Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of South Africa, you would:
Health
live 17.7 years longer
In South Africa, the average life expectancy is 65 years (64 years for men, 67 years for women) as of 2022. In South Korea, that number is 83 years (80 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022.
be 83.4% less likely to be obese
In South Africa, 28.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In South Korea, that number is 4.7% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 3.7 times more money
South Africa has a GDP per capita of $11,500 as of 2020, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $42,300 as of 2020.
be 86.8% less likely to be unemployed
In South Africa, 28.5% of adults are unemployed as of 2019. In South Korea, that number is 3.8% as of 2019.
be 13.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In South Africa, 16.6% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In South Korea, however, that number is 14.4% as of 2016.
pay a 15.6% lower top tax rate
South Africa has a top tax rate of 45.0% as of 2017. In South Korea, the top tax rate is 38.0% as of 2016.
Life
be 90.8% less likely to die during childbirth
In South Africa, approximately 119.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In South Korea, 11.0 women do as of 2017.
be 88.9% less likely to die during infancy
In South Africa, approximately 25.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In South Korea, on the other hand, 2.9 children do as of 2022.
have 62.7% fewer children
In South Africa, there are approximately 18.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In South Korea, there are 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 38.6% more likely to have internet access
In South Africa, approximately 70.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In South Korea, about 97.0% do as of 2020.
Expenditures
spend 33.8% less on education
South Africa spends 6.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. South Korea spends 4.5% of total GDP on education as of 2018.
Geography
see 13.8% less coastline
South Africa has a total of 2,798 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, National Tax Service, South Korea, South African Revenue Service.
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to South Africa? See an in-depth size comparison.