Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Mexico instead of South Korea, you would:

Health

live 10.7 years less

In South Korea, the average life expectancy is 83 years (80 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022. In Mexico, that number is 72 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022.

be 6.1 times more likely to be obese

In South Korea, 4.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Mexico, that number is 28.9% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 55.7% less money

South Korea has a GDP per capita of $50,600 as of 2023, while in Mexico, the GDP per capita is $22,400 as of 2023.

be 2.5 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In South Korea, 14.4% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Mexico, however, that number is 36.3% as of 2022.

Life

have 2.1 times more children

In South Korea, there are approximately 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In Mexico, there are 14.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 7.4 times more likely to die during childbirth

In South Korea, approximately 8.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Mexico, 59.0 women do as of 2020.

be 4.1 times 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 Mexico, on the other hand, 11.9 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 22.4% less likely to have internet access

In South Korea, approximately 98.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Mexico, about 76.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 26.2% less on healthcare

South Korea spends 8.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Mexico, that number is 6.2% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 3.9 times more coastline

South Korea has a total of 2,413 km of coastline. In Mexico, that number is 9,330 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

Mexico: At a glance

Mexico is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 1,943,945 sq km. The site of several advanced Amerindian civilizations - including the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya, and Aztec - Mexico was conquered and colonized by Spain in the early 16th century. Administered as the Viceroyalty of New Spain for three centuries, it achieved its independence early in the 19th century. The global financial crisis beginning in late 2008 caused a massive economic downturn the following year, although growth returned quickly in 2010. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely indigenous population in the impoverished southern states. The elections held in 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that an opposition candidate - Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) - defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was succeeded in 2006 by another PAN candidate Felipe CALDERON, but Enrique PENA NIETO regained the presidency for the PRI in 2012. Since 2007, Mexico's powerful drug-trafficking organizations have engaged in bloody feuding, resulting in tens of thousands of drug-related homicides.
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How big is Mexico compared to South Korea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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