Quality of life comparison

compared to

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

Health

live 3.8 years longer

In Mexico, the average life expectancy is 72 years (69 years for men, 76 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 78.5% less likely to be obese

In Mexico, 28.9% of adults are obese as of 2016. In China, that number is 6.2% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 66.2% more likely to be unemployed

In Mexico, 2.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In China, that number is 4.7% as of 2023.

pay a 28.6% higher top tax rate

Mexico has a top tax rate of 35.0% as of 2016. In China, the top tax rate is 45.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 61.0% less likely to die during childbirth

In Mexico, approximately 59.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In China, 23.0 women do as of 2020.

be 43.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Mexico, approximately 11.9 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.

have 28.7% fewer children

In Mexico, there are approximately 14.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In China, there are 10.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Expenditures

spend 16.3% less on education

Mexico spends 4.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. China spends 3.6% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 55.4% more coastline

Mexico has a total of 9,330 km of coastline. In China, that number is 14,500 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Servicio de Administración Tributaria, SHCP, State Administration of Taxation.

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 Mexico? See an in-depth size comparison.

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