Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Belgium instead of United States, you would:
Health
live 1.3 years longer
In United States, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2022. In Belgium, that number is 82 years (79 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022.
be 39.0% less likely to be obese
In United States, 36.2% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Belgium, that number is 22.1% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 19.9% less money
United States has a GDP per capita of $60,200 as of 2020, while in Belgium, the GDP per capita is $48,200 as of 2020.
be 37.8% more likely to be unemployed
In United States, 3.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2018. In Belgium, that number is 5.4% as of 2019.
pay a 35.6% higher top tax rate
United States has a top tax rate of 39.6% as of 2016. In Belgium, the top tax rate is 53.7% as of 2016.
Life
be 73.7% less likely to die during childbirth
In United States, approximately 19.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Belgium, 5.0 women do as of 2017.
be 38.3% less likely to die during infancy
In United States, approximately 5.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Belgium, on the other hand, 3.2 children do as of 2022.
have 10.8% fewer children
In United States, there are approximately 12.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In Belgium, there are 10.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Expenditures
spend 36.3% less on healthcare
United States spends 16.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Belgium, that number is 10.7% of GDP as of 2019.
spend 28.0% more on education
United States spends 5.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2014. Belgium spends 6.4% of total GDP on education as of 2018.
Geography
see 99.7% less coastline
United States has a total of 19,924 km of coastline. In Belgium, that number is 66 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Service Public Fédéral Finances, The World Factbook, Internal Revenue Service.
Belgium: At a glance
How big is Belgium compared to United States? See an in-depth size comparison.