Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Tuvalu, you would:
Health
live 16.8 years longer
In Tuvalu, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 90.9% less likely to be obese
In Tuvalu, 65.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 3.2 times more spent on your healthcare
Tuvalu spends $1,671 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 96.8% more doctors per person
Tuvalu has 13.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2020. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.
have 59.6% more access to essential health services
Tuvalu scores 52 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.
Economy
be 38.8% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Tuvalu, 26.3% live below the poverty line as of 2010. In Japan, however, that number is 16.1% as of 2013.
make 6.0 times more money
Tuvalu has a GDP per capita of $6,041 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 98.2% less likely to die during childbirth
In Tuvalu, approximately 170.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 89.1% less likely to die during infancy
In Tuvalu, approximately 16.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Japan, on the other hand, 1.8 children do as of 2024.
have 74.1% fewer children
In Tuvalu, there are approximately 22.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 74.0% less on education
Tuvalu spends 12.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 60.4% less on healthcare
Tuvalu spends 27.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 1239.6 times more coastline
Tuvalu has a total of 24 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 84.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In Tuvalu, road accidents kill 17.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 8.5 times more home broadband
Tuvalu has 4.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), The World Factbook (2010–2013), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Tuvalu vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Tuvalu? See an in-depth size comparison.