Quality of life comparison
If you lived in North Korea instead of Sweden, you would:
Health
be 67.0% less likely to be obese
In Sweden, 20.6% of adults are obese as of 2016. In North Korea, that number is 6.8% of people as of 2016.
live 10.9 years less
In Sweden, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022. In North Korea, that number is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022.
Economy
make 96.6% less money
Sweden has a GDP per capita of $50,700 as of 2020, while in North Korea, the GDP per capita is $1,700 as of 2015.
be 3.8 times more likely to be unemployed
In Sweden, 6.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2019. In North Korea, that number is 25.6% as of 2013.
Life
have 31.2% more children
In Sweden, there are approximately 10.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In North Korea, there are 14.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
be 22.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Sweden, approximately 4.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In North Korea, 89.0 women do as of 2017.
be 9.7 times more likely to die during infancy
In Sweden, approximately 2.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In North Korea, on the other hand, 22.2 children do as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 74.0% less likely to have access to electricity
In Sweden, approximately 100% of the population has electricity access as of 2020. In North Korea, 26% of the population do as of 2019.
Geography
see 22.5% less coastline
Sweden has a total of 3,218 km of coastline. In North Korea, that number is 2,495 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.
North Korea: At a glance
How big is North Korea compared to Sweden? See an in-depth size comparison.