Quality of life comparison
If you lived in China instead of Serbia, you would:
Health
live 2.0 years longer
In Serbia, the average life expectancy is 76 years (74 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024. In China, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
be 57.5% less likely to be obese
In Serbia, 21.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In China, that number is 9.3% of people as of 2024.
have 12.5% more access to essential health services
Serbia scores 72 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. China scores 81 as of 2021.
be 40.9% less likely to die by suicide
Serbia has a suicide rate of 15.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In China, it is 8.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
see 35.4% less spent on your healthcare
Serbia spends $2,303 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). China spends $1,487 as of 2023.
Economy
be 35.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Serbia, 7.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In China, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.
Life
be 10.9% less likely to die during infancy
In Serbia, approximately 4.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In China, on the other hand, 4.1 children do as of 2024.
be 45.5% more likely to die during childbirth
In Serbia, approximately 11.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In China, 16.0 women do as of 2023.
have 26.4% fewer children
In Serbia, there are approximately 9.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In China, there are 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 26.0% less on healthcare
Serbia spends 8.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In China, that number is 5.9% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 14.7% more on education
Serbia spends 3.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. China spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Safety
be 61.8% less likely to be murdered
Serbia has a homicide rate of 1.3 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In China, that number is 0.5 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 2.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Serbia, road accidents kill 7.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In China, they kill 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 41.4% more home broadband
Serbia has 33.4 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. China has 47.2 as of 2024.
use 28.2% more electricity
Serbia uses 5,090 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. China uses 6,524 kWh as of 2023.
live with 7.2 times more strain on fresh water
Serbia withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. China withdraws 42% as of 2022.
Environment
be 42.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Serbia, air pollution causes 45.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In China, it causes 64.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Serbia vs. China
China: At a glance
How big is China compared to Serbia? See an in-depth size comparison.