Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Belgium instead of Germany, you would:

Economy

be 16.9% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Germany, 14.8% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Belgium, however, that number is 12.3% as of 2022.

be 80.7% more likely to be unemployed

In Germany, 3.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Belgium, that number is 5.5% as of 2023.

pay a 13.1% higher top tax rate

Germany has a top tax rate of 47.5% as of 2016. In Belgium, the top tax rate is 53.7% as of 2016.

Life

have 21.3% more children

In Germany, there are approximately 8.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Belgium, there are 10.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 25.0% more likely to die during childbirth

In Germany, approximately 4.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Belgium, 5.0 women do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 13.3% less on healthcare

Germany spends 12.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Belgium, that number is 11.1% of GDP as of 2020.

spend 42.6% more on education

Germany spends 4.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Belgium spends 6.7% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 97.2% less coastline

Germany has a total of 2,389 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, Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).

Belgium: At a glance

Belgium is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 30,278 sq km. Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830; it was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. The country prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Political divisions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy. Its capital, Brussels, is home to numerous international organizations including the EU and NATO.
Read more

How big is Belgium compared to Germany? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Belgium.or Germany It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.