Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Iceland instead of South Korea, you would:
Health
see 36.3% more spent on your healthcare
South Korea spends $5,081 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Iceland spends $6,927 as of 2024.
have 67.5% more doctors per person
South Korea has 26.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Iceland has 43.7 as of 2023.
be 56.7% less likely to die by suicide
South Korea has a suicide rate of 27.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Iceland, it is 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.7 times more likely to be obese
In South Korea, 8.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 38.9% less likely to live below the poverty line
In South Korea, 14.4% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Iceland, however, that number is 8.8% as of 2017.
make 2.7 times more money
South Korea has a GDP per capita of $36,227 as of 2025, while in Iceland, the GDP per capita is $98,323 as of 2025.
be 35.1% more likely to be unemployed
In South Korea, 2.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Iceland, that number is 3.6% as of 2025.
Life
be 25.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In South Korea, approximately 4.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Iceland, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
have 2.4 times more children
In South Korea, there are approximately 4.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Iceland, there are 11.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 35.1% more on education
South Korea spends 5.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Iceland spends 7.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 2.1 times more coastline
South Korea has a total of 2,413 km of coastline. In Iceland, that number is 4,970 km.
Safety
be 41.8% more likely to feel safe walking alone at night
In South Korea, 64% of people feel safe walking alone at night as of 2021. In Iceland, that number is 91% as of 2022.
be 65.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In South Korea, road accidents kill 6.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Iceland, they kill 2.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.7 times more likely to be murdered
South Korea has a homicide rate of 0.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Iceland, that number is 1.3 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 99.5% less strain on fresh water
South Korea withdraws 85% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Iceland withdraws 0% as of 2022.
use 4.3 times more electricity
South Korea uses 11,350 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Iceland uses 48,998 kWh as of 2024.
find 21.5% less home broadband
South Korea has 47.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Iceland has 37.5 as of 2024.
Environment
be 57.9% less likely to die from air pollution
In South Korea, air pollution causes 19.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Iceland, it causes 8.0 as of 2019.
emit 25.0% less CO2
South Korea emits 11.4 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Iceland emits 8.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2017–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), The World Factbook (2016), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: South Korea vs. Iceland
Iceland: At a glance
How big is Iceland compared to South Korea? See an in-depth size comparison.