Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Kuwait instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:

Health

live 1.5 years longer

In United Arab Emirates, the average life expectancy is 83 years (82 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Kuwait, that number is 85 years (84 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 27.9% more likely to be obese

In United Arab Emirates, 31.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Kuwait, that number is 40.4% of people as of 2024.

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see 31.1% less spent on your healthcare

United Arab Emirates spends $3,727 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kuwait spends $2,567 as of 2023.

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have 24.0% fewer doctors per person

United Arab Emirates has 29.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Kuwait has 22.7 as of 2020.

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be 35.1% more likely to die by suicide

United Arab Emirates has a suicide rate of 1.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Kuwait, it is 2.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

make 35.7% less money

United Arab Emirates has a GDP per capita of $50,274 as of 2024, while in Kuwait, the GDP per capita is $32,312 as of 2025.

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Life

be 2.7 times more likely to die during childbirth

In United Arab Emirates, approximately 3.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Kuwait, 8.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 84.2% more likely to die during infancy

In United Arab Emirates, approximately 3.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Kuwait, on the other hand, 7.0 children do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 65.6% more on education

United Arab Emirates spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Kuwait spends 6.4% of total GDP on education as of 2024.

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Geography

see 62.1% less coastline

United Arab Emirates has a total of 1,318 km of coastline. In Kuwait, that number is 499 km.

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Safety

be 63.8% less likely to be murdered

United Arab Emirates has a homicide rate of 0.7 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Kuwait, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.

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be 55.9% more likely to die in a road accident

In United Arab Emirates, road accidents kill 5.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Kuwait, they kill 9.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 97.5% less home broadband

United Arab Emirates has 40.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Kuwait has 1.0 as of 2023.

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live with 2.6 times more strain on fresh water

United Arab Emirates withdraws 1510% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Kuwait withdraws 3850% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 35.7% less likely to die from air pollution

In United Arab Emirates, air pollution causes 70.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Kuwait, it causes 45.0 as of 2019.

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emit 29.6% more CO2

United Arab Emirates emits 18.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kuwait emits 23.7 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Compare further: United Arab Emirates vs. Kuwait

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
Kuwait is 33.6% cheaper than United Arab Emirates overall
→
Size Comparison · See true size
United Arab Emirates is about 4.7 times bigger than Kuwait.
→
Moving from United Arab Emirates to Kuwait · UN DESA 2020
26,760 people born in United Arab Emirates live in Kuwait.
→

Kuwait: At a glance

Kuwait is a sovereign country in Middle East, with a total land area of approximately 17,818 sq km. Britain oversaw foreign relations and defense for the ruling Kuwaiti AL-SABAH dynasty from 1899 until independence in 1961. Kuwait was attacked and overrun by Iraq on 2 August 1990. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led, UN coalition began a ground assault on 23 February 1991 that liberated Kuwait in four days. Kuwait spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during 1990-91. The AL-SABAH family has ruled since returning to power in 1991 and reestablished an elected legislature that in recent years has become increasingly assertive. The country witnessed the historic election in 2009 of four women to its National Assembly. Amid the 2010-11 uprisings and protests across the Arab world, stateless Arabs, known as bidun, staged small protests in February and March 2011 demanding citizenship, jobs, and other benefits available to Kuwaiti nationals. Youth activist groups - supported by opposition legislators - rallied repeatedly in 2011 for the prime minister's dismissal amid allegations of widespread government corruption. Demonstrators forced the prime minister to resign in late 2011. In late 2012, Kuwait witnessed unprecedented protests in response to the Amir's changes to the electoral law by decree reducing the number of votes per person from four to one. The opposition, led by a coalition of Sunni Islamists, tribalists, some liberals, and myriad youth groups, largely boycotted legislative elections in 2012 and 2013 ushering in legislatures more amenable to the government's agenda. Since 2006, the Amir has dissolved the National Assembly on five occasions (the Constitutional Court annulled the Assembly in June 2012 and again in June 2013) and shuffled the cabinet over a dozen times, usually citing political stagnation and gridlock between the legislature and the government.
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