Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Vanuatu, you would:
Health
live 12.4 years longer
In Vanuatu, the average life expectancy is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 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 73.9% less likely to be obese
In Vanuatu, 22.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
see 38.0 times more spent on your healthcare
Vanuatu spends $141 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Japan spends $5,365 as of 2023.
have 16.2 times more doctors per person
Vanuatu has 1.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2019. Japan has 26.5 as of 2022.
have 76.6% more access to essential health services
Vanuatu scores 47 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Japan scores 83 as of 2021.
be 10.8% more likely to die by suicide
Vanuatu has a suicide rate of 15.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 51.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Vanuatu, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Japan, that number is 2.5% as of 2025.
make 8.9 times more money
Vanuatu has a GDP per capita of $4,039 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 97.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Vanuatu, approximately 100.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 87.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Vanuatu, approximately 14.4 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 79.4% fewer children
In Vanuatu, there are approximately 27.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Japan, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 62.3% more likely to have access to electricity
In Vanuatu, approximately 62% of people have electricity access (88% in urban areas, and 54% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 22.4% more likely to have internet access
In Vanuatu, approximately 69.9% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Japan, about 85.5% do as of 2024.
be 13.8% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Vanuatu, approximately 87% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Japan, 99% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 56.3% less on education
Vanuatu spends 7.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 2.6 times more on healthcare
Vanuatu spends 4.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 11.8 times more coastline
Vanuatu has a total of 2,528 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 30.3% less likely to be murdered
Vanuatu has a homicide rate of 0.3 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Japan, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 78.4% less likely to die in a road accident
In Vanuatu, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 33.3 times more home broadband
Vanuatu has 1.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
Environment
be 78.9% less likely to die from air pollution
In Vanuatu, air pollution causes 57.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Japan, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 9.0 times more CO2
Vanuatu emits 0.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Vanuatu vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Vanuatu? See an in-depth size comparison.