Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Belgium instead of South Korea, you would:
Health
live 1.1 years less
In South Korea, the average life expectancy is 83 years (80 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022. In Belgium, that number is 82 years (79 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022.
be 4.7 times more likely to be obese
In South Korea, 4.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Belgium, that number is 22.1% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 13.9% more money
South Korea has a GDP per capita of $42,300 as of 2020, while in Belgium, the GDP per capita is $48,200 as of 2020.
be 42.6% more likely to be unemployed
In South Korea, 3.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2019. In Belgium, that number is 5.4% as of 2019.
pay a 41.3% higher top tax rate
South Korea has a top tax rate of 38.0% as of 2016. In Belgium, the top tax rate is 53.7% as of 2016.
Life
be 54.5% less likely to die during childbirth
In South Korea, approximately 11.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Belgium, 5.0 women do as of 2017.
have 58.2% more children
In South Korea, there are approximately 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In Belgium, there are 10.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
be 11.1% more likely to die during infancy
In South Korea, approximately 2.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Belgium, on the other hand, 3.2 children do as of 2022.
Expenditures
spend 42.2% more on education
South Korea spends 4.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. Belgium spends 6.4% of total GDP on education as of 2018.
spend 30.5% more on healthcare
South Korea spends 8.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Belgium, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2019.
Geography
see 97.2% less coastline
South Korea has a total of 2,413 km of coastline. In Belgium, that number is 66 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Service Public Fédéral Finances, The World Factbook, National Tax Service, South Korea.
Belgium: At a glance
How big is Belgium compared to South Korea? See an in-depth size comparison.