Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Kuwait instead of United States, you would:
Health
live 5.7 years longer
In United States, the average life expectancy is 79 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Kuwait, that number is 85 years (84 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.
be 85.2% less likely to die by suicide
United States has a suicide rate of 15.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Kuwait, it is 2.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
see 80.9% less spent on your healthcare
United States spends $13,473 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kuwait spends $2,567 as of 2023.
have 38.3% fewer doctors per person
United States has 36.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Kuwait has 22.7 as of 2020.
Economy
be 48.1% less likely to be unemployed
In United States, 4.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Kuwait, that number is 2.2% as of 2025.
make 64.1% less money
United States has a GDP per capita of $90,027 as of 2025, while in Kuwait, the GDP per capita is $32,312 as of 2025.
Life
be 52.9% less likely to die during childbirth
In United States, approximately 17.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Kuwait, 8.0 women do as of 2023.
be 27.3% more likely to die during infancy
In United States, approximately 5.5 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.
Expenditures
spend 70.3% less on healthcare
United States spends 16.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Kuwait, that number is 5.0% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 18.8% more on education
United States spends 5.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Kuwait spends 6.4% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 97.5% less coastline
United States has a total of 19,924 km of coastline. In Kuwait, that number is 499 km.
Safety
be 95.7% less likely to be murdered
United States has a homicide rate of 5.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Kuwait, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 35.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In United States, road accidents kill 14.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Kuwait, they kill 9.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
use 28.5% more electricity
United States uses 12,839 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Kuwait uses 16,496 kWh as of 2023.
find 97.4% less home broadband
United States has 38.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Kuwait has 1.0 as of 2023.
live with 136.7 times more strain on fresh water
United States withdraws 28% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Kuwait withdraws 3850% as of 2022.
Environment
be 3.2 times more likely to die from air pollution
In United States, air pollution causes 14.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Kuwait, it causes 45.0 as of 2019.
emit 73.8% more CO2
United States emits 13.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kuwait emits 23.7 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: United States vs. Kuwait
Kuwait: At a glance
How big is Kuwait compared to United States? See an in-depth size comparison.