Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Malaysia instead of Latvia, you would:

Health

be 33.9% less likely to be obese

In Latvia, 23.6% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Malaysia, that number is 15.6% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 40.9% less likely to be unemployed

In Latvia, 6.5% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Malaysia, that number is 3.9% as of 2023.

be 72.4% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Latvia, 22.5% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Malaysia, however, that number is 6.2% as of 2021.

make 11.1% less money

Latvia has a GDP per capita of $37,800 as of 2023, while in Malaysia, the GDP per capita is $33,600 as of 2023.

pay a 21.7% higher top tax rate

Latvia has a top tax rate of 23.0% as of 2016. In Malaysia, the top tax rate is 28.0% as of 2016.

Life

have 71.1% more children

In Latvia, there are approximately 8.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Malaysia, there are 14.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 16.7% more likely to die during childbirth

In Latvia, approximately 18.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Malaysia, 21.0 women do as of 2020.

be 35.9% more likely to die during infancy

In Latvia, approximately 4.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Malaysia, on the other hand, 6.6 children do as of 2022.

Expenditures

spend 35.0% less on education

Latvia spends 6.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Malaysia spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 45.3% less on healthcare

Latvia spends 7.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Malaysia, that number is 4.1% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 9.4 times more coastline

Latvia has a total of 498 km of coastline. In Malaysia, that number is 4,675 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: State Revenue Service, Latvia, The World Factbook, Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia.

Malaysia: At a glance

Malaysia is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 328,657 sq km. During the late 18th and 19th centuries, Great Britain established colonies and protectorates in the area of current Malaysia; these were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. In 1948, the British-ruled territories on the Malay Peninsula except Singapore formed the Federation of Malaya, which became independent in 1957. Malaysia was formed in 1963 when the former British colonies of Singapore, as well as Sabah and Sarawak on the northern coast of Borneo, joined the Federation. The first several years of the country's independence were marred by a communist insurgency, Indonesian confrontation with Malaysia, Philippine claims to Sabah, and Singapore's withdrawal in 1965. During the 22-year term of Prime Minister MAHATHIR bin Mohamad (1981-2003), Malaysia was successful in diversifying its economy from dependence on exports of raw materials to the development of manufacturing, services, and tourism. Prime Minister Mohamed NAJIB bin Abdul Razak (in office since April 2009) has continued these pro-business policies and has introduced some civil reforms.
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How big is Malaysia compared to Latvia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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