Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of Tuvalu, you would:
Health
live 16.4 years longer
In Tuvalu, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In South Korea, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 87.1% less likely to be obese
In Tuvalu, 65.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In South Korea, that number is 8.4% of people as of 2024.
see 3.0 times more spent on your healthcare
Tuvalu spends $1,671 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). South Korea spends $5,081 as of 2024.
have 93.9% more doctors per person
Tuvalu has 13.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2020. South Korea has 26.1 as of 2022.
have 71.2% more access to essential health services
Tuvalu scores 52 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. South Korea scores 89 as of 2021.
Economy
make 6.0 times more money
Tuvalu has a GDP per capita of $6,041 as of 2025, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $36,227 as of 2025.
Life
be 97.6% 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 South Korea, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
be 86.1% 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 South Korea, on the other hand, 2.3 children do as of 2024.
have 78.6% fewer children
In Tuvalu, there are approximately 22.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Korea, there are 4.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 20.6% more likely to have internet access
In Tuvalu, approximately 81.2% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In South Korea, about 97.9% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 57.9% less on education
Tuvalu spends 12.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. South Korea spends 5.4% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 68.0% less on healthcare
Tuvalu spends 27.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In South Korea, that number is 8.7% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 100.5 times more coastline
Tuvalu has a total of 24 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
Safety
be 61.5% less likely to die in a road accident
In Tuvalu, road accidents kill 17.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In South Korea, they kill 6.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 10.6 times more home broadband
Tuvalu has 4.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. South Korea has 47.8 as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Tuvalu vs. South Korea
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to Tuvalu? See an in-depth size comparison.