Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Kiribati instead of Tonga, you would:
Health
be 38.2% less likely to be obese
In Tonga, 73.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 45.6% of people as of 2024.
live 6.5 years less
In Tonga, the average life expectancy is 73 years (70 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 67 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
see 21.7% less spent on your healthcare
Tonga spends $512 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kiribati spends $401 as of 2023.
have 15.8% less access to essential health services
Tonga scores 57 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Kiribati scores 48 as of 2021.
be 3.7 times more likely to die by suicide
Tonga has a suicide rate of 4.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Kiribati, it is 17.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 73.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Tonga, 20.6% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Kiribati, however, that number is 5.5% as of 2023.
make 60.9% less money
Tonga has a GDP per capita of $6,547 as of 2025, while in Kiribati, the GDP per capita is $2,559 as of 2025.
Life
be 19.4% more likely to die during childbirth
In Tonga, approximately 67.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Kiribati, 80.0 women do as of 2023.
be 5.0 times more likely to die during infancy
In Tonga, approximately 7.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Kiribati, on the other hand, 38.8 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 32.6% more likely to have internet access
In Tonga, approximately 67.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Kiribati, about 89.4% do as of 2024.
be 20.0% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Tonga, approximately 99% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 79% of people on average (90% in urban areas, and 64% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 3.1 times more on education
Tonga spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Kiribati spends 16.4% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 48.8% more on healthcare
Tonga spends 7.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Kiribati, that number is 10.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 2.7 times more coastline
Tonga has a total of 419 km of coastline. In Kiribati, that number is 1,143 km.
Safety
be 27.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Tonga, road accidents kill 8.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Kiribati, they kill 6.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 99.6% less home broadband
Tonga has 8.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Kiribati has 0.0 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 63.8% less CO2
Tonga emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kiribati emits 0.6 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.0 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Tonga, air pollution causes 24.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Kiribati, it causes 49.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Tonga vs. Kiribati
Kiribati: At a glance
How big is Kiribati compared to Tonga? See an in-depth size comparison.