 2012, holding three general elections and numerous presidential ballots in parliament, all of which failed to secure a president. Following November 2010 parliamentary elections, a reconstituted AEI-coalition consisting of three of the four original AEI parties formed a government, and in March 2012 was finally able to elect an independent as president. As of late May 2013, the ruling coalition - comprised of two of the original AEI parties and a splinter group from a third - is called the Pro-European Coalition. In November 2013, the Moldovan Government initialed an Association Agreement with the European Union (EU), advancing the coalition's policy priority of EU integration.
Read more

How big is Moldova compared to Romania? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Moldova or Romania. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.