Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Samoa instead of Marshall Islands, you would:

Health

be 10.6% less likely to be obese

In Marshall Islands, 52.9% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Samoa, that number is 47.3% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 72.9% less likely to be unemployed

In Marshall Islands, 36.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2006. In Samoa, that number is 9.8% as of 2023.

make 11.8% less money

Marshall Islands has a GDP per capita of $6,800 as of 2023, while in Samoa, the GDP per capita is $6,000 as of 2023.

be 3.0 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Marshall Islands, 7.2% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Samoa, however, that number is 21.9% as of 2018.

Life

be 21.5% less likely to die during infancy

In Marshall Islands, approximately 21.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Samoa, on the other hand, 17.0 children do as of 2020.

have 11.3% fewer children

In Marshall Islands, there are approximately 21.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Samoa, there are 18.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 2.0 times more likely to have internet access

In Marshall Islands, approximately 38.7% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Samoa, about 78.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 64.7% less on education

Marshall Islands spends 13.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Samoa spends 4.8% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 59.2% less on healthcare

Marshall Islands spends 13.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Samoa, that number is 5.3% of GDP as of 2020.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

Samoa: At a glance

Samoa is a sovereign country in Australia-Oceania, with a total land area of approximately 2,821 sq km. New Zealand occupied the German protectorate of Western Samoa at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. It continued to administer the islands as a mandate and then as a trust territory until 1962, when the islands became the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. The country dropped the "Western" from its name in 1997.
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How big is Samoa compared to Marshall Islands? See an in-depth size comparison.

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