Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in New Zealand instead of Malaysia, you would:

Health

live 6.4 years longer

In Malaysia, the average life expectancy is 76 years (74 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2022. In New Zealand, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2022.

be 97.4% more likely to be obese

In Malaysia, 15.6% of adults are obese as of 2016. In New Zealand, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 45.2% more money

Malaysia has a GDP per capita of $33,600 as of 2023, while in New Zealand, the GDP per capita is $48,800 as of 2023.

pay a 17.9% higher top tax rate

Malaysia has a top tax rate of 28.0% as of 2016. In New Zealand, the top tax rate is 33.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 66.7% less likely to die during childbirth

In Malaysia, approximately 21.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In New Zealand, 7.0 women do as of 2020.

be 47.8% less likely to die during infancy

In Malaysia, approximately 6.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In New Zealand, on the other hand, 3.4 children do as of 2022.

have 11.3% fewer children

In Malaysia, there are approximately 14.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Zealand, there are 12.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Expenditures

spend 53.8% more on education

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

spend 2.4 times more on healthcare

Malaysia spends 4.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In New Zealand, that number is 10.0% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 3.2 times more coastline

Malaysia has a total of 4,675 km of coastline. In New Zealand, that number is 15,134 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia, New Zealand Inland Revenue Department.

New Zealand: At a glance

New Zealand (sometimes abbreviated NZ) is a sovereign country in Australia-Oceania, with a total land area of approximately 264,537 sq km. The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. That same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both world wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.
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How big is New Zealand compared to Malaysia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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