Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in China instead of Japan, you would:

Health

live 8.7 years less

In Japan, the average life expectancy is 85 years (82 years for men, 88 years for women) as of 2022. In China, that number is 76 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2020.

be 44.2% more likely to be obese

In Japan, 4.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In China, that number is 6.2% of people as of 2016.

Economy

pay a 19.6% lower top tax rate

Japan has a top tax rate of 56.0% as of 2016. In China, the top tax rate is 45.0% as of 2016.

make 52.3% less money

Japan has a GDP per capita of $46,300 as of 2023, while in China, the GDP per capita is $22,100 as of 2023.

be 81.0% more likely to be unemployed

In Japan, 2.6% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In China, that number is 4.7% as of 2023.

Life

have 47.8% more children

In Japan, there are approximately 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In China, there are 10.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 5.8 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Japan, approximately 4.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In China, 23.0 women do as of 2020.

be 3.6 times more likely to die during infancy

In Japan, approximately 1.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In China, on the other hand, 6.8 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 12.0% less likely to have internet access

In Japan, approximately 83.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In China, about 73.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 48.6% less on healthcare

Japan spends 10.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In China, that number is 5.6% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 51.3% less coastline

Japan has a total of 29,751 km of coastline. In China, that number is 14,500 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, State Administration of Taxation, National Tax Agency Japan.

China: At a glance

China (sometimes abbreviated PRC) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 9,326,410 sq km. For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, MAO's successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight. Since the early 1990s, China has increased its global outreach and participation in international organizations.
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How big is China compared to Japan? See an in-depth size comparison.

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