Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Sweden instead of Croatia, you would:

Health

live 5.5 years longer

In Croatia, the average life expectancy is 77 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2022. In Sweden, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022.

be 15.6% less likely to be obese

In Croatia, 24.4% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Sweden, that number is 20.6% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 55.4% more money

Croatia has a GDP per capita of $41,300 as of 2023, while in Sweden, the GDP per capita is $64,200 as of 2023.

be 10.6% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Croatia, 18.0% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Sweden, however, that number is 16.1% as of 2022.

be 25.2% more likely to be unemployed

In Croatia, 6.1% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Sweden, that number is 7.6% as of 2023.

pay a 21.0% higher top tax rate

Croatia has a top tax rate of 47.2% as of 2016. In Sweden, the top tax rate is 57.1% as of 2016.

Life

be 73.7% less likely to die during infancy

In Croatia, approximately 8.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Sweden, on the other hand, 2.3 children do as of 2022.

have 25.9% more children

In Croatia, there are approximately 8.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sweden, there are 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Expenditures

spend 30.9% more on education

Croatia spends 5.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Sweden spends 7.2% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 46.2% more on healthcare

Croatia spends 7.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Sweden, that number is 11.4% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 44.9% less coastline

Croatia has a total of 5,835 km of coastline. In Sweden, that number is 3,218 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Croatia Tax Administration, The World Factbook, Skatteverket.

Sweden: At a glance

Sweden is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 410,335 sq km. A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for almost two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both world wars. Sweden's long-successful economic formula of a capitalist system intermixed with substantial welfare elements was challenged in the 1990s by high unemployment and in 2000-02 and 2009 by the global economic downturns, but fiscal discipline over the past several years has allowed the country to weather economic vagaries. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum.
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How big is Sweden compared to Croatia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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